"Should you pet your dog when they're eating?" and other food related questions
Resource guarding and food based aggression can be an incredibly serious issue in the home - it’s distressing for dogs and their owners when something as simple as feeding your dog becomes a major source of tension. However, when it comes to how to prevent food aggression, or deal with in the right way, the advice can be really mixed. In this blog post, I’m going to discuss some of the key suggestions for prevention and resolution that are common in the industry - and what the best option for you is.
Petting your dog. Smart preventative, or really bad idea?
When it comes to feeding, there are two strains of thought about being near your dog when they are eating. Some people are big advocates of conditioning your puppy to physical contact around food at a young age, to prevent aggressive behaviour later in life - whilst others strongly advice against going near your puppy or dog when they are eating, but to instead give them space. But which is right?
My advice has always been that if you bring home a puppy at a young age (generally around 8-10 weeks), you bring with you an opportunity to condition your puppy to having people in very close proximity to food and toys, without being perceived as a threat. With my dogs raised as puppies, I have always gently stroked them, rubbed their ears - for around 5-10 seconds, whilst they begin to eat - in addition to doing things like picking up their bowls and moving them around, without taking the food back from them. in this way, from as long as they have been in our house, they know that there is nothing to be concerned about, or anything to guard, if our feet and hands are around their food, or if we need to pick up and move their bowls. I use the huge advantage of having a young puppy to set up the relationship in the best way possible. However, this is not a wise approach to take with an adult dog that hasn’t been preconditioned to you being close.
If you are bringing a dog into the home that you don’t have a relationship with, or any pre-existing conditioning, it can be a really stupid idea to go poking and prodding around your dogs food. The same is true if you have raised a dog with the expectation of being given space, only to change up your routine.
Raise your dogs food off the floor to prevent possessive behaviour
The principle here is that part of the body language of resource guarding is for a dog to have their paws over food, a toy, or other object. By raising your dogs food, you take it out from underneath their feet, which prevents the brain from going into a highly possessive mode. This technique is actually a really good idea - food stands are readily available at a range of different heights, and its an easy change to implement. If you have a dog that is food aggressive, this won’t create a solution on its own, but it does reduce the level of possession that your dog has over their food.
Hand Feeding as a solution for food aggression.
One of the most commonly recommended techniques to reduce food aggression in adult dogs is the idea of hand feeding, which means taking the food you would normally put in a bowl, and using it during obedience work and training throughout the day instead. its a technique which has come under criticism from a certain subset of trainers however, who argue that it damages trust because your dog feels like it has to work for everything, rather than getting it for free. So which is true?
The answer lies in the criticism itself - because dogs don’t think in the same way as humans, and they don’t feel emotions in the same way as we do. Human beings may be uncomfortable with the idea of having to work for every scrap of food they get, because we have a wider intellectual context around the value of food for health and well-being, as well as food being a centre piece for family structure. We sit and eat and share stories together - we go out with friends to restaurants. We certainly don’t compete for food, except for those Joey’s of the world who aren’t fans of sharing. It shouldn’t need saying that dogs don’t see the world in this way.
For dogs, food is a goal. It is why dogs work, why dogs travel and migrate, why they hunt. Animals come from a world where food is a precious resource, which is very different to our world where food is provided in excess. So when you are providing food as a reward for different activities, you are tapping into one of the most fundamental goals of a dog - and you are associating yourself as a provider in the process. Hand feeding is a way of showing a dog that a hand gives food, not takes it away - which is the much simpler and purer association compared to the “Maslow’s Hierarchy” that we experience ourselves.
The one drawback to hand feeding is that it has to be done in the right way, to present the principles of claiming food, self control, giving space and calmness, and rewarding relaxation with food as opposed to excitement. Hand feeding is a means to an end, in which you can teach wider principles, and transition to a bowl once you have the appropriate skills in place.
Feeding schedules - always available, once a day, or something in between?
We can’t talk about food without discussing feeding schedules - particularly because there is an increasing trend with dog food manufacturers to suggest you feed your dog 3, 4, or 5 times a day. Bonkers! So how often should you feed your dog? Should you leave the bowl down? Should you have set feeding times? Does restricted feeding increase the likelihood of resource guarding?
My general advice is that if you are in the lucky minority who have a dog with very little interest in food, and you can leave food down throughout the day - stick with what works. It can be really beneficial, particular for young families, to have a dog that dips in and out - because you know you aren’t going to have any issues with possession down the line! For the rest of us who have set mealtimes, My suggestion is that for puppies beyond 12 weeks and small dogs less than 10kg, split your dogs food across 2 meals a day. Small dogs have small stomachs, and its generally best that they don’t eat too much in any one go. For dogs over 10kg, (most dogs over 1 year old), I suggest feeding your dog once a day after their main walk.Traditional perhaps, but I suggest it for two reasons:
For dogs, food is deeply connected to the principle of work, so having a dog that is eager for its meal after working hard means you can prevent fussiness and disinterest in what they are eating (very important as your dog gets older!). It’s a good thing for a dog to have a healthy appetite, but at the same time a smart way of not overfeeding your dog, in your over eagerness to fill the bowl compared to when you are doing so two or three times a day.
It also has the advantage of more consistent bowel movements - and in the real world of families who need to go to work and leave their dog at home, you can set your dog up to succeed, and avoid accidents, by timing their meal around their walk and your own schedule. Perhaps it sounds silly, but you’d be amazed how often clients say that all their dog ever seems to do is fill up their poo bags!
There is no evidence that set feeding times make your dog more possessive of food - generally its a behaviour completely unrelated to when or how often your dog gets fed. And there are plenty of other health factors to consider that have benefits throughout the life of your dog.
Puzzle Bowls/Slow bowls vs Scatter feeding - which is better?
One of the most important things to understand about food aggression is that its foundation is on competition for resources. Some dogs will happily take their time with food, whilst others seem to gulp it down like they haven’t eaten in weeks. There are generally two solutions to slow your dog down when eating - slow bowls, and scatter feeding. But which is better?
Slow bowls make it more difficult for your dog to access food in the bowl, by using crevices or projections in the bottom of the bowl to require your dog to take more time when eating. These bowls can provide a really effective solution for dogs which are fast eaters, and because they still keep all your dogs food in the same place, they don’t generally cause more excitement, despite the fact they look like toys or games. To your dog, its the same activity, in a slightly slower format.
Scatter feeding is the idea of spreading your dogs food around the room or around the floor, so that they are required to search for it. Because they are moving and travelling around, on first impressions it provides a practical way of preventing your dog from eating too fast, and a ‘fun game’ to play. However, in my experience, scatter feeding is a really bad idea. Not only do you from an association with food and high levels of excitement, instead of calmness, but your dog goes into a very competitive, hunting mode when they are searching for food. A bit like those game shows where someone stands in a hamster ball and has to grab the notes out of the air, you create a heighten sense of urgency in your dogs brain, which can very quickly turn aggressive. Scent work with food can be an incredible activity in the right environment, but is generally not a smart idea when feeding your dog.
