Food Aggression - 4 Reasons Why Your Dog is Guarding His Food
A dog guarding his food is a behavior problem that most humans are not able to fully understand.
Even the sweetest lap dog can exhibit this behavior and sometimes this could be dangerous as it may lead to dog bites.
Below are 4 reasons why your dog is guarding his food.
In a pack, the lead dog usually gets to eat first and the lower ranking dog has to wait and sometimes has to fight over the food that was left.
Your pet dog may have the feeling of desperation for his food, for him he doesn't know when or if he will get more food.
Same with dogs in the wild, they have the instinct to guard their food or even fight over it.
He may have thought that you are going to get his food from him instead of you providing it to him.
It is best to let your dog know that you are there to give him his food and he needs to know that you are a provider instead of a threat.
This type of behavior is actually a dominance issue, of which the dog considers himself as the leader in your home.
As in a "pack situation", the leader should get the best things first and even if your dog did not come from a wild pack breed or has not been in the wild, he still would have all of these basic instincts.
It could be that during puppyhood, the dog owner just ignores the puppy when it becomes aggressive or tense every time someone would approach him when eating, all the while thinking that it is normal for his pet.
If you think your dog has food guarding aggression or canine possession aggression, it is always advisable to seek professional help.
Take him to a veterinarian to rule out physical problem and then speak to an animal behaviorist or a professional dog trainer to determine safe techniques or treatments for your dog to overcome his dog food aggression.
Even the sweetest lap dog can exhibit this behavior and sometimes this could be dangerous as it may lead to dog bites.
Below are 4 reasons why your dog is guarding his food.
- Desperation
In a pack, the lead dog usually gets to eat first and the lower ranking dog has to wait and sometimes has to fight over the food that was left.
Your pet dog may have the feeling of desperation for his food, for him he doesn't know when or if he will get more food.
Same with dogs in the wild, they have the instinct to guard their food or even fight over it.
- Threat
He may have thought that you are going to get his food from him instead of you providing it to him.
It is best to let your dog know that you are there to give him his food and he needs to know that you are a provider instead of a threat.
- Confusion
This type of behavior is actually a dominance issue, of which the dog considers himself as the leader in your home.
As in a "pack situation", the leader should get the best things first and even if your dog did not come from a wild pack breed or has not been in the wild, he still would have all of these basic instincts.
- Miscommunication
It could be that during puppyhood, the dog owner just ignores the puppy when it becomes aggressive or tense every time someone would approach him when eating, all the while thinking that it is normal for his pet.
If you think your dog has food guarding aggression or canine possession aggression, it is always advisable to seek professional help.
Take him to a veterinarian to rule out physical problem and then speak to an animal behaviorist or a professional dog trainer to determine safe techniques or treatments for your dog to overcome his dog food aggression.
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