# Scary situation . . . food agression?



## crawfisher (May 8, 2008)

I am in a dilemma. We brought home our 6-7 month old rescued goldie and he has been extremely sweet . . . until today. We have allowed Joe into our home in the mornings and evenings. He doesn't seem to have a problem with food agression when it concerns his food bowl; however, today he showed some real agression.
We had my son's 7th birthday party. We left the remaining 1/3 of the cake took close to the edge of the counter and Joe jumped up and got the cake. Down to the floor it went. When my son tried to pick it up, getting it away from Joe . . . the dog bit my son. I stepped in thinking I would "take care of it" and the dog bit me! When took a broom and pushed the cake away from Joe towards the trash can, the dog grabbed the broom and almost took it out of my hands.
My wife is besides herself with worry and I frankly don't know what to think. Once Joe was done with the cake he was as friendly as ever, but there was no way to take it away from him. After this event, my wife tells me that something similar happened to her and my son when the gave Joe a chew bone. Joe would growl and bear his teeth whenever someone passed close to him. This concerned her, but she thought the dog was just being protective from "his new family" who he doesn't know yet. What should I do? I am about to leave on a month long trip and don't want to leave my wife and two kids to deal with a new, food agressive pet.


----------



## marshab1 (Aug 28, 2006)

I'm know very little about this but I'm sure we can get some advice from people that do know.


----------



## Oaklys Dad (Dec 28, 2005)

Many younger goldens go through this same phase. I would suggest hand feeding for a few months to let your pup know who provides the food. My Oakly went through the same phase and hand feeding really seemed to solve the problem. The other thing you should always do even after hand feeding is to make the dog wait in a stay before you give the command to eat. This lets the dog know you are the food provider and are in control of when feeding time is.


----------



## Lucky's mom (Nov 4, 2005)

I am very sorry! My Lucky can show food aggression with his food and most definately with a chewy but nothing else and he is so predictable that I still consider him trustworthy. If he was surprising me or the kids with episodes guarding things besides food and chewys that would make us feel very vulnerable.

Did the rescue say he had guarding tendencies?


----------



## Phoebe (Feb 8, 2006)

I'm a broken record when it comes to this stuff, but I'm a big fan of Nothing In Life is Free. My fosters always go through this routine when I get them, it is an excellent tool in making sure they understand who the boss in the house is. Nothing in Life is Free means you control everything, they work for every toy, they learn to listen and take their cues from you.

A simple google search will give you a detailed explanation of Nothing In Life is Free. Having worked with mill dogs who often experience food aggression, I can assure you it is an excellent training tool.

Jan, Seamus, Gracie & Phoebe


----------



## FlyingQuizini (Oct 24, 2006)

Find yourself a qualified, reward based trainer who can help you... and in the meantime, the best house rule is that nobody is allowed to try and lift food resources off the dog, as at this point, that will only give him opportunity to practice the guarding behavior. 

I'd discontinue high value chew bones; see if you can find something that he'll be satisfied to chew but not guard, like a durable Nylabone.

If he steals a food item, ignore it. At that point, it's too late, he already has it, and if you try to take it now, he'll practice guarding and you may have another bite. I tell people that while working on guarding, if the dog gets something, they aren't allowed to try and get it back unless A. it will literally kill the dog to eat it (and very few things will) or B. it will cost you more than $100 to replace. And if you HAVE to get it back, do so via trading for something even better than what the dog stole.

Trying to get it back "just because" or "because you're 'alpha'" will only prove to the dog that he does need to be willing to "fight you" for important things.

Yes, nothing in life is free is good for all dogs, but it alone won't specifically address the resource guarding. It will, however, give you lots of practice exchanging reinforcers with the dog, so you can develop a great sense of teamwork in training on a daily basis.


----------



## BeauShel (May 20, 2007)

I saw a episode on animal planet and there was a dog that had food guarding issues and looked at his owners girlfriend as low dog on the totem pole. So they had her take over the feeding and had her feed him by hand but also got a bowl that looked like his food bowl and had her eat some meals out of it in front of him. She said that showed the dog that she eats before him and then fed him out of the bowl (his bowl) and he soon got the idea that she was above him on the totem bowl. I dont know if it would work but a dog behaviorist is a good idea too.


----------



## LibertyME (Jan 6, 2007)

You just described (to the letter) my Lexi 9 years ago...
I will be honest, it is a challenge to live with a resource guarder - not impossible, but it does require a lifestyle change. We choose never to forget or sugar coat the fact that our dog will bite if the circumstances are right...We choose to manipulate our environment to keep her from being in cirmcumstances that could force her to guard..
Although both of my, now adult, sons love Lexi - they accept her faults and all....however, honestly, they dont have the same trusting bond that they do with our other dogs...

While it is true that Joe is new to the family and will likely get somewhat better, my experience with Lexi is that she is not to be trusted with food or food objects (like food containers) that she has stolen - ever.

For example, My youngest was 17 and had lived with 'Lexi's rules' for 8 YEARS, yet still when he left his sandwich on the counter and she stole it - He yelled her name and moved toward her and she bit him...so only you know your son and how much he will be able to live with - possible seeing his favorite toy chewed on while he waits for an adult to come get it....his piece of pizza stolen from his plate when he went ot the fridge to get a drink...
Then the next question is -what about other children that come into your home? What if he steals their food/toys? 
What about other adults that may want to 'prove they are alpha'? 

Several things we've learned...
Dont raise your voice - it just makes it worse - seems to increase the value of what's been stolen...increases the intensity of how fast they gobble...and how far they will go to keep it...
Dont move quickly to confiscate what she has stolen - stay calm, move slowly
Dont use her name in anger - you dont want her name to be a trigger to guard resources
Everything must be kept off the counters/tables...
Keep your trash cans (bath and kitchen) in a closet or get flip top cans - Lexi will fight over stolen food/papertowels/food containers from the trash
You son is NEVER to try to take an object food or toy from the dog - NEVER..
If she steals it she keeps it....We will deal with the possible vomitting and diarreah and potential vet bills later...it is more important to avoid a bite.


Things you can do to make it easier:
Trade treats for toys...and trade alot...at least 3-4 times a day
Work on having him deliver to hand (to actively surrender objects) - tennis balls, his food dish, his leash - 
Keep your treats in the same place all the time...preferably in a jar that you can rattle....to possible distract him toward a reward - if you rattle, you reward.
Always reward a surrender - even if (especially if) he surrenders something while being naughty
When he eats, calmly walk toward him and drop yummy bits of meat or small pieces of cheese into his dish - if he wont tolerate you coming toward his dish then toss the treats - (people coming to my dish while I eat=good things)
Teach him tricks - sit, shake, spin - anything you can think of...
Dont offer things like rawhide, bones, extra special chewies - basically anything that can not be eaten in three or four swallows - they are jsut to 'valuable' and an opportunity to practice guarding. VERY-VERY rarely we offer Lexi something to chew...it is always done in her crate an she stays there with it until it is gone...


We have never had a problem with nylabones or taking any food from her that we have given her - in other words, we can take her dinner from her mouth have our hands in her dish and she is relaxed-no problem - this may not be the case for you....

Hang in there....


----------



## LibertyME (Jan 6, 2007)

Stephanie it comforts me greatly to know that your advice is what we have been doing...wish I could have known you when we first adopted Lexi....you would ahve saved Lexi from a lot of fumbling mistakes that we made....


----------



## FlyingQuizini (Oct 24, 2006)

*So they had her take over the feeding and had her feed him by hand but also got a bowl that looked like his food bowl and had her eat some meals out of it in front of him. She said that showed the dog that she eats before him and then fed him out of the bowl (his bowl) and he soon got the idea that she was above him on the totem bowl.*

Oh my.... I'm sorry... but the comment about the human having to eat her meals out of a dog bowl is one of the silliest things I've heard in a long time! It's about as good as the advice I saw online once about having owners spit in the dog's bowl before feeding the dog as a way of "marking" the dog's food as your own.

I gotta say... a lot of the "pack leader" type stuff is so overboard, it's comical!


----------



## FlyingQuizini (Oct 24, 2006)

EXCELLENT, EXCELLENT, EXCELLENT advice there!



LibertyME said:


> You just described (to the letter) my Lexi 9 years ago...
> I will be honest, it is a challenge to live with a resource guarder - not impossible, but it does require a lifestyle change. We choose never to forget or sugar coat the fact that our dog will bite if the circumstances are right...We choose to manipulate our environment to keep her from being in cirmcumstances that could force her to guard..
> Although both of my, now adult, sons love Lexi - they accept her faults and all....however, honestly, they dont have the same trusting bond that they do with our other dogs...
> 
> ...


----------

