Young Pup Possessiveness/Growling

[Khagan]

I have an eleven week old Chow Chow who started out a week ago very timid.shy.scared of his own shadow.He was in a bit of a shock from the roadtrip home from the kennel,losing his familiar surrondings etc.
In the last few days he seems to come out of his shell to a small degree.He is still timid and shy though.He seems to have locked onto me as "his person", he has attached himself to me very intensely.He still runs if I stand up and walk toward him but if I kneel and talk softly he will come to me.He will follow on my heels every step I make as long as he can follow behind.He wont have much to do with the rest of the family.
What bothers me is that if he is laying next to me in the living room and my son,daughter or wife enter he sometimes growls and barks at them.I know this is a bad sign for a pup in early development.I know that I need to alter this behavior before it gets to be habit.Anyone have experience with how to deal with this?

[Laura]

It sounds like he wasn't well socialized by his breeder and the clock is ticking for you as well because the first 18 weeks are so important. First I would be very patient and calm with him...gentle and loving. The entire family also needs to be involved in his daily care and socialization...everyone should participate in feeding, walks, playtime, training, outtings for socialization, grooming,treats...every bit of his care. This is his family/pack now and he needs love and attention from all and to respect all members. I would divvy up daily activities...rotating who walks...who feeds...who brushes him. Also make sure everyone spends one on one bonding/play time even if all he is ready for is calm chatter and petting. If he was startled by their presence that is one thing but if he is guarding you or he is wary of them that is not a good thing. They will have to put the time and effort into bringing him out of his shell and gaining his trust that you are and have.
I'm sure you will get much better advice from others but these are my thoughts.
I would consider signing up for a local puppy class to help with his socialization and have the kids take turns going with you and participating.

[Claudialorena]

Hi!!!!! Well let me start by saying that Chows are great family dogs, but one thing that chows do not possess is social skills. I have a chow, her name is Cookie, and she is 16 years old, can you believe it?? She has lived a long and very happy life. I was about 9 yrs old when we first got her; she turned to be a great guardian and loves all the family. Since she was a puppy, we all played with her and tried to spend time with her. Each of us in the family tried to train her and we spent as much time with her as possible. The bad thing when she was a puppy we didn’t train her to be social with anyone else but us. Like other chows, she is very possessive of their owner (in this case, owners) and hates strangers. Now, I have a 8 week old chow, and he was very timid at first, but now he loves all the family we all try to train him, we carry him, we play ball. What I am trying to do with Toby (the new puppy) is teaching him social skills which seem to be what your puppy needs. I learned with Cookie that is very difficult for Chows to get along with people not in the family. I am trying to make Tony social by taking him a long where ever he is allowed to be, family parties, the park, etc. Chows are not very social so they need to learn how to get along with other dogs and people. Cookie has always been her, and she does not like strangers or my new puppy. Chows are very protective of their owners, so now that he is little, let your kids play with him, buy him some toys and let your kids teach him how to play. He’s little so he won’t hurt your kids. Also, if you have guests let him be around them, also let your kids train him to sit or other tricks and if he does good have them give them puppy treats and you will see how your puppy is going to change. Just because he barks don’t exclude him, teach him who the family is. Also, I know PetSmart has a puppy training class, (Toby will be going next month) and they teach social skills, may be worth for you and your kids to attend. I don’t know. But my best advice is have everyone in the family show him so Chow Love!!  Some advice, hope it helps!!