Comment

Comment by Carolyn and Gracie on October 31, 2011 at 11:08pm

Raw chicken leg??? Raw food and bones that splinter?? Is this good for a dog?

Comment by Beth on October 31, 2011 at 10:58pm

You are asking for advice, you are getting advice, and you are defending your current approach even though it is not working. Please read the ASPCA link and follow it carefully. If you want to help your dog, you do need to change your approach or your dog will bite you, he will hurt you, and you will be posting that you need to rehome him. He does not need eggs and chicken wings for dinner. He can eat kibble for a few weeks while you work on this. Please reread the link.

Comment by Christine and Meeko on October 31, 2011 at 10:36pm

I cant really "hand-feed" him when he gets an egg and a chicken bone.. not with out an accidental bite to the finger or the whole thing getting swollowed with out being chewed.. and I really need to teach him that someone by his food is NOT a bad thing... my brother has autism... if he were to get close to meeko and bite him.....my little brother doesnt know any better... that is why i pet him while eating...i love my little brother and my baby boi.. I didnt take it because he was protecting his food i took it because he lunged at me..at my face non the less..he has never gone at the face before. 

Comment by Beth on October 31, 2011 at 10:21pm

P.S.   Because you have taken food away from him as a punishment, personally I would spend a very long time at the step outlined in the ASPCA article that mentions bending down while hand-feeding good treats, and also on the step where you touch the bowl while hand-feeding him.  Move through the steps carefully and slowly, and pay special heed to the part that says that you should walk away after giving him the yummy treats at certain stages of the training.  Other than training and periodic refreshers, dogs should be left in peace to eat their meals.

Comment by Beth on October 31, 2011 at 10:17pm

I know you meant well, but you have just proved to him that his fears are real:  you ARE trying to steal his food.  

 

:-(

 

I know that's not how you see it, but that's what it probably seems like to him.  He had something yummy, you came by, he tried to protect it and you took it.

 

Have you been practicing the trade-up method explained in your last post about food aggression?  And also you should not be petting him while he's eating; you are meaning well but you are making him uncomfortable.  If you were really  hungry and sat down to eat and someone came over and tried to give you a hug, would you find that the best time?  Especially if it was someone you saw all the time?  

 

Next time, put down some lower value food and then come and toss the high-value stuff in his bowl.  Once he's used to that, put down the lower-value food, ask him to sit and put the good stuff in the bowl.  Then after a few days or in this case probably a week or so, put down the lower-value food, ask him to sit and hand feed him the good stuff.  FInal step when he's good with this is to put down the regular food, ask him to sit, pick up his bowl, put the high-value food in the bowl and immediately put it back down.

 

http://aspcabehavior.org/articles/70/Food-Guarding.aspx

 

And just remember, if someone took away your food when you were hungry, you would probably react pretty strongly too.  Imagine who in your life you think has the "proper" authority to take your food.  Your family?  Your boss?  I know in my life the answer is no one.  We expect something of our dogs we would never ask of ourselves.  Treating this common issue should be done with kindness and compassion for the instincts of the animal to protect what he has.  

This method is nearly always successful, but you must follow it carefully and you must ONLY take away food from your dog if it's something dangerous for him to have in the future.   And then when you do so, praise him lavishly and compensate him with a high-value treat in exchange. 

Comment by christy fry on October 31, 2011 at 9:58pm

I would maybe hold the chicken for a minute before giving it to him completly?.. I read The Other End of the Leashe a wonderfull book and I relized that humans tend to expect more out of dogs that our selves. I know I would protest if someone tried to take say a double fudge banna split away from me while eating and matter of fact would prob. vocalize a warning if they got to close either LOL. but anyways I thought that made sense so any super highvalue food/treats they get given in their crates to gobble up in peace =) maybe you could try that out?

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