Resource Guarding
Resource guarding refers to a dog's inclination to covet and protect items considered valuable. Dogs with this tendency can display aggressive behavior when someone approaches them while they are eating or when they possess a valuable resource, such as a bone, toy, found object, or any item they consider worth guarding. Some dogs may also exhibit guarding behavior over resting places, such as their dog bed, the sofa, or the owner's bed, and may become aggressive when someone tries to come near or move them from these locations.
Most of the time, there is a genetic component to resource guarding, meaning dogs are born with the inclination to guard coveted items. As a result, resource guarding behavior can sometimes be observed in very young puppies. However, environmental influences can exacerbate resource guarding. Dogs with a propensity for guarding resources learn that this behavior "works" to keep people and other animals away. Owners often inadvertently worsen resource guarding behavior by responding with punishment. For instance, if a dog growls when a person approaches while the dog has a bone, and the person yells and takes the bone away regardless, the dog learns that growling doesn't work, potentially escalating to snapping or biting if someone tries to take something valuable. Physical punishment is never advisable for a resource-guarding dog, as it often exacerbates the behavior.
The degree to which behavior modification can improve a resource-guarding dog's response depends on several factors: the strength of the response, how long-standing the behavior is, how generalized the behavior is (whether the dog guards one thing or many), and how severe the aggressive response is (growling vs. biting). Dogs displaying this behavior for an extended period, guarding many different items, and responding aggressively with biting may be challenging to modify. In severe cases, management is crucial, such as feeding the dog in a separate room or crate and avoiding giving the dog valuable resources like bones. Having a resource-guarding dog in a household with young children is not advisable.
Behavior modification aims to teach a resource-guarding dog to willingly give up items upon request and accept people near their food bowls and possessions. However, the inclination to guard may persist in the dog's life. Even if a dog has undergone a behavior modification program, they might still guard something valuable in the future because dogs struggle to generalize their learning. This means that if a dog gets hold of something precious, like a meat wrapper from the trash or a chicken bone during a walk, they may revert to aggressive guarding behavior if someone tries to take the item, regardless of prior behavior modification. Additionally, behavior modification may not necessarily extend to people outside of those who participated in the program or in locations other than where the training was conducted. Therefore, even after completing a behavior modification program, owners must ALWAYS supervise a resource-guarding dog around visitors (especially children) and in unfamiliar places.
The program to address resource guarding involves training and behavior modification techniques called systematic desensitization and counterconditioning. The goal is to have the dog respond positively to commands and learn that NOT guarding is more rewarding than guarding. This program may take a significant amount of time and requires consistent practice.
Food Bowl Guarding – the goal is to teach your dog that food and humans go together.
Repeat each of the following steps until the dog is comfortable before you move to the next step (but do each step for at least a few days, even if there are no issues). If, at a given step, the dog displays any guarding behavior (including growling, stiffness, or freezing up), regress to an easier exercise and proceed more gradually to the problematic exercise.
Hand-feed your dog their entire meal for two weeks (handfuls, not individual pieces). Ask them to sit, lie down, watch me, or perform any other known behavior, then offer the handful of food. This step teaches the dog that their food comes from you and you control the resource. Use your clicker to mark the correct response before giving them the food.
Feed in installments - Hold the dog's empty bowl, keeping one hand on it while you feed in handful installments by reaching to get the food out of another bowl on the table or counter with the other hand. Ask them to sit and wait for them to look at you - CLICK and give them a handful of food.
Put the empty bowl on the floor next to you, and then, one handful at a time, feed them their meal. Ask them to sit and wait for them to look at you before you CLICK and give them the handful of food.
Put down an empty bowl and walk away. Then, walk back to the empty bowl and the dog, ask them to sit, pick up the bowl, put a handful of food in it, put it back down, and retreat. Repeat until the entire meal has been fed.
Hold the full bowl, ask them to sit - CLICK, and then offer the bowl (you are still holding it). Talk to them while they eat, and occasionally add a tasty treat to the bowl with your other hand.
Ask them to sit - CLICK, and then give them their bowl of food on the floor. Reach for a special treat and drop it into their dish while they are eating. Repeat 2-3 times during the meal.
Work on approaching the dog while they are eating. Start by stopping far enough away that you do not trigger any response - CLICK, and then toss a piece of chicken or another special treat at the dish, retreat, and repeat, gradually closing the distance between yourself and the bowl before you CLICK and toss the treat (over several sessions). This teaches the dog to anticipate something wonderful when they see you approaching their dish.
Start at #1 with another person (each person in the house should work on these exercises).
Children need to respect the dog while they are eating or have a chewy. Older children should not engage in these exercises until all adults in the house have progressed to step 8. When children start working on this program, they MUST be supervised during each step. Tether the dog while they eat using their leash to prevent lunging, chasing, or biting the child. Keep your children safe, and do not allow them to be near the dog while eating.
Possession Guarding
Some dogs guard particular items (bones, toys, tissues, etc.), while others guard items they have stolen (which can be anything). The more generalized the behavior, the harder it will be to modify. Practice these exercises every day.
Systematic Desensitization and Counterconditioning - changing the way your dog FEELS.
You need to teach your resource-guarding dog that your approach while they have an item is a good thing. To work on this, give your dog an item (bone, toy, etc.) and let them settle in with it (tether them if you feel it is necessary for safety). Then, approach to a distance that does NOT trigger aggression CLICK if they don't display aggression, and toss a special treat if there is no aggression. Repeat this at this distance until your dog anticipates the treat when you come towards them. Then, move a bit closer and repeat the exercises. Do this until you can walk right up to them, CLICK, and hand them a treat. Progress SLOWLY!
Training – Drop It and Leave It
To teach your dog to accept giving up anything they possess, you will have to teach them to "drop it" and "leave it." Practice first with uninteresting objects and later with the items your dog guards. Do these exercises every day with as many objects as possible. The goal is for your dog to realize that when they hear "drop it" or "leave it," they will be rewarded for complying, no matter what they have in their mouth.
Drop it: Use the "drop it" command to teach your dog to relinquish things they have in their mouth. When they have an item, approach them with a high-value treat, show it to them, and when they release the item to get the treat, say "drop it" in a cheerful voice, CLICK, and treat. Then, return the item they dropped and give it back to them. Repeat this process several times in a row, leaving them with the original item. This way, they learn that dropping an item is rewarding, and they often get the item back in the end. Once you've associated the words "drop it" with the behavior of spitting something out of their mouth, you can start using it as a command for the behavior.
Leave it: Use the "leave it" command when you want your dog to move away from something. To train this command, have a helper entice your dog with a low-value item (dry food, a boring toy). When they show interest in the item, approach them, put a tasty treat right in front of their nose, and lure them away. Cheerfully tell them to "leave it" as they move toward you. CLICK and treat when they've moved several feet away. Repeat this process several times to associate the command "leave it" with the behavior of moving away from something. Once you believe they've made the association, you can use "leave it" as the command. When they are interested in something, say "leave it" without showing them the treat. If they've learned that these words mean moving away from one thing and getting something better, they will comply. The next step will be to increase the value of the items they must move away from.
Set up practice sessions so your dog learns what is expected of them. Any object your dog currently guards should be off-limits until you've worked your way up to them in the practice sessions.
Trade Game
Before your dog reliably responds to the "drop it" command, if they get hold of something they shouldn't or something you know they will guard, either ignore them (if it's not valuable or dangerous) or play the trade game. Grab a handful of VERY tasty treats (chicken, cheese, etc.) and toss them on the floor several feet away from your dog. Once they run to get the pile of treats on the floor, pick up the item. The key is to retrieve the item without triggering aggression. You may have to keep tossing treats farther away from the item before it's safe for you to pick it up.
Location guarding
The classic location guarder is a dog that gets on the sofa or bed and becomes aggressive when you ask them to get off or request them to move. These dogs should not be allowed on the furniture unless you actively work on the behavior modification below!
Teaching the "off" command
Begin by asking your dog to get on the sofa by patting the cushion and encouraging them to jump up. When they do, praise them (no treat). Now, lure them off of the sofa with a tasty treat. As they move off, say "off," and then give them the treat (CLICK and treat if using a marker signal). You'll pair the word "off" with getting off the furniture until they understand what the word means (usually after a few dozen trials). Repeat this process several times in a row. Soon, you can use the cue "off" to prompt the behavior. Say "off" when they are on the furniture and reward them for getting down. Do not use the word "down" for this training, as this command typically means "lie down" to most dogs. Avoid causing confusion.
If you have to show them the food treat to get them off the sofa the first few times, that's okay, but try to phase that out as soon as possible. We don't want them to require seeing the treat to move; we want them to move off because you ask them to.
Set up as many training sessions as possible throughout the day so your dog learns this behavior well. You may also want to ask them to jump up, tell them to lie down, and then ask them to get off to simulate real-life scenarios better.
After completing multiple setup sessions, use the "off" command in situations where your dog is already on the couch. It's important to vary the treat. For example, after asking your dog to get "off," take them for a walk. Wait until they are comfortably lying on the couch, say "off," and if they comply, then say, "Want to go for a walk?" Do NOT use "want to go for a walk?" as a way to get them off the couch. The walk should be the reward for their compliance, not a bribe to get them to comply.
Practice these exercises repeatedly. Have everyone in the family practice them. Your dog should get "off" whenever ANYONE asks.
Remember: If your dog displays aggressive guarding behavior, they should NOT be allowed on the furniture unless you actively work on the behavior modification. If a bed-guarding dog sneaks up on the bed at night while you sleep, they should sleep in a crate or be tethered.
Counterconditioning
In addition to teaching your dog the "off" command, you can also work on counterconditioning their feelings about you approaching, sitting next to, or moving them when they are on the couch or bed.
When you see your dog on the furniture, walk up to them, staying a few feet away. CLICK if they don't show aggression and toss them a treat.
Repeat this process multiple times, moving closer each time. The goal is for your dog to anticipate a treat when they see you coming.
Once you can walk right up to your dog, CLICK, and hand them a treat. Sit down next to them and feed them a few treats.
Eventually (when they are comfortable with you being next to them), touch them slightly. CLICK if there is no aggression and give them a treat.
Repeat step 4, adding some petting.
When you can pet them without triggering aggression, nudge them a little. CLICK if there is no aggression, and treat them.
Repeat step 6, nudging a little harder each time.
By following these steps, you should be able to ask your dog to get "off" the furniture or sit down next to them and push them over without triggering aggression. Return to the behavior modification steps if your dog reverts to aggressive behavior. Occasionally, surprising them with a treat when they don't show aggression will help them remember the game.
*Response to aggression:
Until your dog reliably responds to these exercises, they should always wear a house line. If you ask them to get "off," and they become aggressive, say, "Too bad," pick up the end of the house line to gently guide them off the furniture (do not do this harshly), and tether them to something. They should then be removed from the furniture for a while.
Owner Guarding
Dogs often exhibit what we might call "protective" or "jealous" behavior when they are with us. This behavior, which may sometimes become aggressive, is often directed toward other individuals (humans or other animals) who approach too closely to you. This can also be a form of resource guarding because, to your dog, you, their beloved human, are a highly valuable resource.
Your response to this behavior is critical. If you console your dog by saying things like "It's okay, Sugar, she's a nice lady," you may unintentionally reinforce the behavior. Your dog may think that you like it when they act that way. Conversely, suppose you scold or physically punish them for acting aggressively when someone approaches. In that case, you can create an even more negative association - 'I dislike children - and now I dislike them even more because when they are around, I get in trouble.'
The appropriate response to owner-guarding behavior is for you, the object of guarding, to get up and leave the room as a consequence of the aggressive behavior. This is the most effective response since dogs learn through the consequences of their actions (rewarded behavior continues, ignored behavior diminishes). You are telling your dog their own aggressive behavior is causing you to leave, which is not what they want. If your dog is displaying aggression in such situations, you should tether them when you expect people to approach closely. Put their leash on and secure the handle end to something like a chair leg. This way, when you get up and leave the room, they cannot follow you or approach the other person. Repeat this process until your dog realizes their aggressive behavior leads to your departure.
In addition to this response, you should reward your dog for not acting aggressively when someone approaches. Have treats ready, and when they behave appropriately, CLICK and give them a treat. Eventually, you can have the approaching person toss treats as they get closer. This gradually counterconditions your dog to act differently and feel differently when people or other dogs approach. Now, the presence of others predicts positive things, and your dog will be happy about it.
**IMPORTANT NOTES:
Make every effort not to trigger aggressive behavior. Every time your dog reacts aggressively, the behavior becomes stronger.
DO NOT punish the growl. Growling is communication ("STAY AWAY"), and punishing it may lead your dog to escalate to more severe aggressive responses like lunging, nipping, or biting.
If your possessive-aggressive dog doesn't respond to "drop it," "leave it," or the trade game when they have an item, LEAVE THEM ALONE unless the item is dangerous for them or valuable to you.
