April 3, 20179 yr I'm the owner of a wonderful 2 year old dog. She is the sweetest dog in the world except around food. She struggles with food aggression. Any suggestions on a dog behaviorist/ trainer in the Northern Kentucky area?
April 3, 20179 yr I don't, but there are also lots of places to get free advice. The aggression is driven by a fear that the food will be taken. The key is to re-condition their thinking so that 1) they respect the person as the owner of the food; and 2) if they give it up, they can get it back. This needs to be done without fear or punishment as that will make the situation worse. Start with a little bit of food and make sure the dog is calm and obedient and sitting before presenting the food. If the dog lunges at the food, start over. Keep hold of the bowl. If you are afraid of getting bitten...then get someone else to do it (who maybe you don't like :-). JK. If you are fearful, then you probably should get help.
April 3, 20179 yr Is the dog aggresive toward people or other dogs? Will she take treats from your hand or is she aggressive about that too? One of the most effective methods is to hand feed her. Get a zip lock or something with some food in it (don't use her bowl) and calmly hand feed her. Once she does that easily, put it in a bowl instead of a zip lock and hand feed her out of the bowl. You should get a different food bowl, because she could associate the old bowl with being hers and be aggressive. After you have hand fed her out of the bowl you eventually let that one become her food bowl. Once you have hand fed her for a bit, or if you're not comfortable hand feeding her, put about a 1/4 of the normal food in her bowl. Let her eat it. She will want more. Take her bowl and put another quarter in. Always be calm, and don't give her her food until she is calm. The objective of these techniques is to get her to understand that she is dependent on you for food and that you are there to provide it. Every puppy I have ever raised. I hand fed at least half their food for the first month or so. Edited April 3, 20179 yr by coldweatherfan
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