Hello so a few minutes ago Kai growled for the first time. Hes 12 weeks btw.
Anyway, this morning after I woke up i took him out for a walk and he walked perfectly the whole time.
We got home and I poured out his food, waited until he sat and looked at me (only takes like 3 seconds ) then put his food down and let him eat.
I did what I usually do, put my hand around the bowl and pet him ect and he never protested before but today when I petted him he let out a low "rrrrrr" noise so I corrected him,took away his food,made him sit and gave it back.

I put him outside when he was done but I dont know what to do !
Since we got him I was trying to prevent food aggression but now hes starting to growl Any advice to what i should do later when feeding again/what i should do in the future to prevent this ?

Frankie,
They will test you to no end. This was his first test. Hand feed his meals, although a slow process, I feel it makes for a more gentle husky overall. Serious food aggression and mouthing, I feel go hand in hand. At his next meal, sit with him, keep food where you can get, but he cannot. Keep yourself at a similar level, i.e. sit on a dining room chair have him sit in front of you. Scoop up a couple pieces of food, close your hand for a fist, let him smell, tell him to be"gentle", "nice" whatever command you choose to slow him down and be gentle. Open hand and let him have it, check his response. If he is too aggressive, keep him on a sit scoop more food, say "wait" "be gentle" and make him wait, use a command "get it", "take it", if he's good tell him good boy with a little face rubs. All of this helps with training process, recognizing don't be mean to the food lady, and bonding time. Miya doesn't guard with me, however she will with the cat and with bones she will with my husband, not with me. If I'm giving treats and the cat is around she has nipped me and I will do a correction with, Miya sit, wait, be gentle, get it and she takes from me gently. I use her name almost always, as you will find in time they are stubborn and apparently you are not talking to them but someone else, using their name gives them focus on you and what you want. It may take several feedings this way, and it may seem daunting to sit and hand feed, but it will make him a better dog, feed through the whole bowl this way, perhaps the last few pieces set it down for him but remain sitting next to him. Through the whole process use happy, soft yet firm voice.
Good Luck and let us know how things go.

Renee

MiyasMomma wrote:

Frankie,
  They will test you to no end. This was his first test. Hand feed his meals, although a slow process, I feel it makes for a more gentle husky overall. Serious food aggression and mouthing, I feel go hand in hand. At his next meal, sit with him,  keep food where you can get, but he cannot. Keep yourself at a similar level, i.e. sit on a dining room chair have him sit in front of you. Scoop up a couple pieces of food, close your hand for a fist, let him smell, tell him to be"gentle", "nice" whatever command you choose to slow him down and be gentle. Open hand and let him have it, check his response. If he is too aggressive, keep him on a sit scoop more food, say "wait" "be gentle" and make him wait, use a command "get it", "take it", if he's good tell him good boy with a little face rubs. All of this helps with training process, recognizing don't be mean to the food lady, and bonding time. Miya doesn't guard with me, however she will with the cat and with bones she will with my husband, not with me. If I'm giving treats and the cat is around she has nipped me and I will do a correction with, Miya sit, wait, be gentle, get it and she takes from me gently. I use her name almost always, as you will find in time they are stubborn and apparently you are not talking to them but someone else, using their name gives them focus on you and what you want. It may take several feedings this way, and it may seem daunting to sit and hand feed, but it will make him a better dog, feed through the whole bowl this way, perhaps the last few pieces set it down for him but remain sitting next to him. Through the whole process use happy, soft yet firm voice.
Good Luck and let us know how things go.

Renee

Thanks Renee.
I will do the hand feeding as you suggested and he has his commands "wait" and "gentle" when I put his food down. I dont mind putting the work in if it means he will be more gentle in the future.
He never guards anything else and takes food from the palm of my hand gently so it really was a surprise to hear him growl at me.
Using his name usually always gets his attention so I will do that.
Thanks again for the advice ! Tomorrow morning I'll sit with him and hand feed him and let you know how it goes

Ami growled a very few times several months ago - I didn't do anything fancy just a stern, surprised "hey - stop that!"  Then a scratch on his ears...growling not an issue any more - even the grand kids around him.

He also tried a growl or too early on when I attempted to groom him - I did the same thing.  Now he just gives a husky imitation of rolling his eyes and tries to get up and leave when he's had it 

Whether it helped our not, I don't know, but we have a bed time ritual with his kong - I sit with him (all right, I sit in the dog house with him  ) and have a baggie with kibble - he gets a couple of pieces for him, a couple for the kong, a couple pieces for him....until the baggie is empty (about 25% of his daily ration).  (Amd NO, despite what husband told the animal control lady, I do not read him a bed time story!)

Amy, you crack me up. For some reason Miya didn't respond to the "hey-stop that" at 2-4 months old. I had to employ another strategy with her. I so wish my girl got the point like Ami did. I can now pet her while eating, I can pick up the bowl, etc., but it took a lot of work, and a lot of hand feeding. Frankie, try Amy's suggestion it may work, you never know. I also have to use the "drop it" and "leave it" commands when it pertains to a bone or chew, especially when the cat's around and I have to remove bone, so Miya doesn't scare the cat. Kind of funny really, I don't really think she'd do anything, like the old saying bark worse than the bite, hehe.

It's important to remember you should never punish for growling. Growling is a dog's way of saying they are uncomfortable, it is a warning. If you discourage growling, you run the risk of next time they will act without warning.

MiyasMomma wrote:

Frankie,
  They will test you to no end. This was his first test. Hand feed his meals, although a slow process, I feel it makes for a more gentle husky overall. Serious food aggression and mouthing, I feel go hand in hand. At his next meal, sit with him,  keep food where you can get, but he cannot. Keep yourself at a similar level, i.e. sit on a dining room chair have him sit in front of you. Scoop up a couple pieces of food, close your hand for a fist, let him smell, tell him to be"gentle", "nice" whatever command you choose to slow him down and be gentle. Open hand and let him have it, check his response. If he is too aggressive, keep him on a sit scoop more food, say "wait" "be gentle" and make him wait, use a command "get it", "take it", if he's good tell him good boy with a little face rubs. All of this helps with training process, recognizing don't be mean to the food lady, and bonding time. Miya doesn't guard with me, however she will with the cat and with bones she will with my husband, not with me. If I'm giving treats and the cat is around she has nipped me and I will do a correction with, Miya sit, wait, be gentle, get it and she takes from me gently. I use her name almost always, as you will find in time they are stubborn and apparently you are not talking to them but someone else, using their name gives them focus on you and what you want. It may take several feedings this way, and it may seem daunting to sit and hand feed, but it will make him a better dog, feed through the whole bowl this way, perhaps the last few pieces set it down for him but remain sitting next to him. Through the whole process use happy, soft yet firm voice.
Good Luck and let us know how things go.

Renee

Renee ! Sorry this response is soo late my computer has been acting up and ive been so busy with school.
I did try with what you suggested and Kai hasnt growled at me since.
Ive made feeding really fun for him and would throw bits of chicken and treats into his bowl while he was eating.
Thank you so much for the advice !!

Frankie, So glad I helped. Keys to success is fun and respect!! I did wonder if things were going good, of course school comes first rather than here.....pics please? lol

Renee