Food aggression

[marissagrr]

Hello! My girlfriend and I purchased this program to help with some issues we have been having with our dog. My girlfriend had two dogs a 7 year old German Shepard lab mix and a four year old chihuahua mix. We got a puppy( pit bull husky mix) a few months ago at three months and she’s 6 months now. When we got the puppy she was skin and bones and the runt of her litter. She has shown good aggression towards the other dogs but not people. She is so kind and patient with our three year old son but when the other dogs come around when she is eating especially the chihuahua she will attack her. If the chihuahua comes anywhere near her food, while we are eating or even anywhere where she was previously fed she will get aggressive stare down behaviors or trying to intimidate the smaller dog. She will also push her out of the way at the water bowl or if the small dog comes near when she is drinking she will get puffy or I will see those warning signs. She hasn’t hurt the dog but has chased her down and mouthed her. I don’t know how to help her. Thank you!

Edited January 4, 2019 by marissagrr

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Hello Marissagrr,

Welcome to the forums. I am sorry to hear you are dealing with these issues. They are not at all uncommon. It is not unusual for problematic behaviors to pop up when a third dog is added to a social group of two dogs. At 6 months, the puppy is reaching or has just reached the adolescent stage. You can read more about this stage right here: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/survive-dogs-adolescent-stage/

 

With a history of being skin and bones and the runt of the litter, there are chances that food has acquired quite a level of saliancy. Food aggression is not at all uncommon in these dogs. We must remember that food aggression among dogs is a highly adaptive behavior. Wild canines who protected their food resources from other canines or competing predators, were those more likely to survive. Because food aggression has played a big role in a dog's evolutionary history, explains why this issue is often quite challenging to treat.

 

There are various ways to tackle the issue of a dog guarding food from another dog; however, the most important piece of advice is to practice caution. Dogs who are guarding food are tense, and as such, they can react impulsively if touched, even by a well-meaning person. Should fights ever erupt, there are risks for redirected bites to people or children who are nearby. It is therefore important to consult with a behavior professional for an in-person assessment and treatment plan individualized for the specific situation to play it safe.

 

With food aggression management is priority. It is far easier to manage a situation than attempt to completely treat a highly instinctive behavior such as food guarding between dogs. If your pup is prone to guarding food from other dogs, the best thing to do is to avoid giving high-value foods such as rawhides or bones when the other dogs are around and to feed meals and other goodies in a safe environment where the dog cannot be disturbed.

 

Confinement options vary. Your pup can be kept confined in a crate, behind a baby gate or behind a closed door in a safe, puppy-proofed room. A locked door may be best in households with children. Care must be taken to confiscate any traces of foods left behind before releasing the dogs from their confinement areas and removing food bowls since for food-guarding dogs these may still be valuable despite being empty. Also care must be taken to remove all sources of possible conflict when the dogs are out of the crate. Children should be discouraged or prevented from walking around with foods that be dropped and cause tension among the dogs.

 

If the aggression is mild and restricted to only ritualized displays (no history of harm,pup has good bit inhibition, there is no major tension and the other dogs not acting traumatized or fearful), sometimes, the solution is as simple as feeding the dogs at a distance from each other where no dogs are disturbed. If a dog eats faster than the others, he or she should be prevented from disturbing the other dogs. A ritual can be set, such as taking the fastest eating dog outside in the yard immediately after finishing eating or having all dogs who finish first perform down stays until released. Tethering the dogs during meal times can also turn helpful, although supervision is always needed when tethers are used. The rule of thumb, is no dog should be nosing around the other dogs when eating.

 

When eating at the table, your pup should not be allowed to practice food guarding behaviors. You can train your dogs to patiently lie on their mats during meal time: go here for a video on how to train your dog to lie on a mat: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/video-archive/train-dog-go-to-mat/

 

Alternatively, they should be kept at a distance from the table either through one of those extension gates made for dogs (you can still supervise them through them), or you can train your dogs to respect invisible boundaries during mealtimes by initially placing a long strip of yarn or a long ruler on the floor (make sure your dogs know "leave it" and "drop" to prevent them from stealing these! Instructions for the leave it and drop it commands are found in the main obedience section) and repeatedly reminding your dogs to not surpass it, until you can remove the strip of ruler as the dogs grasp the concept. Most dogs learn quickly how to respect these boundaries with practice.

 

Although guarding food is a highly instinctive behavior and one that can be challenging to treat, there are some options to improve the situation, but these options require the intervention of a behavior professional for safety and correct implementation of behavior modification exercises. Each case may be different and may therefore require a specific protocol based on individual circumstances. I will cover a few of these options in the next post.

Edited January 5, 2019 by Adrienne Farricelli

[Adrienne Farricelli]

As mentioned, when dealing with dog behavior modification programs, each case may be different due to a variety of variables and may therefore require a specific protocol. Some dogs may require sub-steps to prevent escalation (eg. in exercise 1, initially feeding the treats to both dogs simultaneously). The protocols listed below are therefore just some examples that can be potentially practiced under the guidance of a professional. They are not meant to be used as a substitute for professional behavioral advice provided by a behavioral professional who has come into the home to assess the situation and design a custom-tailored program.

 

Disclaimers aside, it's important to point out that in between sessions, strict management must always be in place to prevent rehearsal of the problem behavior. This means that the food guarder should be prevented from being put into a situation where she may be predisposed to guard.

 

Also, any time a setback takes place during an exercise (e.g. dog manages to growl), this would be indicative of proceeding too fast in the behavior modification process. Further distance must be granted if closer proximity evokes the problem behavior. Also important to point out is that behavior modification requires maintenance. Maintenance sessions should be held every now and then to maintain all the positive associations.

 

 

The first exercises involve desensitization and counterconditioning. You can read more about this here:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/desensitization/

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/counterconditioning/

 

The goal of desensitization is to take a step-by-step approach by systematically and gradually exposing the dog to the less intension versions of the aggression-provoking event, while keeping the dog under threshold. At the same time, positive associations are created so that the food guarder's emotional response to the approaching dog changes.

 

In order to carry out these sessions, tethering or use of leashes with a helper are initially needed at least until the dogs are capable of responding flawlessly to an owner's requests to sit/stay and down/stay, come and other important cues. If there is fear of injury, dogs should be muzzled as an extra safety precaution.

 

Exercise 1: The guarder is tethered or kept on leash by helper. The other dog is kept at a distance of a few feet either tethered or kept on leash by another handler. The owner holds a bowl full of some tasty treats. The owner feeds the non-guarding dog a treat first, and then immediately afterward, praises and feeds the guarder. This should be repeated several times and a brief pause should take place between the reps.

 

The goal of this exercise is, after several repetitions, to create a conditioned emotional response in the guarder. In other words, through various repetitions, the guarder expresses positive emotions when the other dog is nearby. Trial after trial, the guarder comes to associate the other dog being fed with her being fed. The dog basically learns that, everytime 'Rover' is fed, then she' shortly fed right after, therefore seeing Rover eating means good things are about to happen! This is the opposite of before, when Rover's presence was perceived as threatening, evoking food guarding behaviors.

 

Once the conditioned emotional response has been established, it is possible to move the dogs gradually closer and repeat the exercise, playing close attention to the guarder's body language for signs of tension. If there are any signs of subtle tension, more distance should be granted.

 

A plan should always be in place should a fight erupt at any time. It is important to avoid touching fighting dogs and always keeping some tools handy such as a blanket to toss over the dogs, a bucket of water or hose to drench the dogs, or an air horn or pan covers to clunk together so to startle the dogs and stop them from fighting.

 

Exercise 2: The guarder is on leash in a quiet room held by one handler who is reading or watching TV and not paying attention to the dog. The non-guarder dog (on leash as well with a handler) is introduced in the room. The handler of the guarder acknowledges the non-guarder dog "Oh look, here comes Rover! "The non-guarder dog is fed by his handler a tasty treat, while the guarder dog's handler praises and right afterward feeds the guarder dog a treat. The non-guarder dog is then taken out the room and treat delivery ends. The process is then repeated.

 

After several trials, the guarder should show signs of a conditioned emotional response upon seeing Rover coming into the room. From dreading the other dog's approach, she now feels "happy" because she knows that the approach of the other dog signifies that treat time is coming. These exercises should be practiced in different areas of the home, always emphasizing that the approach of the other dog means treats happen, while departure means treats end. This is therefore done in an open-bar closed/bar fashion.

 

Exercise 3: This exercise is a next step for dogs who guard food bowls. The guarder is on leash in a quiet room held by one handler who is reading or watching TV and not paying attention to the dog. One empty food bowl is placed on the floor next to the guarder, another one is placed at the entrance of the room. Several minutes should elapse with the handler ignoring the dog.

 

The non-guarder dog (on leash as well with a handler) is introduced in the room by the food bowl at the entrance. The handler of the guarder acknowledges the non-guarder dog "Oh, look here comes Rover!" The non-guarder dog is given several pieces of kibble tossed in the food bowl while the guarder dog's handler praises and right afterward feeds the guarder dog several kibble in the bowl. Upon the guarder dog finishing the kibble, the non-guarder dog is then taken out of the room to emphasize that the delivery of food ends when he leaves the room. The process is then repeated several times every meal time spitting the meal portions so to get several reps until the guarder shows signs of looking forward to the non-guarder dog's approach into the room.

 

Caution in this exercise is needed when reducing distance between the dogs and when the non-guarder dog looks at the guarder dog eating (he can be fed a treat every now and then to prevent direct staring). The non-guarder dog looking at the guarder eating can create setbacks considering that it means he has an interest in the guarder's food (this is ultimately something that can be worked on too later on).

 

It is always best to maintain a certain level of distance for safety and to reduce the chances for setbacks. Even dogs with a history of not resource guarding should be provided space when being fed their meals. Food bowls should always be picked up after practice sessions and eventually real meal times to avoid conflict.

 

Now, sometimes, a dog needs to learn how to withdraw from potential conflict. Most dogs naturally understand that a growl means "move away, I am not comfortable with you so close to my food," however, some dogs may underestimate things or they may willingly not wish to back down.

 

Teaching the dog to avoid the guarder by using a verbal cue, if the guarder's growl doesn't work, may be a way to avoid conflict. A verbal cue such as "withdraw" or "leave him alone" should tell your non-guarding dog to follow you in another room or the yard where you can praise him and give a treat and then hang out with him there for some time.

 

With time, the response should become more and more fluent to the point of the non-guarder withdrawing from the guarder even before you pronounce your cue.

 

Resource guarding among dogs is a natural behavior that has been part of the dog's evolution. Often, conflict involves ritualistic displays and no harm among the parties occurs. It's the same as a child saying "this is my toy" to another child and it all ends there. The child has used her words rather than pulling hair or biting, and that may be acceptable, although the child can be eventually taught the virtues of sharing. In dogs, sharing though is maladaptive and could have led to extinction of the species. Rather than teaching them to share, we manipulate their environment and condition their emotions.

 

Mild cases of food guarding can often be solved through management. More serious issues where dogs risk injuring each other and there is tension and fear in other dogs sharing the household, may require behavior modification. These cases often require the aid of a professional, using force-free, humane behavior modification. With your pup being 6 months, it is best to have this tackled sooner than later considering that things tend to exacerbate once dogs reach social maturity at 18 to 36 months.

 

I hope this helps!

Best,

Adrienne

 

Please note: some terms that are not very common are hyperlinked and clickable to provide an in-depth explanation. Thee keywords appear of a lighter blue color. You will need to be logged into the course to assess them.

 

Disclaimer: behavior modification comes with risks. If you are dealing with any form of dog aggression, please seek the assistance of a dog behavior professional for safety and correct behavior modification implementation, custom tailored to your specific situation.

Edited January 5, 2019 by Adrienne Farricelli