What is it you want your dog to do or not do that you feel the only way to fix it is to scruff him? Perhaps you'd be open to a few other ideas that are more effective without taking the risks which are well documented by professional trainers, veterinary behaviorists etc. Sometimes some of those side effects don't show up right away but build over time, unbeknownst to the owner.
I've had loads of dogs and never had a single one growl at me except play growly, talkie sounds. Why is your dog growling at you in the first place anyhow?
I'm working with two dogs that have bitten people several times. Their growling has been punished in the past. So far, neither has bitten or growled at me. I go out of my way to not do anything which might put them on the defensive. They appear to trust me. And we're working on them trusting other people. They're coming along well, making lots of improvement. But no scruffing or verbal scolding is allowed, no hands-on force; no grabbing the collar (until we've had time to re-condition them to viewing that as a good thing) and no pushing or otherwise man handling. Everything is done psychologically by making their behaviors (in and of itself) as well as other people... predictors of good things...things that work well for the dogs.
Yes, dogs very naturally don't like someone looming over them and putting their hands on top of their heads. But that is not the same thing that can be caused by physical punishment.
Perhaps your dog is not as sensitive as some and has built a punishment callous. That's another thing that often happens. In time, unless the punishment is severe, that scruffing will mean less and less to the dog and won't have as much effect. Then you have to increase the intensity of the punishment to make it stop the behavior. You're playing with a time bomb by resisting learning some other ways to get the behavior you want without the undesirable and risky side effects.
I've had loads of dogs and never had a single one growl at me except play growly, talkie sounds. Why is your dog growling at you in the first place anyhow?
I'm working with two dogs that have bitten people several times. Their growling has been punished in the past. So far, neither has bitten or growled at me. I go out of my way to not do anything which might put them on the defensive. They appear to trust me. And we're working on them trusting other people. They're coming along well, making lots of improvement. But no scruffing or verbal scolding is allowed, no hands-on force; no grabbing the collar (until we've had time to re-condition them to viewing that as a good thing) and no pushing or otherwise man handling. Everything is done psychologically by making their behaviors (in and of itself) as well as other people... predictors of good things...things that work well for the dogs.
Yes, dogs very naturally don't like someone looming over them and putting their hands on top of their heads. But that is not the same thing that can be caused by physical punishment.
Perhaps your dog is not as sensitive as some and has built a punishment callous. That's another thing that often happens. In time, unless the punishment is severe, that scruffing will mean less and less to the dog and won't have as much effect. Then you have to increase the intensity of the punishment to make it stop the behavior. You're playing with a time bomb by resisting learning some other ways to get the behavior you want without the undesirable and risky side effects.