One of the most common things I hear from new clients—either on their intake forms or during our first consult—is this:
“I think my dog is trying to protect me.”
Often, this belief comes up when a dog barks, growls, or even snaps at strangers or when certain activities are happening, like giving the kids a piggyback ride, showing affection like hugging or swinging kids around. It’s easy to interpret that behavior as protective: the dog must love their person so much that they’re them from harm, right?
That’s a comforting story. But the truth is usually a bit different—and much more common. But, thinking your dog is protecting you is an easier pill to swallow than recognizing your dog is actually fearful or needs behavior help.
Fear, Not Protection
Unless your dog has been professionally trained as a protection dog, in most of these cases, the dog isn’t protecting their person out of loyalty or love. They’re reacting out of fear. If that dog is protecting anyone, it’s themselves. They’re uncomfortable with the situation and communicating this. “Stranger danger”—fear of unfamiliar people—is a much more likely explanation than guarding. This often stems from a lack of proper socialization, especially during the critical early months of a dog’s life. More often than not, a dog labeled as protective is actually overwhelmed, fearful, or frustrated—not being heroic.
Dogs may show what looks like guarding behavior: growling or getting tense when someone approaches or does something to their person. But before we conclude that a dog is guarding their person, we need to rule out a few things first—primarily fear and barrier frustration.
Barrier Frustration: A Sneaky Look-Alike
Barrier frustration happens when a dog wants to interact (usually in a friendly way!) but is prevented—by a leash, a fence, a window or being in a car – and those things prevent the dog from having access. This frustration can look a lot like aggression: barking, lunging, and growling. In reality, it’s often just pent-up social energy and they’re frustrated.
When Person Guarding Does Happen
Guarding of a person is much less common than stranger danger—and when it does show up, it usually happens within the family. A typical scenario looks like this:
The dog is snuggled up with their favorite person on the couch or in bed. Another family member approaches to sit down or join them. The dog growls, snarls, or even snaps at the approaching person.
Even here, the dog isn’t “protecting” the person out of love or devotion. What’s really happening is the dog views their person as something valuable, like a toy or a high value chew and they don’t want to share, just like they might not want to share a favorite bone or treat.
It’s not about loyalty to their person — it’s about possession.
Behavior issues can be complex and emotionally loaded but once we understand underlying emotion behind the behavior, we can start working on long term behavior modification that help your dog feel safer. And remember, behavior suppression isn’t the same as behavior modification. And, fear is not disobedience.
If you’re dealing with fear, guarding, or any kind of behavior challenge, I’d love to help. Sessions are available virtually, so no matter where in the world you are, I can help. Grab your session here.
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Happy training!
