my 10 month rottwieler gaurds food

Question
my 10 month rottwieler gaurds her food she growls and tenses up if someone walks by her bowl this just started out of the blue and now sometimes shes starting to growl if shes asleep and you touch her this happens very rarely but i want to nip it in the bud now rather then later what can i do to stop this please help tanx

Answer
Dear Stephanie,

Below are possessiveness exercises you should start today.  You've got a big problem here but you can solve it using the exercises described below.  

It's also a good time to enroll in a good positive reinforcement obedience class.  The class very likely will not address the possessiveness problem you've got but it will be very good for overall control, which you need.  You can find a good trainer at http://www.apdt.com preferably a person with CPDT certification in your area.

It is natural for dogs to become possessive over food, toys and other objects as they approach adulthood.  We humans can however, teach the dog to actually look forward to people approaching him while he has a possession or food.  

You need to work from a distance at first on these exercises:  Whenever your dog is eating his meal or chewing on a toy, casually walk by him AT A DISTANCE WHICH DOES NOT CAUSE HIM TO GROWL/SNARL and as you casually pass by, toss him a piece of hot dog/balogna/salami/ pepperoni.  Keep walking.  No talking necessary. Your kids should do this too, always supervised.  Do this several (5+ times) daily.  You can do 2-3x per meal if you like, but also do it whenever he has a toy or something it's OK for him to have.  After 3 days, slightly reduce the distance from the dog as you walk by, always making sure he's ok with you at that distance before your kids try it.  As long as he's not having a reaction, reduce your distance slightly and gradually, day by day, until you are pretty much right next to him as you walk by.  If he shows a reaction you have reduced your distance too rapidly and must add distance again for a few days.  Within 2-3 weeks you may be ready for the next step but don't try it until the dog is calmly accepting your proximity.  What's happening here is you're teaching him that it's actually profitable and non-threatening to have someone near him when he has something.

A good test to try after 2-3 weeks to see if you're ready for the next step:  Walk up to him while he's eating his food and put a super wonderful treat into his bowl without any reaction.  If you can do this, you may progress to picking up the food bowl, putting the treat in, and giving him the bowl to finish up.  No need to speak, although you may praise him if you like.  If he tenses up or growls, do another week of the walk-bys, pausing for a second or two near him before you gently toss the treat near him.  Keep involving the kids, always supervised.

When he allows you to put a treat into his bowl, without growling or tensing, you are ready for "Drop it".  

Drop It:  You must have something in your hand which is far yummier, softer and stinkier than what he has.  Approach your pup when he's got a toy or bone, crouch down and give him the treat.  Walk away.  If no problem, go to him with the treat and hold it in front of his nose while you command "Drop it".  He has to spit out the toy to get the treat, and when he does, immediately give him the treat, pick up the toy and immediately give the toy back to him.  Walk away.  This is teaching him that it's profitable to spit something out of his mouth when you say "drop it".

Similarly, approach the dog while he is eating his meal from a bowl.  Walk up casually, pick up the food bowl and quickly put the treat into the bowl.  Put the bowl back down immediately and walk away.  

YOU MAY NOT DO THESE EXERCISES WHEN HE HAS A "STOLEN" OBJECT or other inappropriate chewable, unless it is truly life-threatening (string, pantyhose, knife) and you shouldn't have life-threatening objects around the house for him to steal.  Make it your job to keep off-limit doors CLOSED and the rest of the house puppy-proofed http://www.dogdaysusa.com/newpuppyhomesafe.cfm .

Practice the possessiveness exercises as well as the Drop it exercises as much as you can, with kids, without kids, in different rooms in the house, with different toys, using different treats (but what you have must always be FAR better than what he has), inside, outside, etc.  What you have must always be better than what he has; Here's a general guide:  

Tuna/salami/hot dogs/balogna/freeze-dried liver are better than rawhides/pigs ears/bones (but not much, so be careful!) are better than
dog treats are better than
dog food are better than
squeaky toys are better than
plastic bones and toys

From your description of his reaction now, I'm guessing with 4-5 trials daily, this should take you about 2 months.  Don't rush it.

After that time you are ready for the "Off/Leave it" command training at http://www.dogdaysusa.com/offcommand.cfm .

Good luck and thanks for writing.
Suzanne Harris, BSc, CPDT
http://www.dogdaysUSA.com