Food Possessive Golden Pup

[Bubitty]

Sorry, off topic!

Faolmor,

Really interesting stuff you posted! Hoping you could help me with a few off topic questions! Thanks! Is it really true that they think their meal is the last meal? Because Bub always starts buttering us up (nuzzling, kissing) at around 7.30pm which is his dinner time and as soon as he’s eaten the “buttering behaviour” stops so we’ve always had a theory that he knows when dinner time is.

When I bake a cake or something he gets all psyched up, I always get the impression that he’s thinking “oh goodie, there’s going to be a bit of cake to be had.”

Am I humanising and imagining this behaviour?

[laffi]

This is VERY CLEAR and easy to follow advice. :D and

okay before we descend into total chaos...I believe we were trying to help the OP with her problem?

I think it should be pointed out that there is always a difference between taking food away from a dog's bowl, and taking something off them that you would like back or that they should not have (eg dead bird in retrieving trials, sock, toy, washing off the line etc).

The food bowl is not neutral ground...it is territory. Yes, as an owner, you do need to be completely safe around any territory in your home, and this includes your dog's dinner bowl. However, the original point in this topic was that the OP had been told that the best way to teach her puppy to be submissive around its bowl was to have its food forcibly taken away. This had resulted in the puppy getting the wrong signals and acting inappropriately.

I have already stated by opinions on why the technique she was shown was wrong, and detrimental to the trust that needs to be developed between dog and owner.

There are two things that the puppy needs to be taught - one, is that her owner is NEVER going to break her trust by taking away what she thinks is her last meal on earth, so there's no reason to get grumpy (the puppy, I mean!), and two, to give up something on command.

With a puppy - or in fact any dog that has developed a food aggression problem - the two issues MUST be taught separately, so as not to confuse the dog. They must also be thought of as separate issues. One, food guarding. The other, teaching the "give" command.

Eventually, yes, you could use one to ASK (not command) the dog to give up something it would like to eat. But you cannot do this until the dog will trust that you are the provider of its food, and not the one there to take its food away. There is no reason to ever confuse a dog like this, and it is a shame for the OP that her puppy was placed in a position where it learned the hard way not to always trust the hand that feeds it.

That is the primary damage that needs to be undone. The "give" command can wait.

[Faolmor]

Sorry, off topic!

Faolmor,

Really interesting stuff you posted! Hoping you could help me with a few off topic questions! Thanks! Is it really true that they think their meal is the last meal? Because Bub always starts buttering us up (nuzzling, kissing) at around 7.30pm which is his dinner time and as soon as he’s eaten the “buttering behaviour” stops so we’ve always had a theory that he knows when dinner time is.

When I bake a cake or something he gets all psyched up, I always get the impression that he’s thinking “oh goodie, there’s going to be a bit of cake to be had.”

Am I humanising and imagining this behaviour?

Apologies to the OP for going off-topic a little :D

I think that dogs very quickly adapt to routines. They also read cues such as you going about the normal "pre-dinner" rituals - eg picking up the bowls, preparing the meals (yours and theirs). All these things reaffirm in the dog's mind that, yes, this has happened before and last time this happened, I got fed. But until that bowl goes on the floor, they can't be sure that they're going to get that food - or that they're going to keep it once they get it. This is why most dogs scoff down their food as fast as possible.

If you bake a cake, the whole house smells great - if you left a window open, I bet you'd have half the street wishing they were about to get some cake! The dog is definitely picking up on these wonderful smells, and anticipating a great meal. Dogs have amazing scent receptors in their noses...and the part of their brain that deals with smell is much, much larger than our own. You could almost say that dogs can taste smells. Something very aromatic, like a cake, must be like torture to a dog! They can not only smell it better than us, but they can practically taste it. Imagine all that going on while mum is baking a chocolate cake

So, to answer your question, no, I don't think you're humanising it. Dogs are very perceptive and have a superb sense of smell. They also know what their dinner bowl looks like, and if you pick it up, there's a pretty good chance of a meal in it. They know the dinner routine very well, and respond to this in anticipation of the meal that it knows it received last time the same routine occurred. But until that bowl goes on the floor, they have no real concept of the fact that they will be fed - or that they will be fed again tomorrow. Also, while you're not preparing the meal, or going through the pre-dinner routine, the dog isn't pestering you for food - because the dog hasn't receivedthe cues to say, okay, the meal might be on its way. Until you start the routine, the dog doesn't know it is going to be fed. Certainly, they know they feel hungry, and recognise you as the provider of their food. But they don't know that you, say, go to the shops to buy a bag of kibble for their every week and that you are planning their meal each day.

It's like if you pick up a lead...the dog goes crazy because it thinks, we're going out! But you could pick up a lead to move it, or to put it in the car or whatever. The dog anticipates a walk and responds accordingly. You could pick up a dinner bowl to clean it...and the dog will get excited, because it knows that when you pick up its bowl, it sometimes gets fed.

I hope that sort of explains it! (My opininon of it, anyway!) Sorry to hijack the post

Edited April 16, 2007 by Faolmor

[Bubitty]

Sorry for hijacking your thread laffi!

Thank you so much for replying Faolmor!!!!! That was a fantastic read! I love how clear and informative your posts are!!!! You write so well!!!!!

[Faolmor]

Sorry for hijacking your thread laffi!

Thank you so much for replying Faolmor!!!!! That was a fantastic read! I love how clear and informative your posts are!!!! You write so well!!!!!

Thank you - hope I helped a bit :D

[Dogsfevr]

In our house there isnt a set food time,food comes when its convient for the humans not when the dogs start to demand.

When we cook they may look or smell but they dont get excited because we dont react & they never incharge of food demands

[First Time Puppy Owner]

Hi There

Look I'm absolutely no expert as you can tell from my title I'm sure, but there is a man by the name of Justin that runs 8 puppy classes around North Brisbane areas from a company called Dogtech. http://www.dogtech.com.au here is the website - I'm sure he will be able to help if you are unsuccessful on your own!

Good Luck

Susan & Benson

[laffi]

Hello,

I just wanted to say that I have been working on my leaderhip as well as on the "give" command. After only 2 days Laffi stopped growling and gives me everything I want (toys, bones, pig's ears) at the "give" command. Last Tuesday (a week after the incident) at the puppy school she was perfect, which was the biggest test: to see how she behaves around other dogs.

THANK YOU everybody,

:rolleyes:

laffi and maria

[Faolmor]

That's great news! Well done, Laffi, for all your hard work

[laffi]

That's great news! Well done, Laffi, for all your hard work :D

Thank you Faolmor, it means a lot to me coming from you. I really appreciate all your help.