Hiya, I have a 19 week old chocolate labrador called Twix. He has been absolutely fine with food since day one - aside from inhaling his food (even with an anti-gulp bowl!) We decided to try him with a kong for the first time today. I gave him some cheese, peanut butter and banana all mashed together. At first he was absolutely fine - didn't quite know how to get it out at first but soon sussed it out. But then my husband walked past with his own lunch and Twix growled at him - while still continuing to eat out of his Kong. He did this a few more times. I was down the hallway from him and knelt down (quite a far distance from him and he barked). We told him off and he seemed a little better but still wanted to protect the kong from us. Is this normal as he has never tried this food before? Or could it lead in to something. We have since taken the kong away from him as he has finished it and he was fine then. We played with some of his toys to check it wasn't turning into a possessive thing and he is back to his normal self. Any advice or stories would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
No - food guarding is not good. You need to take steps to prevent it. 1. Never take food off a dog. 2. Leave the dog well alone while eating. 3. Teach a dog to 'swap' (during training, not meal times) for a higher value treat. Here is an excellent article - http://www.thelabradorsite.com/how-to-stop-your-dog-growling-over-food/ "It is important to emphasise that food guarding does not necessarily mean that your puppy is going to be vicious! What it does tell you, is that he may be a little anxious and need his confidence in the good intentions of ‘people’ building up." ..
Hi, I moved this to a new thread as you'll get more response this way. The link Mags has given you is great. Have a good read through. Telling him off isn't a good thing to do - he is growling to communicate with you that he's uncomfortable with what you're doing. You should never punish (including telling off) your dog for growling, because that may lead to him suppressing the growl - which may sound like a good thing, but the growl is a warning of discomfort, and if the dog isn't allowed to do that, they may escalate to the next level (probably snapping) sooner. The better thing is to adjust his emotional state (as described in the article) so he is no longer uncomfortable when he has his Kong and you walk past innocently.
