[jeanr]

Please can someone advise me on how to deal with this behaviour now before I cry!!

My 7 month old Weimaraner has started showing real aggression.
It first happened when I went to take something off him (a pigs ear chew) he went very still, & quietly & slowly growled at me….I was horrified.
I did manage to take it off him though but he as not happy.

The 2nd time I noticed it was a similar incident except I was not approaching him to take something from him.
He was happily chewing a dental stick thing & as I walked past him I patted his head (as I have done several times)………..he jerked away from me & the same thing….growled & very still.
Unfortunately for me, I tried to reassure him that I was not trying to take anything from him & he snapped at me (no harm done but obviously I don’t want this behaviour)
I had to take him by the collar & put him out the back for this….& then I noticed that he had wet his cushion that he had been sitting on.

I have asked people about this & some have said it sounds like food aggression but I was able to put my hands into his food bowl & sometimes he would even nibble food from my hands….in his bowl.

A few days ago, he was eating out of his bowl & I was beside him putting something in the bin………………..same thing, went very still & growled…..
I am more worried now as his food bowl was not an issue & now appears to be, it was initially only “treats”

Most recent incident, he was playing with an old shoe of mine & a lot of his toys were scattered across the kitchen floor……he was not paying much attention to it but when I went to pick up the shoe, he, again went very still & growled……I let out a loud “NO” & he kept growling……….& wet again.

What has happened to my lovely little pup & how can I help overcome this?
He is the only dog in the house.

I’ve been reading online & books like a maniac to see what I can do or what has caused this……….please can someone advise?

Thank you

[Pooches Galore]

Hi,

How worrying this must be for you

A couple of things you could try include:

1 - sit by your dogs empty food bowl with his food in a jug. Put a bit in the bowl and wait for him to eat that. Then add a bit more - continue this slow feeding method until all the food has gone. Do this for a few weeks and then introduce gentle stroking away from his head and mouth. This will build up confidence that you being near him eating is a good thing!

2 - if you need to get something off him swap it for something higher value. So maybe swap a bone for a bit of sausage etc, another toy etc. This way the dog always wins.

In the wild if the dog is eating something they will defend it so its perfectly normal behaviour. Just something that you want to manage.

I would never take things away from him unless you need to (and then swap it) and try to build up a positive association between you and food. If he is a family pet I would suggest the adults starting this with the children in the room but not involved.

Hope this helps in some ways.

Kim

[jeanr]

Thanks for the quick reply Kim, I think I'm just feeling like a failure at the moment

Everything was going so well

The problem with swapping is that even when I approach him he starts to growl.........
So do I, sweet talk as I approach him saying "here boy, look what I have for you" & hopefully that will entice him before he even starts to growl? ....Literally as I approach him I can see him freeze up & he looks petrified.

Also, people have told me that I should be able to take anything from him without an issue.... this bugged me because clearly I can't do this
I will definitely try the jug & bowl thing starting tonight though - thanks a million.

Jean.

[cigwyllt]

There are two ways of looking at it - some people say that you should be able to take anything away from your dog at any time, other people say that you should respect your dog when he is eating and not stress him by taking his dinner away - so the chances are you will get different responses to the problem. Personally, I do not take away anything I have given my dogs. In your situation now I would be doing exactly what Pooches Galore has suggested and reinforcing the fact that when you are in the vicinity of his food bowl good things happen.

Alongside that you can be teaching "swap" by offering a higher value treat for something less - that will vary from dog to dog but he will soon show you what he things is really valuable - and that can be used for those times he has something that you don't want him to have.

[chiclet]

I think it is interesting that he also pees after these incidents.


I also thought you should get the dog used to having things taken away, but the other way makes more sense. After all, if a child gets near the food bowl, they aren't usually there to take it away. However, there are two things that I gave him and he immediately ran away with them to his crate and snarled when I got near him. This I would not tolerate, so I took it away and he had to eat it from my hand. Instead of taking the food away, I stroke him around his mouth or just stand near the bowl when he eats from it.

I will remove small non-food objects from inside his mouth, he doesn't like it, but I think he knows that I am taking away something he shouldn't have to begin with.

Of course, I could just have been lucky and have a really good dog.

[cigwyllt]

Up until now I've always been lucky with my dogs and they have always been submissive/willing to give up anything. The JR I have now, whilst submissive, is definitely tense if he thinks I want to take something from him but he has learned that it will be to his advantage to give up whatever he has. Rightly or wrongly, I have never made it a discipline issue. eg If he has something I need to take from him - say he's grabbed a bone that has fallen from the table - I get something from the kitchen and make a big happy noise about giving it to him and we swap. You do have to be very calm and positive but there are ways to get the desired result even with a less compliant dog.

[Lara's mom]

I must respectfully disagree with you. The parent/owner MUST be able to remove any item from a dogs mouth without worrying about the possibility of being bitten. First of all, the dog could get a hold of something that she shouldn't have; a bar of chocolate left on a coffee table, one of your shoes, something icky outside, etc.

Secondly, if the dog is ever going to be around children, sooner or later, one will attempt to remove a toy or chewey from the dogs mouth to throw it or whatever and you could have a very nasty situation on your plate.

I started all of my puppies from the time they came into my home, asking for whatever they had, taking it and then giving it right back to them along with a treat. None of them have issues about giving stuff up. Even Lance who is terribly dog aggressive is perfectly safe around the children he plays with because he will give up his toy. He's learned, just like my girls that giving up his ball is "part of the game." They are all the same way with food. If a toddler happened to stick a hand into any one of their bowls while they were eating, they wouldn't give it a second thought.

To my mind, it's a matter of safety for both the dog and the humans around him/her.

[chiclet]

Maybe you could try desensitizing. Slowly approach him and when he freezes or whatever the sign is, stop and back away until he relaxes. Then just stay and read or do something without paying attention to him. You could even toss him a treat or toy when you decide to leave.

Feeding him by hand, kibble bit by kibble bit sounds good to.

[angiesample]

I had a little problem with food aggression with my pup. Heres the steps i took. This took about a month.
1. i started by sitting on the floor making her sit and hand feeding her.
2. i then fed her sitting next to her bowl and put a little bit in while petting her.
3. i filled her bowl up and put my hand in her bowl, near her mouth and her head.

*I always make her sit and then i put her food down.. i make her wait about 10 seconds and then i tell her shes "Free". That is our daily feeding routine. l also randomly pet her and stick my hand in her food.

Oh and she always dinner after my hubby and i eat.

[jeanr]

Thanks to all for you help & support

The funny thing is Angie that up until literally days ago, I did put my hands into his food bowl all the time, without any issue at all.

This is a very recent thing.....I hung around his food bowl last night & again this morning....no issues...now, I didn't put my hands in after what happened the other day but he didn't seem to "mind" me being there....

Bit odd...but I am going to try to make it as normal as I can, me being beside him when he eats...& I'm going to keep doing the swapping thing, getting him to drop one toy for another or a treat...

I alwasy make him sit before he gets to eat & I say "wait" about 3 times....then I say "ok go" & he happily trots over to the bowl. This morning when he went over to eat, I very quickly & gently patted his head & said "good boy" then walked away.....no problems.

Fingers crossed!

[angiesample]

oh thats a good sign that he let u pet him.. im keeping my fingers crossed!! if its just recently maybe he just wasnt feeling good or something and was extra snippy. I know personally if my Ella doesnt get enough sleep she gets cranky. But whatever it was hopefully it has resolved itself.

[jeanr]

Maybe I'm wrong, but he may have been extra hungry or something....I think I need to look at his food amount AGAIN. He used to be very picky in the morning & play with his breakfast & I had to encourage him to eat. Lately he gobbles it up & almost looks for more. According to the "chart" on the foodbag he is on the right amount....but I think I might start to add a bit more.

Hopefully he was just having an "off" day or time or whatever....I'll keep a close eye on him.

They take over your life don't they (in a good way!) !! ;-)