Resource guarding and finding a trainer

[NaisuiZhu]

I'm currently trying to work with my 1 year old male Aussie (to be neutered soon) on his resource guarding behavior with other dogs but it's been challenging because I just moved to a new city and I don't have any friends with dogs yet. We've been to the dog park a few times and I had to remove my dog most recently for starting a fight over someone's toy. Any advice on how to work on this would be appreciated. I've also been looking for trainers to help with this but can't seem to find any with (what I would consider) reasonable prices. All the trainers I've called only offer package deals around $2k when I'm looking for hourly lesson rates. Any suggestions for where to look?

[JMFS]

Pet Professional Guild:  https://petprofessionalguild.com/Find-a-Member

You might have to widen the search if you're in a smaller town.  The closest for me is 20 miles away.  From experience I can tell you if you don't want to rely on management alone (feeding him away from other dogs, ensuring there's no food or toys around when other dogs are around, etc . . .) a behavior modification trainer is the way to go.  Adrienne will be able to help you with a lot of it, but to Really get it nipped in the bud safely you'll want to have someone there in person.  I went through it with Momo and after 8 years of trying to handle it on my own it was like night and day after having a trainer help me.

$2k is a steep price for sure imo.  I'm in Florida and my trainer charged $600 by the time we were done with a 5-week in-home course, meeting 1x per week.  Much more manageable and worth every last penny!

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Hello and welcome to the forums, 

When you take a dog prone to resource guarding to a dog park where toys are allowed, this can be risky business. On top of potential fights erupting, a dog prone to resource guarding gets to rehearse problematic behaviors. Practice makes perfect, so the more a dog uses his body language and vocal threats to send other dogs away from a toy, the more the dog will engage in this behavior in the future. 

Here's the thing: resource guarding behaviors are reinforcing. Every time a dog growls, barks or snaps, this behavior causes other dogs to move away, and therefore the guarder will want to use this approach more and more.

While growling, barking and snapping works, one may assume that it's OK to allow dogs to use these ritualistic displays. After all, no dogs gets hurt once they get the message, so what's the harm?

The risk is that dogs parks are unpredictable places, and there are a variety of dogs there. At some point, a resource guarder may encounter a dog who for some reason or another doesn't get the message and keeps approaching instead of backing down despite the guarder asking for distance. Or perhaps two distracted dogs are playing and end up too close.  

When this happens, the guarder will feel the need to escalate from just barking, growling or snapping to possibly attacking and biting with the intent to harm. Now, this dog will have a bite history and there are risks that he'll go straight to escalating to a bite next time since the lower levels of threats no longer seem to "work. "

Dog parks therefore risk exposing dogs to situations that allow them to rehearse guarding behaviors and potentially even escalate them with the risk of these becoming the dog's default behavior when toys (or other valuables) are around.  This may happen even with dogs who have no interest in the toy and just happen to be walking by.  

If your dog's resource guarding behavior is exclusively evoked by the presence of toys, going to a dog park that doesn't allow toys can help, although it is never possible to totally prevent future occurrences.

For instance, dog parks that do not allow toys can turn troublesome too. After all, it is never possible to totally prevent future occurrences because to a dog anything can be perceived as a valuable "toy." For example a bird's feather on the ground or a stick may be worthy for your dog of guarding, just like a regular toy. Also, something unexpected may happen, like for instance, a child playing nearby may toss a ball the wrong way and into the park or a kite may land right in the dog park area.

A safer option may be organizing play dates with a few known dogs and in a cleared area that is easily controllable so that you know that the chances of your dog finding toys or other things to guard are close to none. However, there can still be risks with this practice, so the ultimate goal would be working on the problem.

Behavior modification for dogs who guard toys requires a multi-modal approach. This helps tackle the problem from a variety of angles while tackling the underlying root causes. Following are just some examples of what a behavior modification plan may include:

Management

The most important step is to stop the dog from rehearsing the problem behavior and therefore no longer exposing him to full-intensity situations that evoke guarding behaviors. This is mostly done by avoiding the dog park and other places where dogs aggregate and there is the potential for guarding certain items. 

Changing the Emotions

Resource guarding requires a behavior intervention plan based on desensitization and counterconditioning. 

Desensitization is a behavior modification procedure that entails a systematic, gradual and repeated exposure to stimuli or situations perceived as aversive or unpleasant. The main intent of a desensitization program is therefore decreasing the negative emotional responsiveness and its associated physiological changes through systematic, gradual exposure.

If for example, a person is terrified of spiders, he or she will be emotionally overwhelmed when a spider crawls on the arm and the physiological response may include a racing heart, increased breathing and sweating.

A systematic desensitization procedure in such a case would entail having the person initially look at pictures of spiders over and over until the person no longer emotionally reacts to them, then criteria is raised, and the person may watch videos of spiders and then progress to viewing a live spider from a distance. 

Here is more info on desensitization: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/desensitization/

Counterconditioning entails changing the dog's emotions towards certain stimuli or situations, so that, instead of dreading something, the dog looks forward to it. 

Here is more info on counterconditioning: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/counterconditioning/

Use of Systematic Set-ups

Desensitization and counterconditioning principles are therefore applied to systematic set-ups where there is a good level of control. This is done preferably with a dog trainer/behavior consultant who has access to a calm, well-trained dog to act as a "stooge dog." Such dogs are often well-versed in using calming signals and reading other dogs carefully. 

Both the toy-guarding dog and the stooge dog are kept on leash, one handler per dog at a distance from which the guarding dog will not react (he is basically kept under threshold). The toy guarding dog is provided with a very low value toy (or some object that normally doesn't evoke much guarding). The stooge dogs is then walked towards the guarder with the "toy" at a distance in which he is under threshold.  

Here is a read on threshold levels: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/threshold-levels/

The key is teaching the guarder that good things happen when another dogs approaches the guarded item. From dreading having another dog get close to his toys, the resource guarder therefore starts looking forward it. A nice goal is to obtain what's known as a conditioned emotional response towards the presence of dogs when a resource is around.

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/conditioned-emotional-response-cer/

The whole process needs to be done at the dog's pace, gradually decreasing distance and increasing the value of the toys. It goes without saying there are risks for setbacks if there is sloppy implementation. 

Kicking Training Up a Notch

On top of creating positive associations, it would also be important to train the dog a good recall in spite of high distractions (like the presence of other dogs running around, possible resource etc).

Along with the good recall, it would be important to also good to train a fluent response to the "leave it" and "drop it" cues despite increased distractions and with an increase in value of items asked to be dropped. It is important that the rewards offered are higher in value than the items left. 

Here is a general guide: 

Leave it

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/take-leave-it/

Drop it

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/drop-it/

I also like to train a fluent response to a smacking sound:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/the-airplane-game/the-smacking-sound/

Since many dog parks, on top of not allowing toys, do not allow food, it is therefore important training at a proficient level where the dog comes, drops and leaves it, using other forms of rewards. 

While it is true that training can help dodge a potential fight, it doesn't directly address too much the issue of tackling the underlying emotions, which are the root cause for the conflict. 

Importance of Learning Body Language 

It helps a lot to also learn more about dog body language and the slightest signs of stress. Recognizing early signs is paramount so that one can intervene quickly to redirect a guarder quickly by calling him or asking him to "leave it' or "drop it.

If you catch your dog when he's feeling mildly tense, you'll have a better chance of redirecting compared to when the more overt guarding behavior starts.

More on some of the early signs before dogs bite:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/dogs-dont-bite-blue/

Importance of Training Better Impulse Control 

While this is an indirect approach, it's still important considering that dogs prone to resource guarding in general tend to struggle with feelings of frustration when they fail to get what they want when they want it. 

Training better impulse control through impulse control games can teach your resource guarder how to better cope with feelings of frustration. It's about mastering the art of self-regulating and obtaining delayed gratification. 

Here are some games:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/impulse-control-frustration-tolerance/

Have a Plan in Place

Have a plan in place in case you ever need to break up a dog fight should it erupt. Loud, startling noises can be an effective way to stop the dogs in their tracks. You can try banging on a metal garbage can, blowing a whistle or an air horn. Spraying fighting dogs with a strong blast of water can also work. Many dog parks have a garden hose located somewhere.

Spray Shield is a product that consists of a canister of citronella spray that can be sprayed towards the fighting dogs. It works on several levels such as by scent, the noise when emitted by the can and the sight of the spray and wet sensation on the skin. It can work with mild cases. 

The Importance of Working With the Pros

As seen, best options to tackle dogs guarding toys at the dog park is to firstly stop taking them to dog parks. Secondly, it would be important working with a dog trainer/behavior consultant to find the most appropriate behavior modification intervention plan aiming at changing emotional responses and creating a foundation of highly fluent trained response.

The whole behavior modification implementation should be a well-orchestrated plan, where the professional observes the dog, and makes important judgement calls such as when to progress by decreasing distance and using higher value toys and when to take a few steps back. 

It goes without saying that a sloppy implementation may lead to several setbacks that can have a negative impact on the outcome and there can also be risks for fights. Hence the importance of working along with a professional who can take safety precautions and constantly gauge the progress. 

As tempting as it may be to ignore the problem in hopes that it ameliorates on its own, it's a known fact that resource guarding issues tend to get worse rather than better without the right intervention.

As Jennifer pointed out, it would be therefore important to find a dog trainer/behavior consultant committed to using force-free behavior modification. 

I hope this helps! Please keep in mind that the above is just an "example" of a behavior intervention plan for a dog who resource guards toys. Only a behavior professional working with you directly can provide you with a customized plan after carefully evaluating your dog and his specific triggers. Even then, no guarantees can be provided on the outcome of behavior modification and training and there may be chances that dog parks may not be recommended and other forms of exercise and socialization may be offered. 

Disclaimer: behavior modification comes with risks. If your puppy or dog shows signs of potential aggression (lunging, barking, growling, snapping, biting) for safety, please consult with a dog behavior professional who uses force-free behavior modification techniques (no shock, prongs, or physical corrections) for direct in-person guidance. Articles, videos and general info found in the forums or course (or any online source) are not meant to replace in-person training/instruction. By using this course and forum, you are waiving any liability claims or other type of claims related to any dogs' behavior against you or others.