[Soapie&Buddy'sMom]

I was wondering about the holding too. My dogs would hate being lifted up and I can't think of many reasons to do it, anyway. And Miller, forget it. I can't even push him, let alone lift that 130-lb monster lab.

But I think the holding here is just holding the dog, like a hug.
The thing that comes to mind is, as others have said, that the dog is reading the owner's tension, even if the owner doesn't realize it, and reacting to that. Brooke says her dog is aggressive when she is holding him; it reminds me of how Buddy reacts to a tight leash - he reads the tight leash as me being afraid or tense, and he reacts to that. Maybe that is how Zeus is reading being held by Brooke.