Expert: Jody Epstein, APDT - 2/7/2012

Question
I have had my dog since he was 6 weeks old. The vet let the puppy go at this age because all the puppies in the litter were big and healthy. He is a very loving dog...BUT Kaiser is nearly 50 pounds now..so this is a concerning issue with me when he decides to display this...

The biggest issue to me ( it literally started 3 days ago, before that he was fine) and the most concerning, most important, probably because i have no idea how to remedy it, or how to work with him on it  is when he is sleeping on his bed or anywhere on the floor, and you touch him, i don't understand the growling, it just popped up, he had been fine, then that day it started. I can see he is really tense as well when this is happening. I'm really not sure how to go about that issue at all. If you have any advice AT ALL i would greatly appreciate it. When he does this, I do not back away from him, i DO stop touching him. I don't know if i should leave but in my head i see that as him seeing all he needs to do is growl and it sends me running...

He does have some guarding issue with bones and stuff like that, as well as when he eats.  I have started sitting down beside him when its feeding time, putting a little bit in his bowl, letting him eat it, and i have another bowl of food out of sight, so when he is finished with what he has, i let him see my hand putting more food in the bowl. I'm thinking on doing this for a little while then adding a touch. He is fine with eating out of my hand, but just not being touched while eating. Sometimes when he is being touched, he just refuses to eat, sits down and seems very tense and stressed...but more than not he growls.

With the guarding issues over his bones..I'm thinking on using the same thing like trading off a treat for the bone then giving back the bone. I do lay next to him, with my hand near him, which he is usually fine with, just not being touched. When he does growl i am saying " kaiser no"..not yelling it just saying it. But maybe thats not the right thing to do.

Just want to add he is NOT biting. He is giving many warning signs that something isn't sitting right with him about the situtation. He HAS snapped NEAR my fathers hand, but not on his hand.  But this is a huge problem and i see that.

I did call my vet and asked his opinion, and i have called trainers. But honestly the state where i am in and the people i know who have used trainers around here, their dog has gotten worse.

Anything you can tell me ANY kind of techniques i can do with him especially for when he is sleeping..I would greatly appreciate it.

Thank you for your time!

Answer
Several of your instincts are absolutely right on. Good for you for thinking in terms of trading items and making him comfortable, rather than trying to "dominate" him. I expect your friends whose dogs have gotten worse, rather than better went that other route and so you know how that can backfire.

I also want to congratulate you for recognizing the signs of resource guarding as well as that his growls and no-contact snaps are warnings.

It's important that we don't punish a growl. A growl is a communication. It's Kaiser's way of telling us - as you put it - something isn't sitting well and he's stressed. Growling, barking, lunging, snarling are signals that fall into a category referred to as "distance increasing signals." They are specific communications designed to increase the space between the growler and the one being growled at. It's an effort to AVOID conflict, not a signal that conflict is about to happen.

Your instinct to stop touching him when he growls is good. He's saying quite clearly, "Don't do that" and you're responding when you end the physical contact by saying "OK. Sorry." Dogs are individuals and have likes and dislikes, things that make them happy and things that make them tense/nervous. Kaiser has some clear resource guarding issues surrounding food and high-value toys such as bones. He's developing a resource guarding issue with sleeping spots/personal space.

Without an in-person evaluation and a lengthy conversation about his daily routines, lifestyle, training so far, discipline strategies, etc for each person living in the house, I can't tell you why this has cropped up in the last few days. It's possible that he was startled while sleeping - maybe someone nearly tripped over him as they walked across the room and it frightened him and so now he's feeling insecure about people coming too close.

First I want to address the feeding rituals. Your efforts with feeding just a bit, and then letting him watch you put more food in his bowl is a great start. I am a firm believer that we really have no need to disturb a dog while they're eating their food. Most dogs are done eating within 3-5 minutes and our snuggles and interactions can easily wait until they're done eating. I know I would not enjoy having someone stroke my hair or playing with my feet while I'm enjoying a juicy burger. I would prefer that kind of interaction wait until I'm done eating. That said, if there's an emergency (e.g. something unsafe falls in or near the dog's bowl while he's eating) we do need to be able to safely deal with that.

So, if this were my dog, I would approach it this way: I'd put half his food in the bowl - the other half ready to go, but up out of reach. I'd give him some personal space, I don't need to be an inch away from him. While he's eating his food, I would periodically drop some chicken breast or a bit of hotdog or string cheese next to his bowl. He'll stop eating his food, eat the extra yummy and return to his food. When I see that his body language is totally relaxed with me near by and dropping food, I would "up the ante" just a bit by dropping the food with my hand just an inch or so closer. I do NOT want him to try to swipe that food from me. You indicated that he is good about eating from your hand, so that's a good sign. Eventually, we want him to be so excited by the prospect of the extras you provide, that he stops eating and looks up at you. When he does this, I want you to drop the yummy directly into his bowl rather than next to it.

The other half of that is that when he finishes the first half of his food, as you've been doing, let him watch you refill the bowl. The key here is that your hands are NEVER taking his food away from him. Your hands ONLY EVER provide more and better food. This is how we help him feel secure about you being close to his food. When he's totally finished with his food you can offer him another yummy out of one hand (so that his head and body are turned away from his food bowl), while you pick up the bowl with your other hand. Then, OFFER HIM the empty bowl. Give him a chance to lick out the empty bowl and decide he's really done. When he's finished licking the bowl and has walked away from it, put the bowl up out of reach until the next meal. You never need to "test" your ability to take away the bowl while there's food in it. In fact, it will be that you have NEVER taken his food away while he's eating that will make it possible to do so in an emergency because it will never cross his mind that you would do such a thing...

For the bones, your plan with trading and then giving back the bone is perfect. This is, in fact how we teach Drop commands. While he's enjoying the bone, hold up a super yummy smelling piece of meat about an inch from his nose. When he's clearly paying attention to the meat, toss it a couple feet away from Kaiser. He should get up to get the meat. When he moves away from the bone, take it. When he returns, wait for his body to be calm - ask him for a simple command like Sit, and then give him his bone back. After several repetitions over a couple days, he should understand this game: Mamma tosses meat, I get it, go back to Mamma, put my bottom on the floor and get my bone back - best of both worlds!!! When he does, you can add in the command "Drop." While he's enjoying the bone, say "Kaiser, Drop." then present the meat just in front of his nose and toss it a few feet away. Continue this way until he's anticipating the activity by your voice. Eventually you'll say "Kaiser, Drop." and he'll immediately put down the bone and look to you for the meat. When he does, hand him the meat with his head turned away from the bone so that you can pick it up with the other hand. Now he no longer has to be moved several feet away, rather he can stay right there. Give him the meat as you take the bone. As soon as he's done with the meat, praise him and give him back the bone. He's learning that you saying Drop and you taking something valuable is OK because he gets something wonderful AND he gets his thing of value right back.

When it's time to put the bone away, do the same thing "Kaiser, Drop", give him the meat in one hand while taking the bone in the other. Then, put the bone away and give him two more pieces of meat - so he still got something great out of this trade...

For touching him when food/bones are present, I would start with food before bones. I would use something like string cheese, liverwurst or some other item that I can squeeze in my fingers and dole out a little at a time, without taking my hand away. Begin by presenting the treat and while he's nibbling at it, move your other hand smoothly (not too slow and not too fast) alongside his head. He may stop eating. If he does, take the food AND your hand away. Count to 3 and then start over. Present the food and your hand as close to simultaneously as possible. YOU'RE NOT TRYING TO TOUCH HIM YET, JUST HAVE YOUR HAND NEAR HIM. The key in this is that the awesome treat is ONLY available when your hand is near him. Work up to being able to touch him gently - not stroking or patting, just contact. Let him nibble the treat for 5-10 seconds while you have contact, then remove the food and the hand simultaneously. Build up your time and the level of contact to slow, soft strokes and then gentle pats. If done correctly, he'll make the association between the wonder that is liverwurst and your contact and eventually your contact will carry the same pleasure as the liverwurst because those two things have been paired together.

As for the sleeping issue - I have an Akita/Chow mix who used to have what I call Cujo moments if you woke her unexpectedly. Truly frightening! I addressed this by simply adjusting my behavior. If I need to move past her or step over her while she's sleeping, I get her attention first. From a few feet away I call her name sweetly and make kissing noises to her. I give her a chance to wake up and make full, clear-eyed eye contact with me. Once she's fully awake and aware of me, I can safely move to her without startling her. That startle is actually a very normal response for many animals (humans included) who are sleeping. It's a self-preservation reaction because you're caught off guard at your most vulnerable. So, you want to help Kaiser feel less vulnerable by giving him a chance to be aware of your presence.

The more you work on being able to touch him and pairing that with the awesome food, the more comfortable he'll be being touched at other times as well.

Now, I was able to find a certified dog behavior consultant (CDBC) in Bangor, ME. CDBCs are certified through the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants. These individuals have demonstrated a clear understanding of learning theory and have several years of experience. This gentleman, Don Hanson, is also a Certified Pet Dog Trainer (CDPT) which demonstrates a knowledge of positive reinforcement training methods. He is also a member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT) and even sat on their board of directors for 6 years. The APDTs mission is continuing education and the promotion of science-based dog training utilizing learning theory and positive reinforcement methods. I strongly encourage you to contact him. He may be able to arrange an in-person evaluation of Kaiser, or direct you to a colleague (who uses similar methods) who is more local to you if he's not convenient. I encourage this as all of my suggestions are very generic, and we often need to tweak the details of these protocols for the individual dog. Also, timing is crucial in a lot of this work. If the timing is off, we can escalate the problem rather than improve it.

According to the Services page for Mr. Hanson's business, they do long distance work via phone and email. He will be much more able than me to give you the time and detail explanations. I encourage you to contact him.
http://www.greenacreskennel.com/behavior-consultations

I hope this is all helpful. Please feel free to write again if I can be of further assistance. Good luck!

Jody, APDT
Los Angeles Behaviorist
http://gooddog-dogtraining.com