Female pup eating up male pups food

Question
QUESTION: Hi,   My male pup, named Sultan (lab) was eating healthy until when we got a female (Tasha) lab pup recently. i feed them in two separate bowls and she eats up all her food as well as his.    Even tho his bowl might be full; he has stopped eating from his and tries to eat from hers but she growls and drives him away, as a result, he is just not getting enough food. I am extremely worried as he is losing weight.   What am I doing wrong? shud i place the bowls in seprate rooms? is he not eating due to a medical condition? Pls HELP!"

ANSWER: Hi, Your female, as is most often the case, is the alpha in your household, which is what YOU should be :). Walk your dogs. Separately and together at HEEL at least twice per day LONG walks. Make sure that you present yourself as alpha, in attitude and behavior. This is a great website with a lot of helpful information.http://www.sonic.net/~cdlcruz/GPCC/library/alpha.htm Get your dogs started in obedience training NOW. Do not allow your female to make your male leave his food even if you have to stand there and watch her, Use your body by stepping into her and forcing her away from him using direct eye contact at all times. You can also use a strong CHHH sound (like the beginning of the word CHAIR). Let her know YOU are boss and YOU will decide who eats and who does not. Do not hurt her, grab her or touch her in any way. Do not allow your pups on the furniture, or to walk ahead of you out an open door. Teach them the wait command. Have them sit for food. You have to get control of this situation now before it escalates, and it will. Also Do make sure that your pups are getting enough to eat and that Tasha is not acting out of hunger. Make sure you are feeding a good quality dog food and feeding her all she can eat in a half an hour before picking it up, at least twice a day. Depending on age, three times may be necessary.
Good luck
Diane

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Diane,

Thanks immensely for the quick and informative response. My boyfriend and I are pretty much the alphas in the house, (I dunno how it works exactly but I feel I'm somewher 2nd in the pack and my boyfren is 'top dog'). I verbally push her away and direct her to her bowl by tapping on it and a strong 'No' but the thing is that the male just wont eat then! He likes to eat from her bowl; which she doesn allow; or he does not eat at all.

I am feeding them both Royal Canine in good quantites, the male is 9 weeks and the female 5 weeks. Shud I change the food or feed them in separate rooms? What wud u suggest?
p.s. I tried the NILIF concept and it has really worked!! Both my dogs 'sit' before food and they understand that command now :))))) Thanks sooo much for sharing that, any more of such info will b highly appreciated :D

Answer
Hi,
the more information you give me the easier it is for me to give advice :). You're feeding a great dog food, keep doing what you're doing. Your little girl is five weeks?? Wow that's young for her to even be weaned, and to show any aggression at that age is pretty scary plus she doesn't have mom or littermates to correct her, so it's up to you. NLIF is wonderful, keep up the good work. It would be better if you could keep them together to end the problem, but you may have to feed them apart for awhile to build your guy's self esteem and tone girlie down a bit.
Sounds like your little boy has a serious submission complex. Try letting him sleep above her for awhile, on a higher level, that's the way the pack functions as well, Make her wait until he goes through a door to go through it herself etc. Check back with me in a few weeks and let me know how it's going. Hopefully you can gradually integrate the food bowls back together again, they are babies, and still learning.
GREAT JOB
Diane