BEHAVIOUR  

Help! My puppy growled at me

Resource guarding of food  - Part One  - understanding the problem  by Pippa Mattinson

About food guarding

Treating food guarding

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It is very upsetting when your three month old puppy suddenly growls at you whilst he is eating.   It is quite understandable that you might fear the worst and wonder if you have a vicious dog ‘in the making’ on your hands.  However, this is rarely the case.  In the following article we will look at what causes food guarding and how to deal with it.

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Stage One  -  don’t make things worse

The first stage is to make sure you don’t make the problem any worse.  So, do not punish the puppy for growling, and don’t panic.  Until you have read and understood the following, stay away from the puppy whilst he is eating and make sure other members of the family do the same.   Read Stage Two to understand the underlying problem,  then read Stage Three and follow the link to the six steps to stop the growling and permanently improve your puppies behaviour.

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Stage Two  -  understand the problem

The next stage is to understand the problem.  Food guarding belongs to a group of behaviours known as resource guarding.  Some puppies will only guard food,  others may attempt to guard their toys, bedding and even you.  Food guarding is the most common of these behaviours, and understanding what causes it will enable you to cure the problem effectively and without punishment. It is not uncommon for puppies will attempt to guard food.  It is a very natural behaviour designed to stop other puppies or dogs from stealing his dinner.  In the wild, puppies who ‘hand over’ their food will starve.  Many domestic dogs have lost this guarding instinct.  They don’t need it because we make sure that they get fed.  However a substantial number of puppies from all breeds still instinctively guard their food.  This does not indicate that your puppy is going to be vicious, but it does tell you that he may be a little anxious and needs his confidence in the good intentions of ‘people’ building up.  The more anxious the puppy is, the more distance he will need between his dinner and passers by before he feels comfortable enough to stop growling.

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Why punishment is not a good way to treat food guarding

In times gone by, the usual course of action with a dog that was guarding food, was for the owner to discipline a dog each time he growled.  This treatment may appear to work, but has two serious disadvantages.

The first problem is that punishing a growling dog, teaches the dog not to growl at the person who gives out the punishment. Dogs however are very poor at generalising commands or rules.  This kind of training by punishment may not necessarily teach the dog not to growl at someone he is not afraid of.  A small child for example.  Nor will it necessarily teach the dog not to growl when he is eating in a different location - out on a walk or at a friends house for example.

Secondly if the owner succeeds in teaching the dog not to growl at anyone at all, this can present another more dangerous problem.  Growling is a warning.  Healthy, well socialised dogs will always growl, usually for some considerable time, before they bite.  This gives the ‘potential victim’ a chance to withdraw.  Even quite small children will usually recognise the genuine warning growl of a puppy and back off.  There may be times in the most good tempered dog’s life when he is about to bite.  Dogs that have been severely injured, are severely frightened or are in a lot of pain will sometimes bite.  This applies to all dogs, no matter how good their temperament.   If you teach your dog never to growl without removing the source of his fear and anxiety, there is a very real risk that he may, one day, bite someone with no warning.

For these reasons, we do not treat resource guarding with punishment.  Fortunately there is an effective solution, and that is to remove the source of the dog’s anxiety.  We teach him to feel happy and confident when people are around him and his dinner.

Stage three  -  behaviour modification

The third stage is modifying the behaviour of  the puppy that guards food. Because the food guarding dog is afraid his food will be taken away, it is very important that you do not do this.  On the contrary, you are going to do the exact opposite and add to his food whilst he is eating it.  Click on the link below to follow the six step treatment for your food guarding puppy.  

WARNING  -  A DOG BITE EVEN FROM A PUPPY CAN BE VERY NASTY.   IF POSSIBLE, AVOID TOUCHING A GROWLING PUPPY WHILST HE IS EATING, OR ALLOWING ANYONE ELSE TO DO SO.   WE ADVISE YOU ALSO HAVE YOUR PUPPY CHECKED OVER BY YOUR VET TO EXCLUDE ANY HEALTH RELATED REASONS FOR HIS GROWLING.

   BEHAVIOUR MODIFICATION 

 click on the  link above for six steps to stop your puppy guarding his food

We hope you found this article useful.  If you would like to make any comments or suggestions on the subject of behavioural problems,  why not drop in to the Gundog Club Forum for a chat

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