Dealing with food aggression
written by Mrs J
For me the most successful way of dealing with food aggression was to teach the dogs a set routine (almost in 'party trick' style) when being given a meal.
Firstly, I taught them to sit and wait while I dished up their food and placed it in front of them about 2 feet away. They are not allowed to approach their bowls until I command them to do so. I use 'good dogs' as my command with which they will start to eat.
Next, I taught them to leave their bowls mid-meal and return to a sit, again waiting for my 'good dogs' command if myself or anyone else approached them during their meal. Before I gave the command to return to their meal I would move their food bowls a little way and pretend to eat some myself, after which I would release them to eat the rest of their meal. I also sat next to them on the floor whilst they ate, any hint of a growl they are told to leave their bowl and it is removed for 30 secs or so... and so the cycle continues until you have growl-free doggies happy to eat with you in their midst.
I never feed the dogs at the same time of day, I vary it within 2-3 hours. This I found reinforces the fact that they rely on me for all their food, see me as the packleader providing for them as would be in the wild and not just a habitual routine, which in turn has made them very willing to appease me for feeding them.
