My dogs aggresstion when he has food!

Question
Hi, i have a Jack Russell he is a very lovely chap but is very aggressive when he is given food or treats etc. If i give him a biscuit and then smooth him he growls very viciously towards me (or other pets etc) he has even bitten me on occation, i have scalded him by yelling "NO"taking what ever it is away and placing him in the porch on his own for 5minutes or so, but it doesn't seem to be working, i just wondered what you suggested.
Many thanks
hope to hear from you soon
Mr Nigel Pleasants
England

Answer
You should be petting him *before* you give him the treat, and then it is only given if he is behaving. I would have him sit first, pet him, and tell him he is a good boy (if he is), and then give him the treat.

I would make him work for every single bite of his food, and feed him out of my hand, one piece at a time. If he growls, I would stop feeding him, say "SEE YA", put the food away, and try again a bit later. If he tries to grab the food out of my fingers, I would give him a sharp rap on the top of his nose with my knuckles, and tell him firmly to "take it nice". If he persists in grabbing, I would end the feeding session and repeat later.

As far as I am concerned, dogs are allowed to "protect" their food from other four-legged opportunists, as long as they don't go out of their way to do so. If you don't want that, then feed him in a crate or a separate room. Oh, and when you work with him (feeding him), make sure that no other animals are around to interfere and otherwise get in the way.

Here is a GREAT site on food aggression:
http://www.raisingspot.com/behavioral_problems/dog_food_aggression.php  

Karen