Brought to you by The Original Dog Bible
It's normal for a dog to protect prized resources such as food from other dogs, but its inappropriate and dangerous for a dog to guard possessions from people. Some dogs growl or snap if they fear someone might take away their food, lashing out at anyone who approaches while they're eating. A dog who guards his food cannot safely be free-fed because if a bowl of kibble is always available, the dog will constantly be on guard. Instead of free-feeding your protective dog, give him measured meals at regular intervals (three to four meals per day for puppies, one to two for dogs over one year). Put the food bowl down, give your dog a half hour to eat, and then pick up the bowl and any remaining food. Put it away until the next mealtime. If your dog has ever bitten someone in defense of his bowl, have an experienced professional trainer or behaviorist assess your dogs behavior and determine the safest way to proceed with his training.
Training to prevent food guarding is best begun while a dog is young, before he forms the habit, but adult dogs can also be trained. Start by teaching your dog to sit, lie down, and do simple tricks for treat rewards, and feed him the treats by hand. When your dog understands how to earn food rewards, have family members and dog-loving friends cue him to do his tricks and hand-feed the rewards. Children should do this only under adult supervision, only if they're comfortable around dogs, and only if the dog is friendly and gentle with kids.
Then teach your dog that wonderful things will happen when people are nearby while he's eating. Here are some exercises to teach every dog that people are food providers, not food stealers. Follow the exercises step by step, and be sure your dog is comfortable with each step before moving onto the next:
1. Feed your dog half of his meal. When he finishes, pick up the empty bowl, add the second helping, and give it back.
2. While your dog is eating, talk quietly, and gently pat or stroke him while intermittently dropping special treats into his bowl.
3. Take away your dogs bowl before he's finished, add some superdelicious goodies, and give it back.
Guarding food can be one of the most dangerous problem behaviors in dogs. Small children are especially at risk around a food-possessive dog. If your training efforts do not work, seek professional guidance.
Some dogs consider their favorite person a resource worth guarding and will behave possessively when anyone else tries to share that persons attention. The possessive dog crowds other pets away from the person, wedging himself between them and threatening or actually biting what he perceives as competition. When a dog does this, owners may think he's protecting them from imagined harm, but the dog is simply staking his turf, claiming the person as real estate.
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