r/Lurchers • u/pornaccountsean • 3h ago
Help/Advice/Questions New puppy behaving strangely
Hi everyone, my partner and I recently (a week ago) got a lurcher. She is 50% greyhound, 25% Saluki, 12.5% bull, and 12.5% Collie. She is 11 weeks old, and has had her first vaccine. She is a mostly normal puppy, with normal training, normal puppy issues. However, three times with my partner (who is in training to be a dog trainer) she has pressed her nose into his jaw repeatedly with as much force as she can muster, to get at his neck, then repeatedly lunged and bit hard on the side of his neck, then every time he pulls her off she goes back to bite him again, with an alarming speed and force, to the point my partner has described her as a torpedo. This is not normal puppy biting/mouthing, my partner has raised many dogs of various different breeds before. She is fed, toileted, played with, exercised, and sleeps on a complete schedule. The moment she gets mouthy she is put down for a nap. This happens out of nowhere, like a light switch, with no warning, and in various different situations.
My partner was outside with her on her last toilet break of the night, sat down so she could climb on him for warmth need be, and she started rapidly booping her nose on his upper arm, then started growling and launched at it repeatedly, biting and holding on as tight as she could. He managed to gently pry her off, pick her up with hands supporting her shoulders and hips, and within 20 seconds she tried to wiggle closer, for cuddles, and didn't resume the biting, or act like it happened.
This happens in various different scenarios without any clear denominator, my partner is well versed in dog training and has worked to eliminate any known causes of aggression. It's happened in the garden, in the pen, in the living room, and in her own crate. She will suddenly stop and get very still, then launch at either him, or her crate walls. Always within minutes she will return to being a normal happy puppy, responding to petting and training the way she is supposed to.
During one of the incidents when she went for his neck, they were playing in the living room with her favourite toy dragging it along the carpet for her to chase, and she picked it up in her mouth, stared off into the distance, dropped it, and doubled back on the long line lead, and leapt all feet off of the floor, and gripped his neck with her teeth.
My partner has said that this isn't normal for a puppy this age, but this is above his pay grade. He didn't want to ask, so I did. 98% of the time she is the sweetest thing ever. Also, puppy pics attached.