My daughter's 8 month old german shepard Jake continues with his food aggression. We still have him sit and stay prior to feeding him first half of his dinner. We then wait for him to approach who ever may be feeding him at the time and when he gets a pet, he growls. If you were to approach the bowl while he is eating, he goes into a full gaurd position, lips curled and bearing teeth. Feeding then stops for 20 minutes and then he gets 2nd half after a sit and wait. Currently no one has approached himwhile eating, because we already know how he is going to react. His aggression has now also shown up when getting his nails clipped. He has been having his nails clipped since he was a puppy. Clipping his front nails now requires a muzzle, or he will bite. We continue to work on Alpha training along with his regular training and he gets daily exercise. Three weeks at this with no signs of change. Prozac for puppies :rolleyes:. Any further suggestions?
Hello, I had a problem like this with a 2 year old pug. I hand fed him. He did not get a meal unless it was out of my hand and It only took 2 weeks and he would accept a hand in his dish while he was eating. I also took away all his chews and toys. I would throw them let him get into eating on the chews then tell him drop it if he didn't I would step on it and stand my ground. Within 2 days if I asked him to give up a steak he would. I had to be very firm with him or he would walk all over people. First I did it then the next week I would get someone else. Then the next week someone else. A month later I was able to put him in a new home and no food aggression came back.
Thanks for the reply. We had tried removing the bowl and hand feeding about 6 months old, with alternating which hand would feed or pet him, this lasted about 2.5 weeks. We stopped that when he bit my daughter as she reached toward him with a handfull of food (this was a growl bite, not a fast grab at the food). Jake almost seems to get into a zone at feeding time and if you interupt his thought process he growls. When he is in a sit/wait for his dish, he stares at the bowl and drools. Inorder to get him to look at me, I pick up a piece of kibble and hold it by my face.
To follow up , after Jake bite at my daughter, we switched to a correction collar. This seemed to work for the first couple of weeks, until he appeared to show signs of fear at feeding time along with the aggression. That is what has us to our current routine.
Hi there, not sure if 'petting' during meals is such a great idea....we all like pats and cuddles, but not all the time. I wouldn´t want my husband to stroke my hair through our meal either But I see what you´re trying to do. Gibson had some good ideas. You could also tempt him from his bowl with an extra yummy treat. By using the same dry food that´s in the bowl seems pointless.
It seems to me that after the dog bit your daughter that you stopped training a bit? is this right? this must feel like a sucess for your dog. I understand he gets in a zone, but it should be a happy zone, not this. Don´t 'steal' food from him, offer him a better option that he must come and fetch from you ( not you KOw-towing by the bowl with little treats )
The idea you are working for is that your dog is not such a 'prince' with his food, and does not choose the 'atmosphere' he would like. I would make up our dogs food bowl and then sit it out of reach while we ate etc etc. At the end of our meal, I would ask our dog to sit and stay, then put the food down. She may be invited to eat, but I would lure her away from the bowl with a tasty piece of chicken from my hand etc. Don´t let anyone approach the bowl while he is away, but possibly when you first put the bowl down, put it down near someones chair....this person is not to be threatening, or petting etc etc...just get the dog used to having people around... At any point in the meal your dog should be able to dis continue eating and follow your commands...but make your commands BETTER than the food at first. I also, whilst ignoring my dog, pushed the bowl with my foot...after doing this over and over and over, my baby can now fall into her feed bowl and she will just politely step back and wait
The big thing to remember is that 8 months is still very young...you have a fair bit of teenage time to get through....but it is really great that you are seeing these problems early. This attitude from your dog should not be tollerated and if you do not find you are making good progress with regards to respect from your dog, then I would reccomend you getting a personal training from a behaviourist who understands this breed.
Don´t forget to do all the other Alpha tipps, as they all need to be used together....and also expect to go backwards a bit as your dog trys to 'fight' the new situation.
Don´t fuss over the dog too much. Choose your techniques ( reread the Alpha chapter) and get the whole family to go for it ( including visitors) Don´t fall for those cute eyes, or thinking you´re doing something wrong...this is really the time to clearly show your dog that you know-what-you-are-doing.....and you are the boss of this circus Your confident attitude will be the clincher! good luck, Annie
Annie, thanks for your reply. The general idea isn't to continue petting him while he's eating, but my daughter is concerned for accidental incounters made by friends, family and one day in the future her children. Prior to ordering Sit/Stay Fetch, we spoke to a behaviorist who suggested a similiar approach you just did with a greater reward for leaving the bowl. This was early on in his aggression and he seemed to be okay with leaving his bowl and getting a treat but it didn't seem to have any effect as to his attitude at the bowl itself. Although having you re-suggest this type approach we will try incorporating this into his current routine. Jake's training and working with Alpha has never stopped since we purchased the program. Jake is an extreme Alpha mentality and he is very smart. He is well socialized and was top of his puppy class while being the youngest. My ten year old shepard Luke wants nothing to do with him although he does tolerate him. Jake wants to be with him but displays an alpha position even with him (i.e. body bump while waking past). Luke gets fed first and on walks together, Luke is either alongside or up front (on leashes). We will continue working with him, and keep you posted. Thanks Again, Peter
