Food Aggressive

[Lily123]

My 12 week old puppy growls and barks if we go near him when he has a bone. He's fine with food in his bowl - we can hand feed him and take it off him (including cut up chicken necks) but if he has a bone (chicken wing, lamb flap) in the yard he runs away, growls and barks at us. It was suggested that we don't try to take the bone off him but swap it with another bone and also try hand feeding the bone. I tried this tonight and he did swap and did let me hold the bone when he ate but the minute he got the end of the bone to finish off he started the growling again. Should I just keep up with this or is there anything else I should try? I've never had a dog who worries about food - they've always let anyone take it off them so I'm just not sure how I should approach this. Thanks for any help/suggestions.

[dandybrush]

when raz was little he would run off with chicken wings and not let me anywhere near him, he didnt bark or growl though..so i tied him up one day and sat down with him and did what you did i had 2 chicken wings out i held both of them and held one out to him initially he tried to take it then when he realised he couldnt have it he started munching then i would say give and take it off him and swap it...honestly he gets bones when i go out now so im not normally home to see how he would go if i tried to take it off him but at the time that did the trick. maybe you just have to keep going with that technique (you possibly need more than one rep of it) and maybe if you can no longer hold it (when he has chewed it down) dont give him the end, just take it off him and freeze it for later or something

sorry its not the best advice prob but thats all i can think of

[aussielover]

definitely keep going with the food exchange but I would keep another leash on him so someone could pull him away while i am exchanging the bones.

I probably wouldn't try to interrupt him too much as this may actually cause him to become more worried and aggressive. What kind of dog is he? perhaps he will grow out of it when he feels more secure and settled? However, if the problem persists I would probably seek professional help.

Good luck!

[W Sibs]

I would talk to a behaviourist before things get out of hand.

[Lily123]

Thanks for the replies everyone!

Aussielover - he is a mini poodle.

I will definitely continue on with what I'm doing and see how things go. He is absolutely delightful otherwise and I just want to nip this in the bud.

[sas]

Give food exchange a try and eating out of your hands, if no improvement within 2 weeks, get in a Behaviourist to help you through the process.

[Lily123]

Thanks Sas, will press on and see how we go.

[4Kelpies]

I've talked to a number of people and read lots of articles about resource guarding and this is still my favourite method. http://k9deb.com/foodguar.htm

I've seen it work successfully with handlers who were total beginners. This is normal puppy behaviour from a puppy who is very worried that you are going to steal his food and has no other way of telling you about his fears.

[Lily123]

Thanks for the link 4Kelpies, I'll read through that.

[percyk]

definitely get him out of this behaviour

id do the swap with him as youre doing and make him lie down before he gets his bone

start with him lying down and get him to watch YOU not the bone as you hold it out

give it to him when he makes eye contact

id do this with food rather than a bone actually so you can repeat it a few times per session

i trained our bully boy in seven days with this method and he will not touch food without permission

i can take anything from him and handle his food while he is eating...including a bone...we dont give anything but necks mind you cos we have too many and they bury their treasures and there have been snarly fights over property that shouldve long been forgotten about lol

[Odin-Genie]

My female goldy was like that at 12 weeks. She was ok with kibble but would growl if anyone went close to her while she had bones or raw meat. This is what my dogs' trainer suggested, which worked really well.

I started by hand feeding her. I would take small pieces of meat, make her sit and then feed her one by one. Then I would walk away and come back to feed her again. This way she associated my approaching her with getting more food instead of worrying about her food being taken away. Also, while she was eating a bone, I would go to her and feed her pieces of meat without touching her bone.

Now she and my other dog sit next to each other and chew their bones without any problem. I can take away her bones at any time without any issues. However, as others have said, it's always good to consult with a behaviourist.

[Lily123]

Thank you! I'll give these things a try. I appreciate the help.

[Elsha_UK_AU]

My pup (cavalier king charles spaniel) is 6 months old and doesn't have bones too often so we hadn't noticed it, but he growls (quite ferrally for a little fella) and lunges at us if we try and take the bone. We've got a bone for this weekend (he has a very sensitive tummy so doesn't get them often). so I am going to try the treat/swap on him and see if we can get the other bone off him.

When he growls, I swear for a small thing...it's a little scary! I need to get him out of this behaviour as I don't want him being like this if my nieces or nephew took something off him although he is fine with toys, food and everything else.