Resource Guarding

by Emily
(Germany)

My great pyr just turned 1 about 2 weeks ago. We love him so much, he is a great companion and guard dog (with all of his barking lol). We haven't had many problems with him at all, but the past month or so he has started to get aggressive with his food.. mostly when there is another dog around. He is so food driven and will get very defensive over his food if he thinks it will be taken away. He is not really aggressive with me, but I am worried it may come to that eventually if it is not fixed now. I make him sit before I feed him and pet him while he eats.. we have always done this since he was a puppy. I am not sure what to do about the food aggression now with another dog.. he is so protective over his and will growl and bark and try and bite the dog if they go near his food bowl. Please help! I do not want this to turn into something really bad. Thank you!

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May 28, 2018
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by: Donna

This is common with many dogs. If a dog allows another dog to go near his food and eat it, that dog wouldn't get to eat. It's survival of the fittest.

There is nothing to be 'fixed'. Think about it. Why would a dog allow another dog to come near his food? Why would he want to share his food with another dog? or any animal for that matter.

Simply feed the dogs/animals in separate areas so they don't have access to each other.

I would be more concerned if he resource guarded against humans, although, in some cases this can be rectified.

Note that growling and barking is good. He is warning the other dog to stay away. Without that growl and bark, the dog will simply attack. The other dog needs to learn to stay away at dinner time.
May 28, 2018
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starstarstarstarstar 		some tips
by: Anonymous

Good advice and insight from the Club, as always. To which I would add this one little thing. Petting him while he eats will only have taught him that you require that he tolerate this touch and he will, as long as he is the one in control of his dish. Same with 'sit'...he has learned to be patient until his food is finally on the floor (his turf), where he assumes complete control.
The touch lesson is still good, as he will have learned to not startle if he is touched while his head is in his bowl. They are vulnerable in this position.
Same as the 'sit' command; it has taught him to wait. But neither touch nor command has taught him that you, not he, controls the food resource. Right now, he owns that bowl once the bowl hits the floor, and the only threat to that control is another dog with whom he must then compete for the food.
You can do 2 things, and the first is to separate him into a secure place when he eats, where he will not be in contact with another dog or a human. Doing this will may look like avoidance, but in actual fact you will stop his guarding behaviour from becoming a habit, and to allow him to relax while he eats.
Second thing is to sit quietly beside him while he eats, and begin to habituate him to you moving his bowl with the toe of your foot. If he stops eating, you must also stop. Don't move your foot from wherever it is, in that moment. When he returns to eating continue, in tiny increments, to move the bowl. Move it gently all over the floor and make this a game, rather than a threat. Eventually, you should be able to take the bowl from him, add a little something to it and return it to him without any protest from him. It takes a lot of time and quiet persistence on your part. Do not challenge him in any way...always stay within his tolerance level as you are building trust. This exercise should extend to anything that is on your floor that always still belongs to you: his toys and his bones.
Our own Pyr guarded when we adopted him at 8wks, still a baby. Felt he had to fight for access to his and our other dog's food bowl. He was young, so was super easy to train. I sat between them, kept my hand on his bowl, often took his bowl and taught him to sit quietly and focus on me before I returned it to him. In this way he learned to respect me (as provider) and the other dog's space. This may also work for you. Remember that Pyrs are not a naturally obedient dog and good habits are built upon consistency, respect and trust. Good luck.

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