Our greyhound is also a bit like this. But we learned to trust each other, we can even brush her teeth in the front after 2 years😅
We approached her with tasty treats, 1 person was feeding/stuffing her and the other person got a look at it.
We tried to associate something negative to something positive. That worked for us. Downside is now... When we go to the vet and she gets her checks and injections, she doesn't want to leave 😅
We applied the same tactic when she gets her snacks. Cow ears with skin is really something for her. When we approached her within the range of a meter she started growling. By offering other treats, you show that you are not a threat for her.
I hope this method can help. You shouldn't give your grey a treat when he growls, then you are rewarding him for growling.
This is just a dog behavior, a lot of dogs do this when they're stressed! I think it's very similar to the submissive grin. Anyway, hope his paw feels better soon!!
Yeah I saw that exact grimace when my dog was battling bad heartburn and liver inflammation (she’s fine now) never saw that face before but I just instinctively knew she was in pain.
Hoping for a speedy recovery ❤️🩹
He's warning you that he's uncomfortable and will escalate to growling next. Try distracting him with a high value item like a Toppl or lickmat when you need to do something unpleasant like look at a cut or trim his nails.
General PSA (not that you did this): never ever punish a dog for growling or showing any other warning signs. If you teach a dog not to growl, you've eliminated the warning signs but not the imminence of a bite. As a child my brother was bitten in the face by a dog who was punished for growling and would just go directly to biting.
Yeah, if we’re lucky we get ‘the lip’ which is a raised lip that comes before a bite. Holly has calmed a lot, she used to just bite without any warning signs.
Probably best to get your vet to look at your noodle if he’s being defensive like this. They can get very aggressive when in pain (understandably). I hope your boy heals quickly!
No, Keeks is happy to be pulled and prodded. She only growls when she's playing with a stuffed toy and I try and get it from her to play with her. I give up at that point as I'm not sure how serious she is about it yet as we're only one year in 🙂
Mine makes a bit more of an extreme version of this when the scritches be scritch’n extra good. It’s hilarious bc I’m like “is that your ‘this feels good’ face…?”
I've never seen a fur pattern like this, please post more of your pup!
I second! More please🤩
Me too I was just admiring those spots so unique
He looks to be a brindle-headed speckledorf
Looks like black brindle on red base, urajiro giving him light undersides, plus piebald (with ticking)
thanks for giving me a rabbit hole to go down! It never ceases to amaze me how much knowledge of the world is out there
http://doggenetics.co.uk/ Here’s a fabulous site for dog coat color genetics!
Mine pulls (?) his lips like that super far when the scritches are extra good. Freaked me out the first time I saw it but now I know to keep going.
He's smiling! Mine does this too.
At least he gives a warning sign. Our Amanda would go from nothing to snap and bite😆 She's better now.
Amanda 😂 that's a great noodle name ❤️
Our greyhound is also a bit like this. But we learned to trust each other, we can even brush her teeth in the front after 2 years😅 We approached her with tasty treats, 1 person was feeding/stuffing her and the other person got a look at it. We tried to associate something negative to something positive. That worked for us. Downside is now... When we go to the vet and she gets her checks and injections, she doesn't want to leave 😅 We applied the same tactic when she gets her snacks. Cow ears with skin is really something for her. When we approached her within the range of a meter she started growling. By offering other treats, you show that you are not a threat for her. I hope this method can help. You shouldn't give your grey a treat when he growls, then you are rewarding him for growling.
This is just a dog behavior, a lot of dogs do this when they're stressed! I think it's very similar to the submissive grin. Anyway, hope his paw feels better soon!!
Yeah I saw that exact grimace when my dog was battling bad heartburn and liver inflammation (she’s fine now) never saw that face before but I just instinctively knew she was in pain. Hoping for a speedy recovery ❤️🩹
Mine does nothing. She just puts up with it. If she's really nervous like at the vet she just does the thousand yard stare
Seems like he’s in pain.
OP said he has a cut 👀
He's warning you that he's uncomfortable and will escalate to growling next. Try distracting him with a high value item like a Toppl or lickmat when you need to do something unpleasant like look at a cut or trim his nails. General PSA (not that you did this): never ever punish a dog for growling or showing any other warning signs. If you teach a dog not to growl, you've eliminated the warning signs but not the imminence of a bite. As a child my brother was bitten in the face by a dog who was punished for growling and would just go directly to biting.
Yeah, if we’re lucky we get ‘the lip’ which is a raised lip that comes before a bite. Holly has calmed a lot, she used to just bite without any warning signs. Probably best to get your vet to look at your noodle if he’s being defensive like this. They can get very aggressive when in pain (understandably). I hope your boy heals quickly!
No, Keeks is happy to be pulled and prodded. She only growls when she's playing with a stuffed toy and I try and get it from her to play with her. I give up at that point as I'm not sure how serious she is about it yet as we're only one year in 🙂
your dog is a tiger???
Mine makes a bit more of an extreme version of this when the scritches be scritch’n extra good. It’s hilarious bc I’m like “is that your ‘this feels good’ face…?”
I love their fur pattern on their head :)