Dealing With Food Aggression

Food aggression is a form of resource guarding in which a dog becomes defensive and uses threats, like growling, to force other animals or humans away from a food source. If not dealt with, it can lead to a bigger problem of being possessive of everything-- toys, beds, treats, food, ect... Before I begin on the steps that dog owners can take to deal with a food aggressive dog, I should lay down a common ground rule for all dogs--> Humans (including, and especially, children) should never mess with a dog while its eating. This includes the common myth of making a dog eat out of it's bowl with your hand in it.

There are three levels of food aggression:
1. Mild-- a dog will show it's teeth and growl.
2. Moderate-- a dog will snap and lunge.
3. Extreme-- a dog will attempt to, and/or maybe succeed, at biting another animal or human.

If you are a dog owner that has a dog with extreme food aggression, your best measure is to get an expert to help you with the problem. Do not try to deal with it on your own.

Food aggression can stem from a dog trying to show it's dominance in a pack (aka the alpha male) OR it can be from a stressed out, high anxiety dog. As a dog owner, the first thing you need to recognize is why your dog is being aggressive. Is your dog trying to maintain rank in the pack? If so, then you, as the dog owner, must establish yourself as the leader in a calm, assertive way. If your dog is food aggressive from stress and anxiety, then you must teach your dog that food is safe and build up your dog's confidence level. Once the reason is established, you can move forward with desensitizing and counter conditioning your dog to associate humans (or other animals) being around the food as a positive experience. 

Signs of Food Aggression :

• Hovering over the meal-- the body will be stiff with the head down. 
• Whites of the eyes are visible
• Ears are back 
• Tail is lowered
• Hackles rise
• Growling
• Lunging
• Biting

*A food aggressive dog can show any or all of these behaviors.

Steps To Take:

• Be Consistent With Meals: A dog should not be "free fed" with a large bowl that they eat out of at all times of the day. There should be a designated meal time(s) at the same time(s) every day and once the meal is done, the bowls should be put away. If you have more than one animal, each pet should have it's own bowl. 
• A Dog Should Work For It's Food: While you are preparing the meal, the dog should sit and stay outside of the room and remain at "stay" while the bowl is being set down on the floor. Your dog should only be able to eat once you have given permission with a command.
• Pack Leaders Eat First: You, the dog owner, are the pack leader. Not the dog. Therefore, your dog needs to wait until you have eaten before he/she can eat. You dog should never be eating at the same time you are eating or before you have eaten.
• Stay With the Bowl: Instead of the dog learning they win the food when you walk away, stay near them while they eat. This teaches your dog they win the food when you stay.

Three Addition Steps To Consider: 

1. If needed, hand feed your dog it's meal one kibble at a time like you are giving a treat. You can also use your hands to put the food into the bowl so that your scent is on the food, but never actually stick your hand in the bowl while your dog is eating. 
2. While the dog is eating, occasionally toss a really good treat into the bowl. The treat should be something your dog absolutely loves, but only gets during meal time. He/she will start to associate you being around the bowl as being a positive experience (the really good treat).
3. Trade up during mealtime. The goal of "trading up" is to get your dog to stop eating and take food from you (again, using the really good treat). This teaches your dog that no one will steal his food if he looks up from his bowl.  

Food aggression is something that needs to be dealt with before it gets out of hand. It is a common problem many dog owners encounter. But, can easily be dealt with and remedied with patience and positive reward.

Fence Running In Canines

 We all know "that one dog" (or maybe you own that dog) that consistently runs the fence line barking and growling at everything on the other side of the fence. It can be exasperating for everyone involved. If it's a person walking their dog on the other side of the fence, they are probably dreading EVERY TIME they have to walk by because it causes extreme stress to their dog and...well, it's just plain rude. To the dogs running up and down the fence, most of the time the owners don't realize that this "harmless behavior" can actually spiral into a myriad of unwanted canine behavior.
All dog breeds have different needs when it comes to exercise. Some need more and some don't need quite as much. BUT, all dogs need to be exercised. If they don't get their mental and physical exercise, they will eventually have to release their pent up energy and usually it will be with some unwanted behavior. Fence running can be one of those behaviors. If it is two dogs on each side of the fence running up and down, owners may think "Great! they are playing and getting exercise!" Often though, if the owner listens a little closer to their dog and watches their canine behavior, they will
soon find their dog isn't really playing. The two dogs doing the fence running are actually frustrated and fighting. Signs of this frustration are : growling, snarling, showing of teeth and lunging at the fence. If the aggressive fence running isn't addressed, it can lead to a bunch of other aggressive behavioral problems and become compulsive. Every time the dog runs the fence with the unwanted behavior, the neurotransmitters in the brain are activated and reinforcing the dog that this kind of behavior is wanted and needed. Eventually, the aggressive behavior will show in other situations outside of the fence, like when you are walking your dog or at the dog park.




Aggressive fence running is a behavior problem that should be addressed as soon as possible with diligence and consistency. Usually, a dog trainer is recommended to help with the training and it takes a long time with patience. The first thing you need to do is remove your dog from the situation at the first signs of stress. The second thing you need to do is train your dog with Operant Conditioning. You will need to leash your dog with a long line in the area of high stress fence running.... and then sit and wait. When the object of stress (person or dog) approaches the fence and your dog starts "the chase", you must keep your dog away from the fence with the leash and keep the focus on you with a highly desired toy or super-awesome treat. Once you are the focal point, give your dog a simple command like "sit" and reward your dog with the toy and/or treat. You must reward your dog EVERY TIME until "sit" becomes the habit when your dog sees the other dog and/ or person on the other side of the fence. It may be recommended that your dog not be allowed to be in the fenced area unsupervised until the behavior is completely extinguished.

Here are a couple more links about fence running:

• How to Stop a Dog From Fence Running, by Applause Your Paws: https://www.puppytrainingmiami.com/2014/04/15/how-to-stop-a-dog-from-fence-fighting/https://www.puppytrainingmiami.com/2014/04/15/how-to-stop-a-dog-from-fence-fighting/

• Better Designed Dog Fences Make for Better Dogs, By The Whole Dog Journal: http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/7_4/features/Best-Dog-Fences_5620-1.html

Canine Dental Care

Periodontal disease can lead to a number of health issues. Yes, it will cause tooth/gum infections and tooth loss which is painful for your dog. But, the mouth is the entrance to your body and when it is not healthy, it leads to other health problems such as kidney, heart and liver damage. 80% of dogs by the age of three have some sort of dental disease: gingivitis, halitosis, tumors, cysts and periodontal disease.

Symptoms of Periodontal Disease:

• Red and Swollen gums
• Bad breath
• Excess drooling
• Tartar build-up
• Tooth Loss

Prevention Includes:

• Weekly lip and gum examinations
• Dental vet check-ups
• Dental chews
• ....And...Yes.... Bi-weekly teeth brushing! 

Brushing our Canine's teeth is something most of us disregard as important, but can play a key role in preventing health problems. It can be a simple process once your furry friend gets used to it (It's easiest to start the habit when they are puppies). You should never use human toothpaste, because it contains Fluoride and/or artificial sweeteners that can be toxic to your dog. 

Here are some simple dog toothpaste recipes that you can make at home. They are simple to make. You just grab your ingredients, throw them in a food processor and blend away! Once it's made, store it in an airtight container in your fridge.

 To brush your dog's teeth, use a soft bristle toothbrush. Scoop a small amount of paste onto the brush and move gently over your dog's teeth in small circular motions. Pay attention to the back teeth where most tartar and food build-up hides out. After brushing, use water on the toothbrush or a clean washcloth to rinse your dog's mouth. Provide fresh water for your dog to drink afterward.

And that's it! Remember that a small amount of time once every week (or two weeks) can do wonders for your best friend's health.

Teaching Your Dog "Stay"

Teaching your dog to "stay" is a handy skill when you are doing something and you don't want your four-legged friend all up in your business (or if you want to take cute photos of your dogs sitting politely on a tree stump). Safety wise, it's also one of the primary commands your dog should know. Before we begin on the actual steps, there are a few things you need to decide:

• Are you going to have your dog sitting or laying down when they "stay"? The more comfortable your dogs is, the longer they will actually stay. Example: sitting position will require more effort, but laying down may make your dog feel vulnerable. You need to assess the situation and your dog's temperament to decide what will be the best. 
• You need to decide on a "release" cue. This will be a word or action that tells your dog they no longer need to stay. When choosing a word, try to choose one that you do not use in everyday conversation. Otherwise, you may end up confusing the dog if you have your dog in "stay" while talking to another individual and you end up saying your release cue in conversation.
  
• When handing your dog the treats you will be using for the training of "stay", you will want to reward them either between the paws if they are laying, or by their chest if they are sitting. Most people make the mistake of holding the treat up high, while repeating the word "stay" and them giving them the treat s..l..o..w..l..y.. Don't do that. The treat should be unseen and given quickly when the behavior has been executed. 
•  There are three things you will be working on with the "stay" command: distance, duration and distraction. Distance is how far away from your dog you can be while your dog remains in "stay". Duration is how long your dog is in "stay", and distraction is having your dog stay while there is things going on around them. When training, you want to work on one thing at a time otherwise, you run the risk of just confusing your dog.
  
• Last, you don't want to ask your dog to stay or start a training session during a thunderstorm or on hot pavement or in freezing cold temperatures. That would be a ridiculous request.
  

Ok, so let's get started!

1. Ask your dog to lie down. Instead of giving your dog a treat right away, wait a few seconds while saying something like "yes" or "good boy". Then, give them the treat. If your dog has the issue of bouncing up right away, have two treats available. One treat will be for laying down, and one will be for staying a couple seconds. Repeat, repeat, repeat... once your dog has this nailed down, start increasing the durationof time before the treat is given.
2. While the dog is in down position, give the release cue. When your dog gets up, give them another treat. 

That's pretty much it! Remember, that dogs should only work on behavior training for about 15-minutes per session in order to avoid mental fatigue. To work on distance, slowly walk backwards one step at a time increasing your distance with each training session. You do not want to turn your back on the dog while increasing distance. Instead, maintain eye contact. Finally, to work on distraction, 

When Mistakes Happen:
 When your dog makes a "mistake", make sure you go back a step to an easier progression. Also, be mindful to check if your dog is just mentally tired from training. They will make mistakes if mentally tired. 

With all that said, never punish your dog for making a mistake. Always reward, reward, reward. Training is all about consistency. Once your dog has a behavior nailed down, you still need to practice it regularly. Otherwise, the behavior will slowly start to disappear and you'll have to start back at square one.