# Puppy growling with treat (pigs ear)



## molly the collie (Oct 8, 2011)

hello all we have had 10wk old Molly (border collie puppy) for coming up to two weeks. Molly is fine with her food bowl being approuched when she is eating but if you go anywhere near her when she is eating her favourite treat a pigs ear she snaps, growls an shows her teeth until you move away.

is there any trade secrets in teaching her this is wrong?

she knows her name an responds to it but not with the growling she just ignours everyone!


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## smokeybear (Oct 19, 2011)

http://www.deesdogs.com/documents/resourceguardingandfoodgame.pdf


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## Sled dog hotel (Aug 11, 2010)

ollie the collie said:


> hello all we have had 10wk old Molly (border collie puppy) for coming up to two weeks. Molly is fine with her food bowl being approuched when she is eating but if you go anywhere near her when she is eating her favourite treat a pigs ear she snaps, growls an shows her teeth until you move away.
> 
> is there any trade secrets in teaching her this is wrong?
> 
> she knows her name an responds to it but not with the growling she just ignours everyone!


Dogs who are fine with everything else including their food bowls, often with thinks like pigs ears and real bones, growl and and guard them because they are high value and a novelty/high prize item, its not uncommon. Any trying to take it or anything that could be seen by her as a threat will likely make her guard it more and may even make her bite. The usual and safe way is to swop items. You can start this as a general training exercise, starting with items she doesnt value so highly at first, and show her/let her know you have something of higher value she likes more. Might be a favourite treat, or toy. You then as she drops what she has, in interest of what you have say drop and repeat drop then give the swop item. Gradually as she learns the concept and the drop command, you can then work up to things she values a little more to swop.

if you want to remove something anytime that she shouldnt have for one reason or another and is growling over or protecting, until you can get training in place and reliable. Is to get a favourite treat or cheese something she really loves, and show her the item, then throw it away from you and where she is with the item, as she goes to chase after and retrieve it you can then pick the item up safely. You can even throw the item through a door way into another room and close the door before you retrieve it.

I would deffinately work on the "leave it" and Drop commands too. but until you have perfected them, the above is simple safe, non stressful ways in the meantime.


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## molly the collie (Oct 8, 2011)

smokeybear said:


> http://www.deesdogs.com/documents/resourceguardingandfoodgame.pdf


thanks, i will give it a go


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## molly the collie (Oct 8, 2011)

Thanks Sled Dog!

we will have a go at that, really appreciate it!


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## edidasa (May 7, 2011)

i do this: up to u if you want to.

AS SOON AS I GET A PUPPY i will set them up with things they might be 'aggressive towards'.

then I go in and JUST GRAB IT. VERY CALMLY, NO TALKING, NO PINNING THE DOG NO BRIBES- NOTHING. 

I JUST TAKE THE FOOD ITEM, JUST LIKE ANOTHER 'MORE CONFIDENT' DOG WOULD DO.

The puppy WILL fight. (depending on the dog, and breed etc.) WEAR GLOVES if you wish, I do this with toys also.

THE dog learns - his aggression has NO effect on me. I will not back away. I will do as I please. As puppies, their bites don't hurt, and then i just throw the item back at them again once I've taken it.

NOTE: I am simply NOT REACTING to any of his behaviour. This is VERY VERY important - not to react.

Done this to multiple puppies, as have my clients, and they've never had any problems with food/toy possession after that.

Be careful, once you start it, you must finish it. So be prepared. 

Or, sometimes, I just give the dog the food and leave them alone. Why bother taking things away when you JUST gave it to them....... this I also don't understand with people....


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## edidasa (May 7, 2011)

*she knows her name an responds to it but not with the growling she just ignours everyone!*

also at 10 weeks, your PUPPY DOES NOT know her name in that situation (for whatever it means - recall/attention?) You may have trained her in a DIFFERENT situation - but when she is possessing something, I DOUBT you have trained her to respond in that state of mind.


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## lisaloo1 (Aug 8, 2011)

i had this problem with buddy with pigs ears and bones, the first time he did it i thought omg because he had never been food aggressive before, I was told to offer him the pigs ear, then swap it for something of similar value, this worked, but also i kept hold of the pigs ear while he chewed it for a bit, this way he knew i wasnt going to just take it from him, Now he brings the pigs ear for me to hold sometimes and the growling has stopped, if you try just take it away they see it as when you go near them your going to just take it away and hes left with nothing, hope that made sense because it does work, it was great advice i got off here too


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## topseyturvey (Feb 1, 2010)

edidasa said:


> then I go in and JUST GRAB IT. VERY CALMLY, NO TALKING, NO PINNING THE DOG NO BRIBES- NOTHING.
> 
> I JUST TAKE THE FOOD ITEM, JUST LIKE ANOTHER 'MORE CONFIDENT' DOG WOULD DO.


Very poor advice,
I certainly would never ever advise anyone to do this,a certain chance of getting bitten, and you are not a dog you are a person and the dog does know the difference.

Taking an item from a dog can esculate the problem rather than solve it,the dog will think it's going to loose an item of value therefore you could be encouraging the dog to resource guard,which incidentally is a natural canine behaviour,it could also have dire consquences should a child try it.


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## ballybee (Aug 25, 2010)

I always start Tummels high value things with me holding them, he associates me with the extra special treat and as I've never taken a special thing away permanently(I'll ask for it and pick it up to see how he's doing with it but he always gets it back) he's never become possessive about his treats. I also sit close to him while he's eating(his raw meals are high value to him as are recreational bones) and just speak quietly to him, i can also pet him but I don't do that unless I ask for him to leave it and he does. If I'm borrowing the food I say " my turn" and if I'm taking it away I say " that's enough" and he knows it means he's to move away from it and will do it happily, I've never forced him to give up something but used the swap technique when he was young.


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## Cleo38 (Jan 22, 2010)

edidasa said:


> i do this: up to u if you want to.
> 
> AS SOON AS I GET A PUPPY i will set them up with things they might be 'aggressive towards'.
> 
> ...


 Really????! Would you still act like this with an adult dog & risk being bitten??!


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## springerpete (Jun 24, 2010)

ballybee said:


> I always start Tummels high value things with me holding them, he associates me with the extra special treat and as I've never taken a special thing away permanently(I'll ask for it and pick it up to see how he's doing with it but he always gets it back) he's never become possessive about his treats. I also sit close to him while he's eating(his raw meals are high value to him as are recreational bones) and just speak quietly to him, i can also pet him but I don't do that unless I ask for him to leave it and he does. If I'm borrowing the food I say " my turn" and if I'm taking it away I say " that's enough" and he knows it means he's to move away from it and will do it happily, I've never forced him to give up something but used the swap technique when he was young.


Good advice, whenever we have new pups to bring along we, from day one, will put our hands in their food bowl when they're feeding, hold whatever 'Chewy' is flavour of the month at the time, if I want to take it from them for whatever reason, I do so using the same command, 'Dead' that I use if I'm taking a bird from them. My dogs dont regard me as a threat so they have no need to be aggresive with me over anything, if they were I'd feel that I'd failed them in some way.


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## ClaireandDaisy (Jul 4, 2010)

Oh please - leave the poor dog alone to eat in peace. 
How would you like it if every time you got a cream cake you were expected to give it away?


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