bellamore Posted February 28, 2008 Report Share Posted February 28, 2008 A few months ago, our 8-month-old began growling at us whenever we fed her. She did it mainly while she was at her bowl when anyone was near her. For the last two weeks, we've been feeding her from our hands and that made her stop. However, this morning she began growling at me when I approached her while she was waiting to be fed. Then, she almost bit my mom's hand just as she was about to hand-feed her. We waited for a half hour and then the feeding went fine. If she becomes aggressive during hand-feeding, what should we do? Should we punish her by not feeding her at all? That sounds like it might end up being counterproductive, but are there any options for stopping her aggressive behavior? Thanks for your advice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathy Chittenden Posted February 28, 2008 Report Share Posted February 28, 2008 Hi, She is "resource guarding" her food. Do not punish her for growling. A growl is a warning, she is clearly telling you that she is uncomfortable with you approaching her while eating. Do you have a crate for her? I would give her a cooling off period for a week or so and only give her her meals in her crate and no one bug her while she is eating. Are there children in your household? I'd also seek out a good reward based trainer in your area or a behaviorist and get their guidance. Hard to help long distance like this, I think it would be best if a trainer could see her first hand. Are there any other behavior problems that you are having with her? After giving her a week of just eating without being bothered in her crate I would again move to the kitchen, tether her to something so she can't reach you should she feel the need to react to your approach. Have only kibble in her dish (what does she have in her dish btw?) In your hand/treat pouch/on counter handy near you, have some cut-up yummier treats that you can toss towards her while she is eating. I use the Natural Balance meat roll for this, if you refrigerate it first you can handle and cut it pretty easily into little squares. She will eventually know that you approaching her food bowl is bringing her something even better than what is in her dish and she should begin to guard less. You do this first, then once she seems o.k. with you approaching her food bowl, let other family members do this same routine, one at a time. Once she is o.k with you approaching she is not automatically o.k with the others, all must do this desensitizing program with her. Always tether so she can't come towards you. Another thing you could try after she is more comfortable is getting a "default sit" upon you approaching her food bowl. Ask her for a "sit" before tossing the treat over. Then give her the treat. Eventually you can begin "trading" her goodies for her dish, but for now this is probably safest. Find a good trainer to help you. Jean Donaldson's "Dogs are from Neptune" I believe talks some about RG, her book "Mine" is a bit more scientific but will give you even more detailed protocols for desensitizing her to the presence of you around her guarded things. Respect her growl, don't punish it out, teach her that you are not interested in taking her food away, that you actually bring her better things. How is her obedience, have you been to class with her? Obedience on a day to day basis can often be a lifesaver in situations like this, you can use a "recall" to call her away from her dish, ask her for a "sit/stay" while you retrieve her dish if you ever get "stuck" in a place where she accidentally has something she is defending. Don't get into a battle of wills with her, if she's guarding something she shouldn't have, toss something in the other direction to get her to move away from it, then retrieve it keeping yourself safe. Resource Guarding can be a very scary thing, your dog is young, work with her, get some professional help now. Good luck. Kathy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Root Beer Posted February 28, 2008 Report Share Posted February 28, 2008 Kathy's advice is excellent. I've never read the book she recommended, but I also recommend Emma Parson's "Click to Calm". She has a program for working a dog though food guarding issues that are similar to what Kathy describes. I second the recommendation of finding a reward based trainer or behaviorist, as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bellamore Posted February 29, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 29, 2008 Thanks so much for that very informative reply, Kathy. We currently do not crate her, nor have we taken her to obedience classes. However, we've taught her several commands (sit, stay, lie down, et al.). We will certainly look for a professional trainer and will try the techniques you've suggested. That video was helpful--that's exactly how she was acting when eating from her bowl (dog food+meat in the morning, only dog food in the evening). It looks like you've had some experience with this--how long did it take to overcome your dog's resource guarding? Did you notice it getting progressively worse (like guarding more and more things and getting more aggressive)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bo Peep Posted February 29, 2008 Report Share Posted February 29, 2008 My rescue was an only dog. I used to "keep watch" between feedings- it was rough. Now I had goodies, by name, Usher, cookie.... Bailey...cookie..... it has really helped. One bite at a time. Usher's a wimp when it comes to women, but Bailey has learned to back off- just one little flick in the nose and she learned her place. I'm not talking about beating her- I say a tap- no- it's not your turn. Make sure your dog knows it's name and the "wait" command is very important. Also- have a scrap of a treat and teach them to take it out of your hand gently- I mean gently. We NEED our fingers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tassie Posted February 29, 2008 Report Share Posted February 29, 2008 Haven't had the problem myself, but you've been given excellent advice by Kathy and Kristine. I'd just add that at this stage, I wouldn't be putting meat in the bowl at first. Just give the dog food (the more boring the better) - then the meat can be the yummier thing that you add so, as the others have said - you near the bowl = very good things for the pup. The pup is at an age where she's maybe going to start challenging the rules she accepted as a youngster. This is a time when you have to be really consistent in your expectations. I would certainly be looking at taking her to some (positive) training classes. Most Border Collies enjoy having their abilities extended way beyond the basic commands that they can master as small pups. The more behaviours/tricks etc she learns to do with you, the more she sees you as the leader ('you' being the adults in the family, not just her primary carer.) ETA - if you're looking at getting in a professional trainer, please try to make sure that they wil be using positive methods, and if possible, that they are familiar with Border Collies. Personally, I would be looking for a trainer affiliated with the Association of Pet Dog Trainers - but that shows my bias in training philosophy . The last thing you want to do is take the growl out of the dog - he growl is an important warning which must be respected - Pat Miller has an excellent article on this Gift of the growl.). OTOH, the dog needs to be taught that resource guarding from humans is not acceptable - she needs to learn what acceptable behaviours are in this situation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathy Chittenden Posted February 29, 2008 Report Share Posted February 29, 2008 It looks like you've had some experience with this--how long did it take to overcome your dog's resource guarding? Did you notice it getting progressively worse (like guarding more and more things and getting more aggressive)? It's hard to know how long it may take your dog to overcome this. I have a confirmed resource guarder here that I live with. He gives lots of warning but never proceeds to an actual bite, but he's very fierce in his displays. I've tried to video him to show the training that we do with him but unfortunately the moment he notices the treats on the counter or in my pocket or the treat bag he won't guard:) He sits politely and waits. The dog in the video was a dog I evaluated recently for rescue. I felt the level of her BITE made her not a candidate for rescue. That was a very serious bite in the video btw. She didn't just dart at the hand and then leave it, she grabbed, hung on, shook, and even gnawed the fingers a bit. I would not have wanted that to be my real hand. Later that evening (I had 3 dogs from same family to evaluate) she also dashed at me to take another bite, thank goodness she was tethered to my husband and didn't connect! The family did find someone willing to take her in on their own and reports she is doing well. I think it will be much better once you begin the desensitizing to the food bowl. She will begin to trust that you are not there to "take" things from her, that your presence means "good things" come to her. After food bowl is worked on you can work on other things that she may be guarding. Begin with something "benign" like a toilet paper roll. Place it in front of her, give her a treat, grab the TP roll, give it back to her along with another treat, repeat, repeat, repeat, then work your way up to things with higher value such as a toy. The key is to give her back the original object so she knows it just doesn't disappear when you come, she gets that PLUS other goodies. Work on strengthening the relationship between you and your dog in other areas, obedience, agility, trick training, frisbee, anything that you and your dog can do together to build that relationship. And find a good nearby trainer to help you, if you need help I'm sure someone here can point you to one in your area. Good luck! Kathy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathy Chittenden Posted February 29, 2008 Report Share Posted February 29, 2008 http://www.nerdbook.com/sophia/Movies/movi....mov&num=13 Above is a good clip to watch on resource guarding too. Kathy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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