mixeduppup Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 My mum has a young JRTX she's about 2 or so. She a very obedient dog, very loving and submissive to people. She's a very sweet dog but she's been developing this habit of resource guarding and it seems to be becoming compulsive. She guards everything, and just sits by it all day growling at any animal that walks past, but never people. She doesn't eat it if it's a treat just guards it. Mum has tried locking her up to give her the treat but she just complains, she's tried removing the treat when the guarding starts but she'll go and grab a rock or a stick and take it back to that place and guard it. She's tried redirection, removing her from that place, a loud noise to break her focus but nothing works. She has two main areas that she guards in but if we block them off she'll do it somewhere else. Does anyone have any ideas as it can't be good for her (she never actually attacks, it's just growling and barking, everyone pretty much ignores her). I'll contact my behaviourist friend but she's got sick kids at the moment so isn't available for advice. Thanks in advance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tralee Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 (edited) She guards everything, and just sits by it all day growling at any animal that walks past, but never people. My big girl, who has the sweetest Temperament, will do this from time to time. I put it down to the dog asserting herself over the other dogs. She only does it with food or bones etc. Quite frankly, the younger puppies need it because they can be a right PITA. Resource guarding is an acceptable form of aggression, however that said, being able to remove food from a dog is a criteria used in some temperament assessments. I allow my big girl to guard her bones, as she seems to know what she's doing. One other thing, she has, from time to time, buried whole chicken wings and then refused to allow the puppies into the yard where they are buried. Its dogs politics. Something to watch, learn and behold. However, if it escalates, and I doubt it will, then you may have a problem. Cheers Edited October 1, 2012 by Tralee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greytmate Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 Stop feeding treats. Just give the dog its normal meals, and remove the bowl when its finished. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mixeduppup Posted October 1, 2012 Author Share Posted October 1, 2012 The dog's get bones for their teeth, mum is big on it. We can easily remove the food from her and she leaves the food when we come near, it's just other animals. So we shouldn't be too worried? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greytmate Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 The dog's get bones for their teeth, mum is big on it. We can easily remove the food from her and she leaves the food when we come near, it's just other animals. So we shouldn't be too worried? I think it might be because she is getting more food than she needs, so is guarding the extra. If she is complaining about getting food in her crate, then possibly she isn't that hungry. Best to give her bones as part of her meals, and keep her completely separated from other animals when she has food. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mixeduppup Posted October 1, 2012 Author Share Posted October 1, 2012 ok good idea. mum does overfeed her Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tralee Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 The dog's get bones for their teeth, mum is big on it. We can easily remove the food from her and she leaves the food when we come near, it's just other animals. So we shouldn't be too worried? Right. Dogs play games, including power games and survival games. But keep an eye on it. We can learn a lot from our animals, as sometimes they have things to teach us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jumabaar Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 (edited) Is she desexed- ie my bitch can get a little snarky when she is having a pseudo pregnancy Could she be painful? Have there been any other changes in behaviour? Edited October 1, 2012 by Jumabaar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mixeduppup Posted October 1, 2012 Author Share Posted October 1, 2012 She's desexed and recently had a vet check with her vacc, she's completely normal apart from this Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dame Aussie Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 Both of ours will occasionally do this if they have a really big bone or something equally "precious". Not with treats etc.. It has never escalated and if it goes on for too long we take the "precious thing" away. We have no problem taking food/bones away, the guarding is not towards us, just dogs. I wouldn't worry too much, but as GM said, maybe stop the treats and feed her separately if you're concerned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corvus Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 Er... The dog is guarding sticks and rocks. I would worry! That is not normal behaviour AFAIK. If the resource guarding goes on when the resource is no longer there, then something peculiar is going on. The whole point of resource guarding is to protect a resource, after all. The owner has already tried all the obvious solutions. I find it disturbing that it's not dependent on access to the magic spots, or the presence of the treats, and it's apparently going on for many hours. Resource guarding can get a bit loopy in an anxious dog, incidentally. There are a lot of questions I'd want to ask about this JRT cross before I was content to shrug it off. I would get a vet behaviourist to check it out. They will ask all the questions that need to be asked and if it is a compulsive behaviour they can treat it with medication, which will probably give you the best shot at changing things. I would want to change things, because what kind of life is that for the dog? They are spending stacks of their time warning everyone off something they never even eat. It's entirely possible she's not eating it because she's too stressed. It happens. Resource guarding is not a game for dogs, and a dog spending hours doing it is something to worry about IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greytmate Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 Er... The dog is guarding sticks and rocks. I would worry! That is not normal behaviour AFAIK. If the resource guarding goes on when the resource is no longer there, then something peculiar is going on. The whole point of resource guarding is to protect a resource, after all. The owner has already tried all the obvious solutions. I find it disturbing that it's not dependent on access to the magic spots, or the presence of the treats, and it's apparently going on for many hours. Resource guarding can get a bit loopy in an anxious dog, incidentally. There are a lot of questions I'd want to ask about this JRT cross before I was content to shrug it off. I would get a vet behaviourist to check it out. They will ask all the questions that need to be asked and if it is a compulsive behaviour they can treat it with medication, which will probably give you the best shot at changing things. I would want to change things, because what kind of life is that for the dog? They are spending stacks of their time warning everyone off something they never even eat. It's entirely possible she's not eating it because she's too stressed. It happens. Resource guarding is not a game for dogs, and a dog spending hours doing it is something to worry about IMO. It would be better to try the simple solution - stop over feeding the dog - before going to a veterinary behaviourist. Nobody is saying to shrug it off. No, it isn't normal for a dog to guard where a treat once was, and the dog is probably stressed out if showing that much aggression, but the owner has not tried the most obvious solution. This dog should not be in possession of food unless eating its dinner. If after a week or two of proper feeding the dog is still showing undue aggression, then I would investigate behaviourists and medication. But for now, the OP has been given excellent advice for free. This dog is being repeatedly put in a situation where it feels it has to guard. I think that has to stop before we can say whether the dog has a problem or not. You don't need a behaviourist to tell you that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aidan3 Posted October 2, 2012 Share Posted October 2, 2012 If, when you say "all day", you literally mean "all day" or even a good part of the day and it's a variety of resources then don't mess around. Straight to a veterinary behaviourist. GM makes a good point, dogs should never be left with food they haven't eaten. But your wording suggests a deeper issue than just overfeeding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mixeduppup Posted October 2, 2012 Author Share Posted October 2, 2012 Some days it's all day and other days she doesn't do it at all Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mixeduppup Posted October 2, 2012 Author Share Posted October 2, 2012 Yes I will, I only trust one person and her kids are sick right now so she's unavailable for a week or two, so that's why I asked here in the interim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aidan3 Posted October 2, 2012 Share Posted October 2, 2012 You need a veterinary behaviourist, trained in veterinary medicine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mixeduppup Posted October 2, 2012 Author Share Posted October 2, 2012 She is. She's a BVSc and trained Animal Behavioural Science Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aidan3 Posted October 2, 2012 Share Posted October 2, 2012 Excellent :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jigsaw Posted October 2, 2012 Share Posted October 2, 2012 Brenda Aloff spoken/written of one her Fox Terriers that guarded a space where her toys used to be. The toy may have been removed earlier in the day or the day before but the dog still guarded the space where the toy had been. This is not normal behaviour nor is the behaviour the OP has written about. The OP says it is a developing habit and has been becoming compulsive. Stopping feeding treats will not stop the behaviour or change the behaviour if the dog is finding other things to resource guard such as sticks and rocks. Actively seeking out something to guard is not normal behaviour. It may minimise the problem by not feeding treats but it will not resolve the problem. The dog needs professional assessment now to minimise risk to other animals and the continued stress the resource guarding behaviour is likely to be putting on the dog's health system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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