How to train an older dog (9 years old) to stop food aggression?

Hi there and thank you for using PetCoach! For food aggression problems, I typically direct clients to the ASPCA website for a detailed write up on dealing with food aggression. If these measures do not work, then I typically recommend using a service such as Bark Busters to come to your house and help correct this behavior. This can be frustrating to overcome but with persistence and patience, Buddy will likely improve. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns. https:// www.aspca.org/pet-care/dog-care/common-dog-behavior-issues/food-guarding

I would be happy to help you - feel free to request a consultation if you want to discuss Koda's issues in more detail. For now, I can certainly give you some general information about food aggression and how to treat it :) Food aggression, like other types of resource guarding, occurs because the dog is afraid that you are going to take their food away from them. This doesn't have to be based on any negative experiences in the past - it's a hard-wired, instinctive behavior that is stronger in some dogs than others. Treatment is based on teaching the dog that good things happen when you approach his food bowl, so that over time, this doesn't make her feel threatened anymore. You can start by walking by her and dropping a treat into her food bowl while she is eating. Once she's comfortable with this, you can gradually work up to approaching her, picking up the bowl, adding a special treat of some kind, and giving it back. It's never recommended to punish this behavior, or to bother her or take away her bowl while she is eating, since this only reinforces the idea that bad things happen when you approach her and will make the problem worse over time. The book "Mine!" by Jean Donaldson gives an excellent overview of this issue, along with detailed step-by-step training instructions to address it.

I would recommend hiring a trainer to come to your home. I feel that at this point if he is that aggressive when you are trying to take food from him them a trainer should be involved to help you learn commands on how to deal with the situation and teach Chewy about this situation also. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Hi there! I'm sorry to hear that you're having this problem with Petey. Many dogs get anxious and may show some resource guarding aggression around feeding time, especially if they've had to fight to defend their food in the past - we often don't know much about a rescue dog's history, so it's hard to say what is driving this behavior in Petey's case. It's hard to give you specific advice without more details about your normal feeding routine, including what specifically tends to trigger this behavior from Petey. In general, the best thing to do for resource guarding issues is to try and avoid making the dog feel threatened, and leave him alone to eat in peace. So for example, you might use a baby gate to keep Petey out of the kitchen while you're getting his dinner ready, place his bowl on the floor, and then remove the gate to let him go in and eat. I would leave him alone while he's eating, and go in and put the empty bowl away once he's completely finished and has walked away. If you want to work on this problem further, to eventually try and get him more comfortable with having you around while he eats, it would be best to get in touch with a veterinary behaviorist who can evaluate him in person and help you put together a detailed training plan. You can search for one in your area here: www.dacvb.org. I also highly recommend the book "Mine!" by Jean Donaldson, for detailed guidelines and training protocols for dogs with resource guarding issues to help get you started.

Until you are able to consult with a qualified trainer, I would advise feeding them separately. (Feed them in separate rooms, and pick up the food after 20-30 minutes if they don't eat it right away). Don't leave food out for "fair game" feeding. When the possibility of a fight over food is removed in this manner, it can alleviate stress for everyone. Thank you for asking Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Oh dear, what a cute little devil. Spanking is not the answer, but I think you do need the help of a trainer to help Pixie lead a more sociable life. Basic obedience is always a good place to start. She needs to learn to sit & stay while you place food dishes down & pick up toys. It is not okay, even with that adorable face, to be so aggressive with toys & food. She can still inflict a serious bite. I would start at a Petco, or someplace that offers puppy classes & go from there. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Puppies can sometimes be A LOT for senior dogs and it can take some time for them to get use to one another. If there were any food, treats, toys or special people near by Buddy could have just been acting protective over these. Also, with Buddy being older, if they puppy is always playing, jumping on him, or nipping at him, he may have been just trying to tell the puppy to leave him alone or trying to set some boundaries. Also, if he is arthritic and he knows the puppy jumping on him hurts, he could have reacted to prevent this. I would continue to keep them separate until you know they can be left alone together. I would definitely feed them separately as well. I would be sure you are still spending plenty of alone time with Buddy as he may be feeling frustrated that his home life has changed with the new addition. I would continue to have short but frequent times of them being together. You could also start Buddy on an anti-anxiety chew like composure or composure pro and get him a calming collar like sentry or adaptil. If these don't help, talk to your vet about anti-anxiety medicine like fluoxetine or trazadone. I hope this helps!