Our 6 month old is getting kinda "wild", he's been on the aggressive side and has started to growl and even snapped at us when he feels like we might take away something he really wants. Besides that he's been also really territorial and barks whenever he hears or sees strangers walking by. We're taking him in to get neutered and wondered if this will make him a little less "spunky".

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It should help some but I think your best choice would be to find yourself a training facility. This is a typical behavior that pups share with other pups. When they behave this way with people it is evident that they have no more respect for you then they do a litter mate. This tells you that you do not have a good set of rules to give him some limitations in his life. At this time he has learned that he can control you by using this behavior. This must change quickly as you will find this behavior to become involved in other areas of his life as well as he will become more aggressive. Good luck and get some help quickly!
Have you taken any puppy classes? I agree with Sam above -- classes for you to learn how to work in a positive way with your pup and also to allow him to socialize and learn from other puppies is really important. I hadn't had a dog in years when I got my first Corgi, and without puppy kindergarten and beginner obedience I would have been totally lost. I really learned how to communicate with him so he understood what I expected, set limits and really set myself up as the loving and benevolent (treat dispensing and tummy rubbing) locus of control. We were taught how to deal with possessiveness (using a game, really) and other issues like those you see developing. Also -- the exercise involved in training and playing also tired him out, and a tired puppy is a happy (and unaggressive) puppy!
may i ask you Susan where you took your classes to train your pup? . i have a 11 month ol and so far the cgc classes haven't really been sufficient , either she was too young the first go around and hated the choke chain, (the teacher since retired) or the next time with a different approach, (clicker training) class was to large and she failed again!..note: i worked with her all the time on the lessons? Carly still pulls on her leash and barks at strangers especially men when she first meets them. She just got spayed yesterday and im hoping she calms down some with her *attempt at dominance over me. Anyway im willing to go to a petsmart or petco and spend the time and money on more lessons after christmas so i can learn just how to help Carly more.
Do you have any suggestions?
look for a local dog breed club rather then a petsmart or petco. Many times the "trainers" at those stores are no more qualified to train a dog than you or me. The dog breed clubs (or many times there are dog training clubs) can provide you with a very well educated trainer that has been doing this for years. Obedience classes rather than cgc seem to work well, agility, and rally are great too. Rally is fun because it is more of a game type obedience. They often will offer private lessons too. I took ONE private loose leash walking lesson with Franklin and never had to take another because it provided me with all the knowledge and tools I needed. That was after about 3 months of group training and 2 broken collars! Also, look for a trainer or group that doesn't allow choke chains, that right there will show you that they will be using a more effective method of control rather than using force.
i was wondering about those trainers , ive asked them before how long they have been training and its not long at all..
how do i find a local dog breed club? do i just google it and ask for training classes? i do know that the cgc is starting up again in jan but i thought since shes failed it twice i should do something else.
Mr. B's been enrolled and completed a puppy training course at Petco and did fantastic. But the issue of resource guarding wasn't really addressed and wasn't a big issue while we were in the class. It wasn't until after he completed the 6 week course that we started noticing this trait. It started when we tried to take away a pig ear from him. When he was really young, he had one that the breeder provided that we never had an issue taking away, but after he was having diarrhea from chewing on it we took it away from him and never gave it back. Then when we got him a new one as he was older we tried to take it away from him when he was chewing on it on the rug and that's when he growled and snapped at us. We were shocked. This was the first time he had shown any aggression towards us. But we might have reinforced this behavior when we decided to take away the pig ear as punishment and didn't give it back to him. Now he will growl whenever he feels threatened about losing something he really wants.
Try and practice the command "Give", trade the pig's ear with something else, when Mr B let go of the item, say good bye and reward him with that treat, then slowly take the pig's ear away. This will educate him that when he give up what's in his mouth, something better is coming. Positive reinforcement :)
You really should see an experienced trainer to work on the resource guarding. Most big box stores aren't equipped to deal with specific behavior issues.

There is a good book you should get that explains resource guarding in detail and has training exercises to work on the issue. I've used it on my dog along with the help of a good trainer and her guarding is miles better than it was when she was a puppy.

Mine! A Guide to Resource Guarding by Jean Donaldson
We noticed this behavior with our corgi whenhe was very young. We went to take something he wasn't suppose to have away and he growled. He was like 12 weeks. We told him a firm "NO" From then on we taught him DROP IT. We first grabbed what ever he wasnt suppose to have and said drop it, then gave him the treat. He quickly learned that drop it meant he got a treat. We also brought him to doggie school and will be doing agility training with him.

Worked so great that now Ithink he takes things so we can tell him DROP IT. So he gets a treat HE has decided to train us. HE makes sure we know he has someting he isnt suppose to. HE actually shows us. Gotta love a corgi.
Thanks for all the advice! It seems like the "trading up" technique is the way to go. What do you guys suggest as an item to trade for when Mr. B's got a pig ear? We can't think of anything in the world that he would prefer over that crazy pig ear. We'll also look into getting a trainer to address the tougher issues, and reading some literature about the resource guarding.
Warmed hot dog usually beats pigs ear.
hot dogs, liver, steak, chicken, beef jerky.....just fresh cooked smelly meat :-)

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