I just got corrected by Kuma, the silly pup
Today is kibble free day, so I made some sweet potato, spinach and chicken breast for Kuma and Nyx.
Nyx got just a bit cause she had already eaten some kitten wet food and I put Kuma's bowl down in his pen.
As soon as Nyx finished her bit, and it was blazing fast as usual, she went in front of the pen to see if she could get away with some food. Then Kuma corrected her. Since it's so rare to hear him growl (only happened once so far), I went to see what was going on. As soon as I got to the pen he corrected me too!
As a result, he got told to leave the food, a sit command and a one minute time out of eating with me holding the food and running my fingers through it and showing him I had it. He also got a small nudge on his head and a "hey, it's me!"
Then when I put the bowl back down, I stayed there with my hand on his neck. He was quiet, so I got back to the kitchen to clean the stuff I used to cook.
When I got back, he corrected me again, but this time it was like he remembered who it was, and I also gave him a longer "heeeey!" and it was enough.
This is a new thing, he never did it, even because I always made it a point to touch him while he's eating and even put my hand in his food. He's completely cool with that.
Maybe it was because today it wasn't kibble or that he had corrected Nyx before.
I'll keep a eye out to see if it happens again. Later tonight it will be the same sweet potato and spinach but with tuna, so I'll see if he gets all possessive again.
He also got an apple banana puree for "desert"
Nyx got just a bit cause she had already eaten some kitten wet food and I put Kuma's bowl down in his pen.
As soon as Nyx finished her bit, and it was blazing fast as usual, she went in front of the pen to see if she could get away with some food. Then Kuma corrected her. Since it's so rare to hear him growl (only happened once so far), I went to see what was going on. As soon as I got to the pen he corrected me too!
As a result, he got told to leave the food, a sit command and a one minute time out of eating with me holding the food and running my fingers through it and showing him I had it. He also got a small nudge on his head and a "hey, it's me!"
Then when I put the bowl back down, I stayed there with my hand on his neck. He was quiet, so I got back to the kitchen to clean the stuff I used to cook.
When I got back, he corrected me again, but this time it was like he remembered who it was, and I also gave him a longer "heeeey!" and it was enough.
This is a new thing, he never did it, even because I always made it a point to touch him while he's eating and even put my hand in his food. He's completely cool with that.
Maybe it was because today it wasn't kibble or that he had corrected Nyx before.
I'll keep a eye out to see if it happens again. Later tonight it will be the same sweet potato and spinach but with tuna, so I'll see if he gets all possessive again.
He also got an apple banana puree for "desert"
Comments
Kitsu tried correcting us when he got raw for a while, just keep doing what you are doing, keep your hand on him or in the bowl (we would keep our hand in the bowl or hold the bone for him). I just did an eval on a dog yesterday that was never corrected when he gave corrections. This resulted in him lunging at me, snarling, when I tried to take a toy away - NOT GOOD!
Isn't it more interesting once you understand what it is that they are doing?! I love learning from them.
You may want to consider feeding him in the kitchen where you guys are, so he gets used to you and others being around him when he eats.
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And, I agree, that food sounds delicious!
He growled at me again when I went to pet him while he was having the sweet potato, spinach and tuna. So he got the same nudge to the head and "hey!" and a timeout.
Then I brought him to the living room and pretty much hand fed him, while petting him. All fine there. Called Nat to pet him while I fed him and all was good.
Put the food back on the support in the pen, went to wash my hands and when I got back he growled again but not exactly the same way. He still got the "Heeeey!" and calmed down.
Same banana and apple puree for "dessert" and everything was fine with him.
A dog can get an inflated sense of himself if he is used to being left alone while he eats. Be present while the dog has its meals. From time to time, it is wise to approach the bowl and add a little something extra such as scrambled eggs, a broken-up biscuit, a piece of a turkey etc. (Make sure what you add is higher value item than what is in the bowl. Also, I would use two bowls and add something to one and before he is done with bowl A add to the other, bowl B.)
If he progresses with the behavior the following is in order:
1. Do away with his food bowl for a week or two and have your dog dining out of your hand, a few kibbles at a time.
2. Bring back the food bowl after the two week time frame. When feeding, the bowl should remain empty until you pass by and drop a few pieces of kibble in it. After those are eaten up, you should drop small handfuls of kibble or ground meatballs/yummy dinner (high value item) in at two-minute intervals until the entire meal has been eaten. By now your dog should be practically begging you to approach his bowl each time you pass or come up.
3. Put a full food bowl on the floor as your dog holds a sit-stay. Release him with a cheery "okay." Then once or twice a week, call your dog away from his bowl and reward him for coming over to you with a tasty tidbit (higher value item than what’s in the bowl). Use the "sit-stay," "wait," and "take it" commands with the dog so it is absolutely clear who owns the kitchen and the tasty morsels in it.
4. Since food guarding seldom happens in a vacuum it can often signal other problems in the dog/owner relationship, a basic obedience course is highly recommended for canines who exhibit this behavior. Finally, if you experience any backsliding, return to Step One. Slow and steady wins this contest of wills.
BIG NOTE: Be sure not to punish or overly correct the dog during guarding (no poking jabbing, grabbing of bowl or collar jerks. In a great many cases trying to be a physical disciplinarian creates more of a contest of wills. Go back to steps step one if things slide (as suggested in step four). It can take some time to work out.
Derived and modified from
http://www.doglogic.com/possess.htm
Also see Jean Donaldson’s book called "Mine" to get a better understanding of the complex nature of possession behavior in dogs.
Snf
I have faith that you'll be able to work it out Rui!
This morning, back to kibble, and no attempt to correct me for being there. I pet him while he was eating, with no bad reaction from him. It's definitely a high value food thing.
I'll keep monitoring him closely and "interfering" with his meals to see how it goes.
Patrice - Thank you for the description of that procedure. It makes a lot of sense.
I've emailed our behaviourist to get her opinion on it, and I'll keep you guys posted.
I e-mailed Alexandra, our behaviourist, and she suggested something in line of what Patrice had posted. Putting the food in his bowl one spoonful at a time. It worked perfectly, he would eat that and sit and wait for the next one. He tried to growl the first time, but then understood I was there t feed him and not to compete with him and it was all good.
With kibble,even Orijen which is new to him, all is well as it always was. Even with Nyx harassing him. He just values the sweet potato and spinach thing a lot, it seems.
Isn't about it time you posted to recent spam of the big man?
Spam is coming tonight, we made some videos of him as a fetch dog yesterday.
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