help with food aggression

roman · 12-10-2006, 01:15 PM

i need help with nikos food aggression...

today at petsmart i was sitting waitng my turn for the dogs (taking pictures with santa today) and i had a bag of treats with me in my pocket and niko was sniffing it and i had my jacket sleeve rolled up and my arm was right next to the pocket wher ethe treats were and then niko started growling (i knew he had food aggression and it was alsways only growling) but this time he bit me and broke the skin

i am really upset over this because he never bit anyone including me before

what should i do?

rottielover · 12-10-2006, 01:41 PM

PM BB, she did a great job with PJ

roman · 12-10-2006, 01:49 PM

ok thanks

IceyBlueSibes · 12-10-2006, 03:07 PM

Quote:

then niko started growling (i knew he had food aggression and it was alsways only growling) but this time he bit me and broke the skin

Did you ever do anything to correct the problem the first time he ever growled over food?

Their growl is a warning. If they feel that warning doesn't work, it then escalates to biting, and can become much worse if not taken care of right away.

I'd suggest the NILIF program, and feeding him by hand (you can work with training by feeding him his meal using them as treats). You can also do the trading game. Whenever you take the bowl of food, trade him for something. The item needs to be higher in value (like a nice piece of hot dog or chicken), so he understands that taking away his food bowl is a GOOD thing.

But you really should start working on this before it becomes any worse.

sammy · 12-10-2006, 04:12 PM

Maybe I'm missing something, but I'm not sure why you sitting with treats in your pocket and your dog biting you arm would be presumed to be food aggression ? That's not a scenario I've heard of with resource guarding unless I misunderstood the situation.

Resouce guarding behaviors usually come about when you go to take away something of high value to your dog or he *thinks* you are going to. ie you reach your hand towards his food bowl or towards his bone.

I have seen dogs resource guard the food in their owners pockets of bags from other dogs. It just doesn't make sense to me that he would bite you based o the nere presence of food in your pocket, especially that you would need to get out for him.

Can you explain a little bit better what happened before the dog bit you, what was going on etc Was the food hanging out of your pocket or accessible to your dog in a way other than you feeding it to him? Did you move to put your hand in your pocket before your dog bit you, or were you just sitting still ? What else was going on?

roman · 12-10-2006, 04:21 PM

well sammy here is what happened:

me max and niko were sitting down i had niko in my lap and he was rersting his head down and then he was sniffing around my pockets and my arm was just there close to my pocket and i moved it a little bit and he growled for a second and then just snapped i said no and put him on the floor (i saw this on the dog whisperer and it worked for the womans dog) oh and my pocket was closed and the treat were in a ziplock bag that was closed

Quote:

I'd suggest the NILIF program, and feeding him by hand (you can work with training by feeding him his meal using them as treats). You can also do the trading game. Whenever you take the bowl of food, trade him for something. The item needs to be higher in value (like a nice piece of hot dog or chicken), so he understands that taking away his food bowl is a GOOD thing.

that sounds like a good idea it stand for - NOTHING IN LIFE IS FREE right?

oh and to correct the problem i always said no and took the bowl away untill he stopped (and it worked for a while untill the day he was neutered than he started up again)

Beryl · 12-10-2006, 04:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IceyBlueSibes

Did you ever do anything to correct the problem the first time he ever growled over food?

Their growl is a warning. If they feel that warning doesn't work, it then escalates to biting, and can become much worse if not taken care of right away.

Sure enough! (Sho nuff!) If my dog growled at me, we would have a close encounter and he would never growl at me again. I know dogs are not children but you might want to look at them in that way. Would you let your child swear at you? If you do, some day that child may strike you. You've got to nip all aggression towards you right away! Your dog needs to know that it will not be tolerated.

Icey - your wisdom is incredible. I wish I was as tuned in as you are and I'm probably over 2X your age! I may or may not address the growling in the same way as you suggested (depends on the dog and my mood) but ITA with you.

IceyBlueSibes · 12-10-2006, 04:29 PM

Yes, it is NOTHING IN LIFE IS FREE. You can do a google search to find some really great articles if you aren't familiar with it.

Quote:

oh and to correct the problem i always said no and took the bowl away untill he stopped (and it worked for a while untill the day he was neutered than he started up again)

Maybe this is just me, but I used to do this when a dog had resource guarding or food issues, and was told that it isn't necessarily the best way to handle it. In the dogs eyes, your hand being near its food means that it's getting taken away and also being disciplined (the 'no'). I then learned about the trading game, and it has worked like magic for me.

ETA: Beryl - you posted before I finished this post! Hehe

Thank you! That means a lot.

I try my best to offer what advice I can. I never push my methods onto anyone - it's up to them to decide how they'd like to handle it.

Would you believe me if I told you I was only 18? LOL

LilacDragon · 12-10-2006, 04:49 PM

IMHO - you shouldn't take a bowl of food away from a food aggressive dog. You are teaching him/her that they have a reason to guard that bowl.

Try walking by and dropping something extra tasty into his/her bowl while he/she is eating. The dog learns to associate your being near the dish with something good instead of something negative. Trading a piece of hot dog or cheese for that high-value treat is the best way to deal with the guarding of bones, pig ears or whatever treat your dog prizes.

As for your dog biting you over treats in your coat pocket - my dog would have had a serious CTJ meeting with me and we would have gotten up and left!

keekers · 12-10-2006, 05:14 PM

scroll down some roman as i have had issues with my pup & guarding & we work on it daily...lots of good advice...

sammy · 12-10-2006, 06:58 PM

I'm still not convinced this is resource guarding per se but it certainly may be a sign of a relationship problem and doing the resource guarding prevention exercises can only help.

Here's a great article that talks about it and how to deal with it.

http://www.kerryblues.info/WDJ/SHARE.HTML

This certainly is a topic that has come up frequently so I second the idea to do a search of the forum.

roman · 12-10-2006, 07:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sammy

I'm still not convinced this is resource guarding per se but it certainly may be a sign of a relationship problem.

what do you mean by realation ship problem? i haven't done anything for my dogs that would result in a realationship problem between the dogs and myself

we are always out and if it isn't good outside i have them running in the house they are never crated unless we are going out or if it is time for bed

LilacDragon · 12-10-2006, 07:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by roman

we are always out and if it isn't good outside i have them running in the house they are never crated unless we are going out or if it is time for bed

While this is a good thing - it doesn't necessarily mean that you don't have a relationship issue.

The real question is - who is the boss in your house?

I am new here, so I don't know much about the regulars at this point but I think my first question would be - have you and your dog(s) ever taken an obedience class? If not, have you at least taught them the basics -sit, down, stay, wait, etc? Do they do what you ask when you ask? If they don't - do you correct them? How?

roman · 12-10-2006, 07:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LilacDragon

While this is a good thing - it doesn't necessarily mean that you don't have a relationship issue.

The real question is - who is the boss in your house?

I am new here, so I don't know much about the regulars at this point but I think my first question would be - have you and your dog(s) ever taken an obedience class? If not, have you at least taught them the basics -sit, down, stay, wait, etc? Do they do what you ask when you ask? If they don't - do you correct them? How?

they are both trained (we did it ourselve instead of classes and we also eliminated treats from the training we only used toys as rewards but yes they both know the basics and get treats during the day when we enforce the commands)

we are the bosses (my parents and i) very rarley will max and niko act up

and welcome to global paw

LilacDragon · 12-10-2006, 07:56 PM

So - let's say the dog is laying on the bed and you want the dog off. No issues there? Dog gets right down when told, no matter what?

12-10-2006, 01:15 PM	#1 (permalink)
roman Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: New York Posts: 1,209 Rep Power: 73	help with food aggression i need help with nikos food aggression... today at petsmart i was sitting waitng my turn for the dogs (taking pictures with santa today) and i had a bag of treats with me in my pocket and niko was sniffing it and i had my jacket sleeve rolled up and my arm was right next to the pocket wher ethe treats were and then niko started growling (i knew he had food aggression and it was alsways only growling) but this time he bit me and broke the skin i am really upset over this because he never bit anyone including me before what should i do?
	__________________

12-10-2006, 01:41 PM	#2 (permalink)
rottielover rottweiler true believer Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: montreal, qc Posts: 656 Rep Power: 55	PM BB, she did a great job with PJ
	__________________ Man should not fear a rottweiler, but a rottweiler has alot to fear of man. Loved by Harley ( M ) Oct, 1, 2004 And tigger july 2004 approx

12-10-2006, 01:49 PM	#3 (permalink)
roman Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: New York Posts: 1,209 Rep Power: 73	ok thanks
	__________________

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
The Dogs Dinner: All You Wanted to Know About Food For Fido	kazkirkpatrick	Dog Food, Dog Feeding, Dog Nutrition	168	08-23-2008 11:19 PM
Dogs dying of toxin in locally sold pet food - Democrat and Chronicle News Rochester	Crossfire Bulldogs	Dog News and Dogs in Popular Media	1	05-09-2007 11:33 AM
Train dogs to stop food aggression	bigdoglover	Dog News and Dogs in Popular Media	0	06-02-2006 04:04 PM
DIAMOND kibble recall!</

12-10-2006, 04:12 PM	#5 (permalink)
sammy herding dog lover Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: western canada Posts: 1,089 Rep Power: 115	Maybe I'm missing something, but I'm not sure why you sitting with treats in your pocket and your dog biting you arm would be presumed to be food aggression ? That's not a scenario I've heard of with resource guarding unless I misunderstood the situation. Resouce guarding behaviors usually come about when you go to take away something of high value to your dog or he thinks you are going to. ie you reach your hand towards his food bowl or towards his bone. I have seen dogs resource guard the food in their owners pockets of bags from other dogs. It just doesn't make sense to me that he would bite you based o the nere presence of food in your pocket, especially that you would need to get out for him. Can you explain a little bit better what happened before the dog bit you, what was going on etc Was the food hanging out of your pocket or accessible to your dog in a way other than you feeding it to him? Did you move to put your hand in your pocket before your dog bit you, or were you just sitting still ? What else was going on?

12-10-2006, 04:49 PM	#9 (permalink)
LilacDragon Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Michigan Posts: 369 Rep Power: 66	IMHO - you shouldn't take a bowl of food away from a food aggressive dog. You are teaching him/her that they have a reason to guard that bowl. Try walking by and dropping something extra tasty into his/her bowl while he/she is eating. The dog learns to associate your being near the dish with something good instead of something negative. Trading a piece of hot dog or cheese for that high-value treat is the best way to deal with the guarding of bones, pig ears or whatever treat your dog prizes. As for your dog biting you over treats in your coat pocket - my dog would have had a serious CTJ meeting with me and we would have gotten up and left!

12-10-2006, 05:14 PM	#10 (permalink)
keekers Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Minnesota Posts: 231 Rep Power: 49	scroll down some roman as i have had issues with my pup & guarding & we work on it daily...lots of good advice...

12-10-2006, 06:58 PM	#11 (permalink)
sammy herding dog lover Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: western canada Posts: 1,089 Rep Power: 115	I'm still not convinced this is resource guarding per se but it certainly may be a sign of a relationship problem and doing the resource guarding prevention exercises can only help. Here's a great article that talks about it and how to deal with it. http://www.kerryblues.info/WDJ/SHARE.HTML This certainly is a topic that has come up frequently so I second the idea to do a search of the forum.

12-10-2006, 07:56 PM	#15 (permalink)
LilacDragon Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Michigan Posts: 369 Rep Power: 66	So - let's say the dog is laying on the bed and you want the dog off. No issues there? Dog gets right down when told, no matter what?

Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)