It sounds like good positive reinforcement training will be cathartic for the both of you!
Also, like Poppy said above, growling is actually not a behavior you want to 'correct' or do away with. A growl is often the first signal a person has that a dog is uncomfortable (because people tend not to pay attention to more subtle signals from dogs because they can be hard to notice without practiced eyes). When you correct a growl, you're not making that dog any more 'respectful' or 'safe', you're correcting the vocalization itself.
The reason people see growls leading to aggression is because they are people who aren't addressing the reason why their dog is growling- whether that be fear, resource guarding, being uncomfortable with a certain gender/clothing/hats/whatever. If a dog growls, you should back off and think about why they're growing and how you can address the behavior/feelings that are leading to the growl.
Personally I would avoid any trainers that push you to use corrections. You can train a dog using only positive reinforcement training, and it sounds like you're not very comfortable correcting a large dog anyways. Correction training can sometimes work faster than just ignoring behaviors you don't like and reinforcing behaviors you do but IMO it produces a less enthusiastic dog that doesn't approach training with the same level of "if I do this maybe I'll get a treat" because they've been taught that the wrong thing will get them a leash jerk.
Also, given that he's a hound, and one bred to hunt in a group at that, he's likely not to have the most biddable temperament. I'd highly recommend the book "When Pigs Fly: Training Impossible Dogs". It's a book specifically about training non-biddable breeds (the author has Bull Terriers) and focuses on positive reinforcement only.
Also, like Poppy said above, growling is actually not a behavior you want to 'correct' or do away with. A growl is often the first signal a person has that a dog is uncomfortable (because people tend not to pay attention to more subtle signals from dogs because they can be hard to notice without practiced eyes). When you correct a growl, you're not making that dog any more 'respectful' or 'safe', you're correcting the vocalization itself.
The reason people see growls leading to aggression is because they are people who aren't addressing the reason why their dog is growling- whether that be fear, resource guarding, being uncomfortable with a certain gender/clothing/hats/whatever. If a dog growls, you should back off and think about why they're growing and how you can address the behavior/feelings that are leading to the growl.
Personally I would avoid any trainers that push you to use corrections. You can train a dog using only positive reinforcement training, and it sounds like you're not very comfortable correcting a large dog anyways. Correction training can sometimes work faster than just ignoring behaviors you don't like and reinforcing behaviors you do but IMO it produces a less enthusiastic dog that doesn't approach training with the same level of "if I do this maybe I'll get a treat" because they've been taught that the wrong thing will get them a leash jerk.
Also, given that he's a hound, and one bred to hunt in a group at that, he's likely not to have the most biddable temperament. I'd highly recommend the book "When Pigs Fly: Training Impossible Dogs". It's a book specifically about training non-biddable breeds (the author has Bull Terriers) and focuses on positive reinforcement only.
