Why does my dog cry, bury, and steal bones when I give him one?

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Five is not old. It sounds like he is being protective of the bone and he is walking away with it because he doesn’t want anyone to take it. Since he is being aggressive about it, I would recommend finding a way to get the bone away from him and not giving it back. If he cannot play with his toys in a safe manner then he cannot have them. I am afraid the behavior could get worse. Good luck and kisses to Dartos!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I think part of it is truly because they find it fun. They also like them as they find them tasty though it is not recommended to give them bones as they can choke on them or they can even result in a gastrointestinal obstrcution. Good luck and have a good night!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is of course unacceptable behavior and it is called food aggression. This is usually corrected with appropriate training. I would highly recommend you consider reaching out to a dog trainer who can work with you in person to correct this. Best of luck!

Thank you for your question. Many dogs like to hide things, including treats and food. This is probably a remnant from their ancestors who may have had to hide some of their food items to protect it from other members of their pack or predators. We would not consider this a problem behavior unless he is becoming aggressive around his buried food/toys.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Bleu maybe rubbing his face on his treats due to excitement, to mark his scent on the food, in the wild dogs do this to tell others in their pack where the food is, it could be a form of resource guarding or simply because he just is so happy and loves treats! I wouldn’t try to read in to it too much! Hope this helps!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! These types of behaviors can improve though this does require in person training with the help of a qualified dog trainer. I would encourage you to contact a dog trainer that can work with you and Smidgen in person to really take care of this behavior. The sooner these behaviors are dealt with, the more likely it is that you can improve and resolve them. Good luck and have a good night!

Hi there. Many dogs will freeze and growl, snarl, or snap if they have something valuable (like a bone or bully stick) and they're afraid you might take it away. This is actually quite a normal behavior for dogs, and is just their way of trying to protect their stuff :) To help Sam learn that you're not a threat, you can try walking by and casually tossing him a treat occasionally while he's chewing on his bone. This way, he learns that good things happen when you approach - so no need to growl! NEVER reprimand him for growling, and never try to forcibly take the bone away, as this will only teach him that he was right to be wary of you approaching and is likely to make the problem worse. If you want more detailed information about how to work on this problem, I highly recommend the book "Mine!" by Jean Donaldson.