A while back, we discussed the basic drives behind a dog who might want to guard, protect, and otherwise act like Golem about “their” food, toys and other good things in their lives. **see article “MINE” April 2014, in the blog list**
What we didn’t really discuss was how to go about fixing this in your home. Well folks, you are in luck! Today we are going to give you a handy How To. We are going to go over how to help a dog who wants to guard his food, and possibly attack other dogs in your home.
We will not be addressing how to work with a dog who goes after You, or other people in your home, when food is present. That particular problem can have a few different motivations, and based on the individual dog, might need to be handled a number of different ways. That being said, if your dog is threatening you over food, please contact a qualified professional Teacher (dog trainer) to help you with this dangerous scene.
Ok, back to helping your pup learn how Not to freak out about food, in the presence of another dog.
- Do not free-feed the dogs. This gives entirely too many opportunities for some dogs to learn how to push their “siblings” around.
- Control the situation as much as possible, by using crates, folding pens, or baby-gates so the dogs cannot physically harm each other.
- If you are dealing with Cujo, it may be helpful to start by feeding them in separate rooms. This is obviously not a Fix, as the dog really won’t learn how to let go of this behavior. It is the safest way to feed, if you do not have time to work with the dog.
- Sometimes, in lower levels of this resource guarding behavior, you can get results by having the offending dog on leash, so he cannot reach his ‘sibling.’ This can be tricky if the other dog also wishes to come around and investigate the food bowl. In this instance, put leashes on all the dogs. Tie them to something stout, or use a helper that can take good direction.
- Work on basic obedience cues.
Teaching your pups how to Sit, and Wait before diving into their food should be priority. You may have to work with them separately to teach these cues. Once you have taught them to Wait politely for the bowl to be placed on the ground, and your release cue, before being allowed to eat, you can then move on to actually helping them get past this frustrating behavior.
OK, so you’ve checked that the dogs are secured, a ways away form each other. In this example, we are going to assume that both dogs are secured in kennels. Make sure these kennels do not share a wall, and that there is distance between them. A more intense dog will need more space between them, then one that might have only a minor issue.
If your dogs have already had a fight or two, and someone has gotten hurt, please make sure that this distance is quite a bit. One family we worked with, had to start with the kennels situated so one was actually in another room. The door to the room was open, so the dogs could hear each other, but the visual intensity was removed. Go at whatever speed your dog needs.
- Begin by preparing something extra yummy, like chopped up chicken, or beef. **Note, if the smell of food is triggering the aggression, please lock them up in kennels, separate rooms, or put them behind those gates, BEFORE you prepare any food.
- Put only a few kibbles of dog food in each bowl.
- Go to the ‘good dog’ and ask for the Sit, Wait (or Stay, whatever you normally use).
- Go to the ‘food guarding monster’ and ask him to Sit, Wait.
- Place the bowl for ‘food guarding monster’ in the kennel. He should be proficient enough with Sit and Wait, to not immediately dive in to the bowl.
- Close the kennel door, and tell him “OK!” or “Feast!” and allow him to dive in for the few kibbles you offered.
- Give the Good Dog his bowl of a few kibbles (ask for a short Sit and Wait first), and return immediately to the ‘food guarding monster.’ He should have just finished the small snack. Use a ‘Slow Feeder’ bowl to give yourself extra time. Offer him a piece of chicken, and ask him to Sit, or something equally simple. Give another piece of chicken when he does what you’ve asked.
- Repeat.
Your mealtime will be extended. You will need at least half and hour, or more, to work through a dog’s normal portion of food in this way, but trust us, this helps.
What if the dog is so intense about it, that he cannot focus at all when the other dog is present? He just “goes nuts” every time the food and the other dog are in the same area; even if you have them in separate kennels?
In that case, you can put more distance between them, or experiment with what really motivates that little monster. For the record, even if it is a 150 lb dog, I will still call them “little” based on the behaviors…anyway….
- Enlist the help of another person.
- Separate them accordingly.
- Place a few kibbles of food in the Good Dog’s bowl, and only two or three kibbles in the ‘food guarding monster’s’ bowl
- Have your High Value chicken bits at the ready
- Direct your helper to go to the Good Dog’s kennel, and begin the Sit and Wait for the bowl routine.
- While this is happening, give small bits of chicken to the ‘food guarding monster.’ If he can focus and does not seem to be interested in the other dog, you can ask for a Sit and Wait. But you may want to start by just giving him a delicious snack and convincing him that while the other dog is getting a bowl, he is getting something Much more awesome. This also helps remove any anxiety he may be feeling due to the presence of a Bowl. Dogs connect events. Bowl = Food = I might lose that food to the other dog = I must protect/guard this resource = I become a Food Guarding Monster. Removing the bowl and offering only chicken can help. Keeping him working for that chicken is Better! Asking him to perform basic things, like Sit, or Shake, to get that chicken puts his brain in work mode—that is a more controlled state of mind.
- If he can handle the other dog getting the bowl, while he gets chicken, move on to offering him the bowl with only 2-3 kibbles in it. This short amount of time that he gets to eat, can help avoid his falling in to the obsessive behavior of needing to guard that resource.
- The moment he finishes those few kibbles, put him to work for chicken.
- Make sure your helper is continuing to work through the other dog’s food, a few kibbles at at time. Asking for that Sit and Wait before putting the bowl down and giving the release cue. This gives you ample time to “Work” the ‘food guarding monster’ through a meal.
When you reach a point that ‘food guarding monster’ seems to be more focused on the chicken bits, than what’s happening with the other dog, you can graduate him to a bigger challenge. Give him a bit more kibble in the bowl. Not a lot, mind you, maybe a small handful (be sure to increase the offering for the Good Dog as well). Getting to this point may take a few weeks. Again, go slow. It is better to work in the first stages of this for too long, and really set the dog up for success, than to rush it and wind up back where you started.
This change is a pivotal point in figuring out whether or not the dog is ready to move forward. If he is ready for this, the additional time he spends noshing food from the bowl, should not bring him back to Golem status. Meaning, he should finish the portion and look to you for that chicken.
If he falls immediately into a body posture of stiffness, or growls or indicates at all that he thinks the other dog is the place to put his focus, back up and resume giving him only a few pieces of food at a time.
As the ‘food guarding monster’ gets less stressed about the idea that he is missing out on something delicious, you can begin to offer him a larger portion; working towards the goal of being able to provide his entire portion, without him losing his composure.
Remember to keep that chicken handy, as he will need reinforcement when he finishes his food. This will not be a forever thing.
Once he can move through the process, with a normal portion of food, and does not seem tense. Start to move the Good Dog a little closer. Again, this takes time. Some families have decided that this is where they stop. That’s ok. The dogs are controlled, confined and safe.
If you choose to move forward, the following steps can be taken:
- Move the crates about a foot closer together, and repeat the process of using only a few kibbles at a time.
- You may have to Back Up and dole out a bunch of those small bits of chicken again. Remember, every time you change something, you have to help the dog generalize the behavior.
- If the ‘food guarding monster’ is handling it well, move those crates about a foot closer together at the next meal and see how it goes.
- Should the ‘food guarding monster’ show any tension at all, go slow, and try to build the behaviors he’s now familiar with. Here is 3 kibbles, Dude. Sit. Wait. OK, Feast! And now here’s Chicken. Can you Sit? Good! Here’s more chicken. And so on.
- The goal may be to have their kennels right next to each other and providing meals. Please remember that the Good Dog, is probably afraid of the ‘food guarding monster.’ Keeping about 6-8” between the kennels/crates provides a safety barrier in case something goes south.
- If the dog does well for a couple days, but shows signs of reverting to Golem, simply put more space between them and practice with the ‘early’ stage again. He may not be ready, or just really can’t let go of this natural, but frustrating behavior.
Q: How do we get them to just be cool without the crates, gates or pen?
A: Use leashes. You may need a helper. Follow the same protocol: Distance between them; start slow; offer small amounts; ask for good behaviors; reward and distract with a more desirable snack.
Q: What kind of correction can we give?
A: Provided that you have taken the time to build alternative behaviors (focus on the better reward, and don’t fall into Golem mind), and the dog has demonstrated that they can focus and behave a bit, it is ok to issue a firm, “NO!” should the dog rush, or growl at the other dog.
This should be followed immediately by removing him to a safe distance, and resume the exercise at that distance.
We want to avoid this situation as much as we can. While you should correct for this outburst, it is unfair to continue to force him into a situation where he feels the need to fight for that resource. This is a stressful thing for him, for you, and for the Good Dog. This can put your Good Dog into a state of mind where he can start to believe that fighting is the only alternative; now you have Two (or more) dogs who feel like fighting.
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