My dog bit me...

cheekymole

For Raksha

Thank you for you response.
What do you mean by "resource guard"? If you mean him guarding particular things, the only time he has a go is when you try to get a special bone etc from him but we have now taken those out of the equation so it won't happen again.
He already knows the "leave" command and is very good at it unless he is in a wide open space and knows he can run away!
With respect to the bites. He had a bone in his mouth and was growling at me so I took hold of his top jaw to prise open his mouth hence he tried harder to hold the bone (silly I know) my finger got caught between his back teeth and cut the the skin. He yelped and dropped the bone so this one was my fault and he realised what he had done.
Now then the OH's bite, probably our fault too. He had been given a command but ignored it. OH pushed his backside to encourage him in the right direction and he turned round to grab his hand, he broke the skin but did not attempt anything else.
On both ocassions he goes into submission realising he has done wrong and sucks up to us both.
Do you have any advice on how to discourage this?

cheekymole

For Jopsey

Hi jopsey, thanks for being brave enough to reply to me as yes I am sure there will be people who tell you to get rid etc.
Firstly I hope the outcome tomorrow is good news for you and your Yorkie.

I think we all "know" our own dogs and us dog lovers will do anything to keep a dog in the family.
I like you am keeping a close eye but last night DD and dog were rolling around on the floor together playing with his fave toy and then they cuddle up while DD watches tv. They are best friends.

Fingers crossed

Raksha

cheekymole wrote: »

For Raksha

Thank you for you response.
What do you mean by "resource guard"? If you mean him guarding particular things, the only time he has a go is when you try to get a special bone etc from him but we have now taken those out of the equation so it won't happen again.
He already knows the "leave" command and is very good at it unless he is in a wide open space and knows he can run away!
With respect to the bites. He had a bone in his mouth and was growling at me so I took hold of his top jaw to prise open his mouth hence he tried harder to hold the bone (silly I know) my finger got caught between his back teeth and cut the the skin. He yelped and dropped the bone so this one was my fault and he realised what he had done.
Now then the OH's bite, probably our fault too. He had been given a command but ignored it. OH pushed his backside to encourage him in the right direction and he turned round to grab his hand, he broke the skin but did not attempt anything else.
On both ocassions he goes into submission realising he has done wrong and sucks up to us both.
Do you have any advice on how to discourage this?

Yes, 'resource gaurding' is getting hold of 'stuff' and not letting anyone else take it - usually, as you say, obviously high value things like bones (long lasting and yummy) raw hide chews, sometimes toys - balls or soft toys and occasionally beds or sofas or even owners (not letting anyone else or another dog near the owner).

First the good news - your dog growls - he gave you plenty of warning of what he was about to do (and if you learn something about dog body language, you'll probably find there were other warnings before the growl). Also he hasn't gone any further than a mild 'catogory 3' bite - he really doesn't want to do serious damage, and it sounds as if the bone incident really was an accident - but he may also have learnt that letting you handle the bone was a big mistake as a) he lost the bone and b) it hurt him too! I'd suggest that if the incident with hubby happened shortly after that, his hormones were surging and he wasn't really totally incontrol. It can take several hours or even days for hormone levels to drop after being roused and a dog may not act normally during this period.

Don't be fooled into thinking the submissive behaviour and weeing from any dog is a sign that they know they've done wrong - it's simply an indication that they are aware that you, an important figure in their lives, are not happy about something, and they make sure you are offered all the signals they can muster to calm you down.

It wouldn't really be responsible to make any suggestions over the internet of how to deal with it, bar get him checked by a vet for any medical condition (including blood tests for thyroid) and then ask for a referral to a behaviourist - remember this is perfectly normal behaviour between one dog and another - regardless of perceived 'rank' a dog has the right to defend his food from another dog - even the smallest puppy (and sometimes especially the smallest puppy, as they are the future of the gene pool). A good behaviourist will work with your vet and help you a) learn how to manage the situation, and b) help you to desensitise the dog to human hands around the food bowl. Most good behaviourists belong to the UKRCB, APBC or PAACT. Some members of the APDT will also take on behaviour cases.

cheekymole

Very informative thank you.
The OH incident was the day after so what you say makes complete sense.
Unfortunately I live in Cheshire so a bit too far from you but I will look and already have looked further into the behaviourist
Again, thank you, you've been a great help

davsidipp

having had a westie who had food aggression i would never take that risk again we were always on tender hooks and she was worse with children sadly we lost her five years ago but decided if ever we got another dog food agression would be a no no i now have two jacks who you can stroke and take food off with no growling also they are very placid for jacks i might add,when i watch the animal programmes in america they test dogs for rehoming with a pretend arm give the dog food and place the fake arm over the dogs body if it shows agression they put them to sleep harsh i know but can save someone getting badly bitten good with your dog hpoe it turns out o.k.

davsidipp

sorry bad typing i meant to say good luck with your dog.

cheekymole

I can take his food away from him it's just bones! Thanks for your kind words

Raksha

davsidipp wrote: »

having had a westie who had food aggression i would never take that risk again we were always on tender hooks and she was worse with children sadly we lost her five years ago but decided if ever we got another dog food agression would be a no no i now have two jacks who you can stroke and take food off with no growling also they are very placid for jacks i might add,when i watch the animal programmes in america they test dogs for rehoming with a pretend arm give the dog food and place the fake arm over the dogs body if it shows agression they put them to sleep harsh i know but can save someone getting badly bitten good with your dog hpoe it turns out o.k.

Maybe the 'I can take food away from my dog' attitude has something to do with it - 'touch my food, feel my fork' - you tried to take my food away from me I wouldn't appreciate it - but offer to swop it for a big bar of chocolate, you'd probably get away with it..........

You ought to know that the test for shelter dogs is only addressing the reactivity of the dog, not the aggression - it might be a dog who allows a hand near it's bowl 49 times out of 50, but on the 50th it would take your face off, on the other hand, the dog that lunged the first time you went near the bowl might be one who would 'air snap' and then lick your hand. The whole shelter 'temperament testing' thing is very flawed that first dog would possibly get a home, but the second dog would be PTS - which is more likely to do serious damage?

ixwood

cheekymole wrote: »

With respect to the bites. He had a bone in his mouth and was growling at me so I took hold of his top jaw to prise open his mouth hence he tried harder to hold the bone (silly I know) my finger got caught between his back teeth and cut the the skin. He yelped and dropped the bone so this one was my fault and he realised what he had done.
Now then the OH's bite, probably our fault too. He had been given a command but ignored it. OH pushed his backside to encourage him in the right direction and he turned round to grab his hand, he broke the skin but did not attempt anything else.
On both ocassions he goes into submission realising he has done wrong and sucks up to us both.
Do you have any advice on how to discourage this?

Shocking!! I'd say not trying to forcibly steal his food from his mouth, despite him not being happy and warning you by growling would discourage it.

It may be a pack/leader thing, or not, but that's not the important thing. Even with Wolves/Dogs that know their place, food is/can be exempt.

A pack leader may control a kill, but wouldn't be able to take possessed food off a lower member without a fight (or threatening/intmidating it off them if it couldn't be eaten quickly). It's natural selection I guess. The ones that didn't put up with it and defended their food obviously survived and reproduced more.

Sounds like your oh may have been a bit harsh to me. How would he like being pushed somewhere against his will? Either scared or just not taking it. WHat was the command? And did he actually understand? I get annoyed when people think they dog is disobiendient whereas really it just hasn't got a clue whats expected of it.

ixwood

To cure it (IMHO before anyone had a pop), like all things it's cause and effect. If the effect is good for the dog, then it'll happily learn.

Teach him that giving you stuff is a good thing. Its easy. The trick is to have something better. An upgrade if you like. Then praise the good behavior and return the original item, so the dogs a winner all round. Once he knows he'll get things back and something else, he'll be a different dog. . e.g. Ask for the bone, show him the chicken, he'll instantly drop the bone, give him chicken and pick up the bone. Then give it back to him. Repeat a few times and he'll get the idea.

Or put mixer in the bowl 1st and give it to him. Then get the meat out and aks if he wants that. If he pays attention and is interested, get him to sit, pcik the bowl up and add the meat. Give it bak to him and he'll learnt that you and his food are good together.



I used to make a point of asking my dog for his bones and stuff, praising him and then giving them back.