# Puppy OBSESSED with food



## arlo333 (Jun 5, 2012)

I have a 6 month old shepherd mix resuce. He is a very good boy, calm, friendly and definitely not an alpha. His one major flaw however is his obsession with food. We feed him 3 small meals a day. I have switched him to a holistic brand of food and treats, hoping it would fill him up and give him lasting energy. He is just 100% driven by food. 

When we go to a friend's house, we have to keep him on the leash until they put their dog's food away. He knows where the food bowls are in each of friends homes...and bee lines for them every time. He is not aggressive when he is eating. Our cats will rub up on him and drink from the water bowl while he eats and he doesnt growl or snarl...he just eats like he's never going to eat again. We make him sit and stay before each meal, which he doesnt have a problem with and now even lays down and waits for the go-ahead. Many times i will take his food away when he is about half way finished, make him sit and stay or shake again, and give it back. I mix his food with some water, and that has slowed him dow a bit...but not much. When teaching him a new trick or command he can barely listen bc he so focused on my hand or pocket or wherever the treat may be. He also now knows the word "hungry". If i ask if he is hungry, he immediately runs to our front door or will lay down across from his empty bowl. Its even gotten to the point that he knows the way to specific businesses in town that give out dog treats (our bank, our local coffee shop, and a few others). He will pull you towards them if you are on a walk or bike ride. He doesnt really beg when we eat. He will definitely give us the puppy eyes and get closer than he knows he should be, but if we tell him no, he will walk away and lay down. 

Our vet explained when we first got Arlo, that sometimes dogs who were left on there own and had to fight for food at the beginning of their lives (he was left for dead on an indian reservation with his brother and sister) are worried about getting the most food they can when they can. But we have had the pup for 4 months now...and he eats well...every day of his life. When (or how) will he learn he does not need to inhale every edible object in his path?


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## newfiesmum (Apr 21, 2010)

arlo333 said:


> I have a 6 month old shepherd mix resuce. He is a very good boy, calm, friendly and definitely not an alpha. His one major flaw however is his obsession with food. We feed him 3 small meals a day. I have switched him to a holistic brand of food and treats, hoping it would fill him up and give him lasting energy. He is just 100% driven by food.
> 
> When we go to a friend's house, we have to keep him on the leash until they put their dog's food away. He knows where the food bowls are in each of friends homes...and bee lines for them every time. He is not aggressive when he is eating. Our cats will rub up on him and drink from the water bowl while he eats and he doesnt growl or snarl...he just eats like he's never going to eat again. We make him sit and stay before each meal, which he doesnt have a problem with and now even lays down and waits for the go-ahead. Many times i will take his food away when he is about half way finished, make him sit and stay or shake again, and give it back. I mix his food with some water, and that has slowed him dow a bit...but not much. When teaching him a new trick or command he can barely listen bc he so focused on my hand or pocket or wherever the treat may be. He also now knows the word "hungry". If i ask if he is hungry, he immediately runs to our front door or will lay down across from his empty bowl. Its even gotten to the point that he knows the way to specific businesses in town that give out dog treats (our bank, our local coffee shop, and a few others). He will pull you towards them if you are on a walk or bike ride. He doesnt really beg when we eat. He will definitely give us the puppy eyes and get closer than he knows he should be, but if we tell him no, he will walk away and lay down.
> 
> Our vet explained when we first got Arlo, that sometimes dogs who were left on there own and had to fight for food at the beginning of their lives (he was left for dead on an indian reservation with his brother and sister) are worried about getting the most food they can when they can. But we have had the pup for 4 months now...and he eats well...every day of his life. When (or how) will he learn he does not need to inhale every edible object in his path?


He may never learn that. Your vet is quite right; any animal that has been starved or left to go hungry is going to take a very long time to realise he doesn't have to worry about it any more.

My daughter bought a horse that had been starved. He was ok during the summer but when the frost came and he couldn't feed himself from the grass, he panicked and would try to knock you down when you came in the field with his food. We had to leave a bale of hay out for him always in the winter, so that he had something to nibble on.

At least your dog will be easy to train!

By the way, what's an Alpha?


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## Sarah1983 (Nov 2, 2011)

Just a note, please don't take his food away from him. That's an excellent way of creating a food guarding problem.

Some dogs do just inhale their food. Mine has never been starved although you wouldn't know that if you saw him eating  For training purposes I do doggy zen to teach that focusing on the food doesn't work to get the food.
Training Level ONE
Scroll down to find the Zen part.


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## AngelEyes92 (Jan 30, 2012)

have you tried using a kong ball? you can put his food in there and as he plays, a few biscuits at a time. it'll stop him scoffing it all at once, and tire him out too. 

im not sure about the determination to eat everything though, sorry. but i do hope this helps.


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## arlo333 (Jun 5, 2012)

I guess it's true, he pretty easily trained. I can usually teach him a new command in less than a half hour, especially if im using extra special treats like chopped chicken or something. Well, atleast that's his only major flaw.

And alpha refers to the dominant animal. Arlo is quite submissive. I have yet to see him snap or snarl at any dog or person. When he feels threatened, if another dog snaps at him or something... he immediately rolls onto his back or runs and lays down in front of me. When he was very small, if he nipped or was misbehaving as puppies do, we would immediately flip him onto his back and hold him gentley until he was still (usually just 15 to 30 seconds). This shows that we are in charge (or alpha)...putting him in his most vulnerable position and keeping him there until his behavior changed. Only needed this technique for a week or 2 and he stopped testing his limits and started listening much better. I ve even seen my cat hiss at him and he will roll on his back...such a little baby. We are supposed to be the "alphas" in the relationship, as the human and owner.

Alpha roll - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


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## arlo333 (Jun 5, 2012)

I have heard mixed reviews on the taking the food away mid meal. I always give it back, just want him to calm down a bit. sometimes i worried hes going to get sick he eats so quickly. plus, i actually heard the opposite from many sources...that taking their food away while they are eating promotes less aggressive behavior. but who knows...all dogs are different i suppose!


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## Sarah1983 (Nov 2, 2011)

You'll find that many here do not subscribe to the whole alpha/dominant/pack leader thing. It's out dated and inaccurate, based on man made packs of captive wolves.

Taking the food away from a dog only convinces it that humans around its food means its food gets taken away. It doesn't matter that you give it back, you still take it away first. A better way of preventing food guarding is simply to drop some extra yummy treats into the dogs bowl now and then while its eating. That way humans around food are seen as a source of wonderful things rather than a threat.


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## arlo333 (Jun 5, 2012)

seemed to work for us! arlo listens and and is sweet as pie to all dogs and people. i dont take his food away midmeal everytime...just from time to time to ensure hes not getting aggressive about it...and he never is. and like i said, didnt need to use the flip for long, never holding by the throat or even being aggresive. just flip him over and gentley and quietly hold him there. my dog is far from scared of me...he follows my lead and loves to be around people and other animals. his other older dog buddies still nip and jump and will go after one another pretty visciously over food or toys from time to time. if arlo gets snapped at, he finds something else to keep him occupied or comes to me. this, to me, is a good quality as we live in a town with many dog friendly parks and hikes. hes loves all dogs...and is always the greeter out of his group of dog buds. everyone trains their buddies differently i guess. arlo is turning into a wonderful pup as far as i can tell. thanks for the insight...


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## Amy-manycats (Jun 15, 2009)

Another one here who does nto subscribe to the dominance thing.

Anyway can I please please please beg you not to keep taking his food off him.

Its the single worst piece of advice ever, my lovely bidable fantastic springer spaniel developed horrendous food guarding issue due to me removing the food the giving it back straight away. She didn't come with the problem I created it.

If you want to check he is happy with you around his food, always aproach his bowl happy and add something extra tasty so he thinks you aproaching is fantastic not something to dread.

My dog is now 2 and it is a work in progress to get her happy with me and food again. She is very much improved but nowhere near as good as she should be had I left her alone  Its 100% my fault PLEASE don't create the problem with your rescue.

On the always hungry bit, I agree with others. However are you sure he is getting enough? Only you say he is a mix so presumably you don't really know his expected size. You can always increase his rations slowly but obviously monitor his condition and stop if he is putting weight on. Some dogs are just food obsessed though. :001_rolleyes:

Amy


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## newfiesmum (Apr 21, 2010)

arlo333 said:


> I guess it's true, he pretty easily trained. I can usually teach him a new command in less than a half hour, especially if im using extra special treats like chopped chicken or something. Well, atleast that's his only major flaw.
> 
> And alpha refers to the dominant animal. Arlo is quite submissive. I have yet to see him snap or snarl at any dog or person. When he feels threatened, if another dog snaps at him or something... he immediately rolls onto his back or runs and lays down in front of me. When he was very small, if he nipped or was misbehaving as puppies do, we would immediately flip him onto his back and hold him gentley until he was still (usually just 15 to 30 seconds). This shows that we are in charge (or alpha)...putting him in his most vulnerable position and keeping him there until his behavior changed. Only needed this technique for a week or 2 and he stopped testing his limits and started listening much better. I ve even seen my cat hiss at him and he will roll on his back...such a little baby. We are supposed to be the "alphas" in the relationship, as the human and owner.
> 
> Alpha roll - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


Yes, I know what a so-called alpha roll is - worst piece of BS ever to come off the telly. Sorry, but dogs do not live in heirarchial packs and you are not his "pack leader". For one thing, you are not a dog.

All you will get from so called alpha rolling is a scared dog, possibly biting eventually because it is his only defence.



arlo333 said:


> I have heard mixed reviews on the taking the food away mid meal. I always give it back, just want him to calm down a bit. sometimes i worried hes going to get sick he eats so quickly. plus, i actually heard the opposite from many sources...that taking their food away while they are eating promotes less aggressive behavior. but who knows...all dogs are different i suppose!


So you are sitting having your dinner, presumably enjoying your dinner and someone comes along and takes it away. How would you like it? You would start to get wary of anyone going near your food, and being a human person you would take it elsewhere and lock yourself in. Your dog does not have that option, so he will start to guard it.


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## arlo333 (Jun 5, 2012)

like i said, my dog is a wonderfully behaved little boy. has learned several commands in our 4 months together, perfectly leash trained whether walking or biking, potty trained within 4 days of adopting him, and goes on hikes and bike rides in the mountains almost daily. he is healthy and happy...and as far as i can tell from the cuddles and kisses and good behavior...he loves me. the advice on the taking the food was given by my vet. i assume he knows i would never hurt him, as when he feels threatened he runs to me. i understand you are saying this training method is outdated, but geez louise you dont have to be such cranks about it. i guess you all must just be FAR superior dog owners than i! should prob just give him up for adoption now according to you people. haha sheesh...im gonna go take my pup on a hike and i nice swim while you wonderful pet owners sit on this forum and bash people looking for advice.


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## Sarah1983 (Nov 2, 2011)

The thing is, at the moment you have a puppy. You may find that as he matures he begins to object to the things he's currently putting up with. I can walk past my dog or even step over him if he's in the way while he's eating something. I don't need to take things off him simply to test that he's not aggressive. I can count on one hand the number of real life situations where I've had to take food from any of my dogs. 

I used to do the whole dominance stuff and I have to say it was a pain in the backside. Constantly worrying about whether a behaviour was down to my dog thinking himself dominant, constantly trying to ensure I behaved in such a way that it confirmed my role as alpha etc. And the problem is that the more you look for "dominant" behaviour the more you see it so the more you work to stamp it out and the more you look for it and the more you see it and so on.


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## arlo333 (Jun 5, 2012)

like i said i believe it was precautionary advice given by my vet to ensure he was not being or getting aggressive...and i will repeat again...i do not do this every meal. not even every day! maybe once a week... and hes never aggressive. i appreciate the advice but i do not at all feel stressed or unknowing of my dogs "dominance" issues. he knows im the one who cares for him and loves him and is there for him. we are done with who is in charge...bc i truely believe my dog knows that i have his best interests in mind and that i love him and provide for him. he listens and loves learning new commands and tricks. he's well adjusted and happy in my eyes and thats really all that matters. thanks again, but i will never again ask for advice on this forum. pretty unsettling actually...dogs can sense empathy and sensitivity, no? some folks on here should try accessing that side of themselves. hopefully you treat your dogs with a little mor understanding than your fellow wo/man!


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## sketch (Sep 19, 2009)

I'm a bit of a pig myself, and would be more than annoyed if someone took my dinner away hehe.
He is a baby right now, what I do with my shepherds is teach them "leave", then if for some reason I needed to have access to their food, I can tell them leave, and call them to me, then I can get to there bowls.
Pups can be greedy at time, maybe try placing a handful of food in the bowl, let he eat this, then place another handful in, until he has finished, or maybe use a gulper bowl.
Good luck with your pup
xxx


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## Sarah1983 (Nov 2, 2011)

arlo333 said:


> like i said i believe it was precautionary advice given by my vet to ensure he was not being or getting aggressive...and i will repeat again...i do not do this every meal. not even every day! maybe once a week... and hes never aggressive. i appreciate the advice but i do not at all feel stressed or unknowing of my dogs "dominance" issues. he knows im the one who cares for him and loves him and is there for him. we are done with who is in charge...bc i truely believe my dog knows that i have his best interests in mind and that i love him and provide for him. he listens and loves learning new commands and tricks. he's well adjusted and happy in my eyes and thats really all that matters. thanks again, but i will never again ask for advice on this forum. pretty unsettling actually...dogs can sense empathy and sensitivity, no? some folks on here should try accessing that side of themselves. hopefully you treat your dogs with a little mor understanding than your fellow wo/man!


Nobody here has been rude to you as far as I'm aware. Nor has anyone been insensitive or mean or anything like that. You came here asking for advice, you were given advice, it's not our fault you don't like that advice. If you want to carry on doing what you're doing then that's your choice but you can't stop people from giving their opinions on a public forum I'm afraid. Especially when the methods you're using can have terrible consequences.

And for what it's worth, vets often know very, very little about behaviour. It's not what they're trained in unless they happen to be a behaviourist as well.


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## newfiesmum (Apr 21, 2010)

arlo333 said:


> like i said, my dog is a wonderfully behaved little boy. has learned several commands in our 4 months together, perfectly leash trained whether walking or biking, potty trained within 4 days of adopting him, and goes on hikes and bike rides in the mountains almost daily. he is healthy and happy...and as far as i can tell from the cuddles and kisses and good behavior...he loves me. the advice on the taking the food was given by my vet. i assume he knows i would never hurt him, as when he feels threatened he runs to me. i understand you are saying this training method is outdated, but geez louise you dont have to be such cranks about it. i guess you all must just be FAR superior dog owners than i! should prob just give him up for adoption now according to you people. haha sheesh...im gonna go take my pup on a hike and i nice swim while you wonderful pet owners sit on this forum and bash people looking for advice.


But you don't want advice, do you? otherwise you would be prepared to listen to it, and to weigh up the explanations and reasons that go with it.

Vets are not behaviourists, they know nothing about training and are getting their outdated information from the same daft sources as the tv personalities.


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## Guest (Jun 5, 2012)

Grrrr.... posted a great long reply and the internet died. 

Take two, Ill make it simple.

1. What looks like obsession with food is likely mostly typical puppy lack of impulse control. Teach lots of impulse control games with and without food. Crate games, its yer choice (as explained above), go crazy freeze, tug and fetch are also great ways to teach self control and impulse control if you teach them right.

2. Stop taking the food away. If you want to slow the pup down you can hand feed, you can feed from a puzzle toy, or you can try those food inserts or even a cookie sheet so the dog cant gulp as easily (though honestly, some dogs get even more frantic with bowl inserts etc.). I think hand feeding and puzzle toys are your best bet, makes pup think and interact with something in addition to the food.
If you want to create positive associations with food. Put the food bowl down and instead of taking it away, add in higher value stuff while the pup is eating. We do this anyway with our crew anytime we have leftovers that they can share. Scrape the plate in to the dog bowl while the dog is eating. This creates a dog who looks to humans approaching his bowl with eager anticipation, instead of apprehension.


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## arlo333 (Jun 5, 2012)

thanks for the actual advice on the FOOD ISSUE!


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## Guest (Jun 5, 2012)

arlo333 said:


> thanks for the actual advice on the FOOD ISSUE!


Oh I was also going to tell you to drop the alpha/dominance nonsense too


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## Elles (Aug 15, 2011)

> Many times i will take his food away when he is about half way finished, make him sit and stay or shake again, and give it back.


If he was starved and had to fight for his food, maybe he's not confident that once he has food he'll keep it. Your taking it from him, even if you give it back, will confirm his fears imo. He may not even know it's the same food. He might think you've taken it, eaten some and now he doesn't have as much. As he's only a baby he's probably not going to argue, but when he grows up if he's still worrying about it and eating it fast, he might start to growl fearfully to try to stop you taking it.

He may never grow out of eating as fast as possible, but I think you don't really want to put him in the same situation as he was in before you rescued him, with feeling worried about his food.  If he was mine, I'd want him to feel confident and happy when he's eating his dinner, not worried that someone might take it away. I think it's fab that he will sit and wait, especially given the circumstances, I don't really see why you need to take it away to test him out.

That would be my opinion. It's up to you of course. I personally wouldn't physically roll a dog onto his back and hold him down, regardless of the mental oppression, I think it could hurt him physically and can't see the point.

Your main question is about him eating fast and being obsessed with food and I think it could be down mainly to his poor start in life. Any anxiety relating to it could easily be exacerbated by taking his food away. There are other methods of teaching impulse control and preventing resource guarding that wouldn't increase his food anxiety, but rather may reduce it, if you are concerned that he may become aggressive over food in the future.

These guys do believe (2008 articles) in the pack hierarchy and being alpha etc., which is the kind of theories you are interested in:

https://canineconcepts.co.uk/en/blog/56-why-does-my-dog-guard-food-toys-and-beds

but they offer the same advice regarding your dog's food obsession, especially to prevent it becoming resource guarding.

Hope this helps.


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## dandogman (Dec 19, 2011)

I personally agree with the humans being the 'pack leader'.
I see Pippa acting submissively to most other dogs (rolling on her back), it's just whats dogs do, there is no getting away from it.


I sometimes take the bowl away from my puppy and give it back to her with a titbit in. I believe through past experience that this will prevent food guarding. 

In your case however I wouldn't take the bowl away, I would just add something new (e.g chicken), your pup obviously isn't comfortable with you being there while it eats, perhaps sit next to it whilst it eats? Then it will get used the idea that you are just sitting there and are not going to steal the food, you are just going to add chicken to the bowl, which the dog loves! This is creating a positive for the dog of you being around it whilst it eats.


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## bridgetleanne88 (Apr 16, 2013)

I know I'm a little late to the conversation but here goes...

I adopted a shepherd/hound mix about three weeks ago. She's five months old and was taken from a home where she was severely neglected along with her mother and sister. She was initially food and toy/bone aggressive but we've worked through a lot of the food aggression. She still guards her bones and toys but she's getting a lot better with that too.

My sister has a three year old Great Dane and when she saw the way Dakota scarfed her food down, she suggested I buy a "slow feed bowl."

Amazon.com: Dogit Go Slow Anti-Gulping Dog Bowl, Black, Medium: Pet Supplies

It's done wonders for her. The bowl doesn't let her eat quickly so bloat and other problems are less of a worry.

She does, however, make a beeline for any other food bowls that are around the house and gets a little spastic when I have treats or any food like object in my hand. I think patience is key here but I haven't gotten Dakota to stop yet either lol. I don't give her any kind of food or affection until she's calmed down. If you give them treats or food while they're spastic you're telling them it's okay to do what they're doing and that's the way to get food from you.

I also did the whole "let them eat a little while then take it back" trick. It seemed to help her with eating her food too quickly and taught her to trust me. I *always* gave the food back and let her finish.

Hope this helps.


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## Amy-manycats (Jun 15, 2009)

bridgetleanne88 said:


> I also did the whole "let them eat a little while then take it back" trick. It seemed to help her with eating her food too quickly and taught her to trust me. I *always* gave the food back and let her finish.
> 
> Hope this helps.


Sorry I have to pick up on this.

PLEASE DO NOT DO THIS! It can and often does backfire spectacularly and teaches your dog you are untrust worthy around food and actually keep stealing from him

If you have a resource guarding issue swapping and adding more to the bowl are ways to combat it.


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## Riff Raff (Feb 12, 2013)

OP, you sound like a great dog owner, and the dog you adopted sounds like a very lucky dog to have found you. 

What is really frustrating is that vets are still giving out such outdated and frankly dangerous advice. I agree with the advise you have been given here - work to get your dog comfortable with you around when he is eating (as a preventative since he is currently doing well) and simply drop in high value food by hand periodically rather than taking food away.

If you feed dry food and want to slow him down, I agree with hand feeding and treat balls, but you can also simply add some water to his dry food - kibble soup if you like. Prevents them from bolting down the dry food.


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