Possession behaviors, also known as “resource guarding”, is a natural survival behavior that all animals display, including humans. These behaviors can be normal and mild, but they can escalate and become quite dangerous if not addressed appropriately. To learn more about resource guarding, take a look at my blog post Don’t Steal: How to Prevent Resource Guarding
Preventing problems
For new puppy owners, it is of utmost importance to prevent possession problems from occurring. Many owners and even some professionals are under the impression that we should show our puppy who is the boss by sticking our hands into the puppy's food bowl while they are eating or reaching over and grabbing a bone out of the puppy's mouth. However, this is false. In fact, this can actually cause resource guarding behaviors to surface or get worse over time. This is because a puppy can learn that when they have an item in their possession (such as a bone or food in their dish) and a person approaches them, they will need to guard the item because it was taken away from them in the past. Instead, we want to teach our puppies that our presence around them when they have their prized items is not a bad thing.
Helpful Video: Here's a link to a video I created with my puppy, Journey, to help teach you how to implement a simple resource guarding prevention exercise: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNcEu-SesqI
Prevention plan tips
Here are some ways you can start preventing issues from occurring. If you are currently dealing with resource guarding, I suggest hiring a qualified behavior professional to help you address them safely and effectively.
Tips
- Do not reach over and stick your hands in the food dish, especially while the puppy is eating
- Do not pet or touch the puppy while he's eating out of the food dish or chewing on a bone
- Do not tease or provoke the puppy
- Do not grab or flip your puppy over to show that you are 'the boss'.
- If a puppy growls, do not get loud or physical with the puppy as this can cause them to defend themselves, likely making things worse over time.
- Do not chase the puppy if they have an item in their possession. Instead try trading with higher value food such as boiled chicken breast, cheese, or something of equal value.
- Understand Canine Body Language: My last piece of advice is to learn about canine body language and communication. All dog owners should learn and understand whether or not their dog has a behavior issue. Here is a helpful article by Victoria Stilwell on Canine Body Language https://positively.com/dog-training/understanding-dogs/canine-body-language/