You must be out yo mind Puggle!

[Wendy]

I have an almost 8 yr old Puggle(pug/beagle), named Jake. We have had him since he was 8 wks. He is a love. Wants to be a lap dog, but is just too big. Yesterday he showed aggression towards me for the first time EVER!
I gave him a breath chew bone, which he loved. He tore into it pretty quickly, leaving crumbs. I went to take it away, so he would eat crumbs, and he went into attack mode. Tried to bite my hand, while snarling and growling. I immediately grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and put him on the ground, and ended up on all fours "standing" over him. He at first tried to get at my hand that grabbed him, but the second I was over him, he tucked tail and went submissive. We stayed there for a few seconds before I let him up. Needless to say I kept possession of the bone, and put him outside.
He has never shown any type of aggression before, so don't fully know what got into him. But he has been very well behaved the rest of the day.
I am mostly just thankful it happened with me and not one of my kids! I love him, but he woulda found himself a new home if he bit them.

 

[Dobs4ever]

I would have him checked by a vet with blood panel to make sure there is nothing physical going on. I would prefer to err on the side of caution and I would never let him around the kids with a bone and I would tell them caution is the new buzz word. I would prefer to see a dog that is not trustworthy put down as opposed to sending to someone else who then might get hurt, especially at 8 years of age. That is just my personal thought - it is not my decision - I know you are struggling with this right now and hope all works out for you. Again use caution - it does not just happen and now that it has happened it is more likely to escalate.

 

[MyBuddy]

Wow. That had to be a bit scary for you. Especially never happening before in 8 years. Could there have been more subtle signs of aggression before this that went unchecked?

Has he ever had this type of bone before? Sometimes a 'high value' treat (that they feel is high value) brings out a new attitude.
I don't know if your reaction is deem right or wrong by others, but I would have done the exact same thing. Backing away in fear would be the 'wrong thing' in my book. I'd be nipping that in the bud right now! And be sure not to give him that bone when the kids are around. But I'd be working on giving and taking stuff from him. A lot.

 

[Rex's mom]

I agree with both posts above. I would get him to the vet and get him checked out to make sure nothing is wrong and then I would start training him all over again like he was a puppy. I would be holding his food dish when he eats. I would also start taking more things away from him and giving them back (starting with lower value stuff first and working up to higher value). I would also use NILF for everything. Good luck to you !!

 

[JanS]

You handled it the same as I would have. You didn't give him an option and acted right away. You kept him knowing he wasn't going to get by with it and made him stay until he was in a calm state again, which is great.

Last year our dogs got something for a Christmas gift that they considered a little too high value and it's the first time in my life I'd ever seen either of them snarl at each other and mean it. I took it away immediately and never gave it back, although I did put it in my vehicle for them to snuggle with when just one of them is travelling with me.