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MINE!! Understanding and Working with Resource Guarding
By Frania Shelley-Grielen. All rights reserved.
Resource Guarding: “the use of avoidance, threatening, or aggressive behaviors by a dog to retain control of food or non-food items in the presence of a person or other animals.” (Jacobs, Coe., et al.)
Gulping food at breakneck speed, playing keep away with the ball, growling at anyone near the food bowl, barking when somebody gets too close to their person on the couch, whining when the other dog gets the treat first the list goes on. Sounds familiar? What do you call it? Resource Guarding? Possessive Aggression? Food related aggression? Why does it matter? And can you fix it or at least manage it? All of these terms have been used to define behaviors dogs display to gain or keep access to or control of something of supposed value in the presence or approach of another dog or person. Depending on context or what is going in the environment when this is happening, these may be totally different things. A very hungry dog may gulp food to satisfy that hunger, a dog with a history of being deprived of food around others may gulp food to protect the opportunity to eat, and an anxious dog may gulp food as part of their general disposition. Emotional states, motivations and environments set the stage for much of what we are looking at with behaviors. We do know that what we call something is important, it colors how we think about it and from there how we respond to it.
Putting the aggression label on to this or any behavior can muddy the waters unless we are in fact talking about true aggression here – the intent to cause harm as opposed to bluffs, threats, stare downs and the like. Highly ritualized distance increasing behaviors serve dogs in avoiding aggressive interactions. Fighting is costly from a biological standpoint and most, if not all animals would rather the other party go away instead of engage in violence. We can be both misinformed and careless with the use of “alpha” and “dominance” when discussing dog society and forget that dog society is mainly a society of deference of “no, it’s OK – you go first” in response to a warning or threat rather than “let’s fight.” And if that’s how dogs “talk” to each other, if a growl is a warning to a back off and if the other dog hears that and responds, what happens when we get it wrong?
A 2018 study reviewed expert opinions on what to call those avoidance and guarding behaviors of protecting perceived assets and the expert consensus was to drop the aggression label (unless that is actually what is seen) and to use “resource guarding over possessive aggression due to the potential for motivation to be interpreted more accurately by owners.” Here, study participants mentioned concerns not just with the use of the word “aggression” but also with using “possessive” for fear of additional misinterpretation that resource guarding behavior might be viewed as challenging an owner with the potential of owners resorting to force in retaliation – a strategy that makes things worse not better.
No matter what we call it, how do we assess, manage and work with it? Researchers De Kuster and Jung write:
“competitive disputes over resources (including puppies) may occur with family members of all ages, but tend to occur with children more than adolescents, with adults being least frequently involved. The disputes may also occur with other familiar animals in the home, including other dogs and certain pets, such as less fearful cats…the dog feels threatened and potentially frustrated and so the underlying emotion is negative. The choice of strategy (whether or not escalating into a bite) will depend on many factors, including actual mood state, perception of the situation, and previous learning experiences (aggressive episodes) and their outcomes…Dogs displaying aggression over resources should be screened for signs of generalized anxiety”
Motivations for this behavior may vary from territoriality, uncertainty over place in the group dynamic, fear, health issues, etc. Canine behavior experts agree that aggressor dogs are also found to have high anxiety levels and benefit from routine, schedule and owner predictability. In our homes we tend to admonish the aggressor dog and support the victim which may increase tensions between the dogs. Free ranging dogs are better able to circumvent conflict because they have the space to retreat successfully.
Jacobs, Coe, et al in another study, also looked at what factors are frequently associated with resource guarding around both other dogs and around people and found that when it came to the presence of other dogs this was a relatively fixed pattern and high impulsivity and fear increased the chance the behavior would occur. When it came to resource guarding around people they found this to be a more flexible behavior and that removing the food dish during meals was associated with increased resource guarding. Adding more palatable (yummy) food during meals when people were around was found to reduce the behavior and teaching dogs to drop items (please make it “trade” instead, more on that later) to reduce resource guarding both around dogs and around people.
Dr. Petra Mertens writes that research shows that the majority of fights between dogs in the home occur under states of high arousal/excitement, next to food or toys or next to the caregiver. Confined spaces, defending favored resting space and responding to threatening postures such as hard stare, tensed and leaning forward, growling, etc., close off the list. In the same home younger dogs or new additions to the home are the responsible parties for aggressing first. Female-female pairs represent the majority of most physical conflicts. Fights occur more frequently when owners are present or close by as opposed to when the dogs are alone.
Working with resource guarding behavior and/or possessive aggression whether with a single dog or in the multi-dog home is possible (there are never guarantees) -for it to succeed, it requires a strong commitment to managing the environment to prevent the possibility of conflict, strict adherence to a consistent, every day, behavioral program of counter conditioning, desensitization and retraining and the time to do it. Even with the best of scenarios there are latency periods – when things stay the same, such as conflicts between dogs and opportunities for human injury, before they change. Well educated and qualified behaviorists and trainers can help. Chances for success are compromised by the problem persisting for an extended period of time, if fights lead to injuries, or if fights are not predictable for the owner. (Continue Reading Below.)
"have a just as good, if not better, replacement obvious and ready when asking. Never forget that changing a behavior requires replacing it with one of equal or greater value. "
How owners deal with resource guarders can add to the problem not lessen it, notes Dr. Mertens. Not punishing unwanted behaviors can be too much of a challenge for many owners, and punishing aggressive behavior exacerbates it. Resulting stress can impact an owner’s connection with the aggressor dog which in turn may increase pressures between dogs. Mertens suggests providing the dog with the greatest resource guarding behavior precedence to resources when they are not in conflict, is actually the best way to satisfy the dog’s need to feel secure with those resources. Following this advice is another struggle for owners.
Dr. Karen Overall, writing on treating what she calls possessive aggression with dogs offers the following:
- “This condition is most easily treated by managing the environment so that the dog cannot gain access to possessions he or she might want to control.
- No one should reach for anything the dog is guarding.
- Walking away from the dog and trading, when needed, are the preferred management strategies.
- There are very few dogs who are affected with possessive aggression alone. Accordingly, teaching dogs to sit calmly and rewarding them for being non- reactive when people reach toward them, if this can be done safely, will benefit a treatment plan for reactive dogs.
- If the clients have just noted that this condition is developing, teaching the dog to sit, take a deep breath, and then “trade” could prevent the condition from fully developing."
Having good information and cautions in place are necessary. When considering working with resource guarders or food aggressive dogs individually, in a group, even with appropriate professional advice make sure your own knowledge and understanding include a working knowledge of canine body language and a familiarity with the right approaches to be used and why. Protocols should consider and include:
1) Removing all punishment. No scolding or anger no matter what. Dogs never, ever understand a lecture they just act what looks like contrite so we stop scolding them. All punishment creates fearful associations, interferes with learning, damages relationships and needs to be escalated to be effective.
2) Managing the environment. Avoid access to those locations and situations where the reactive explosions are taking place. Redirect dogs from confined spaces, feed and play with toys and dogs separately. Optimize welfare - allow for naturally satisfying behaviors by making sure dog walks allow for relaxing "sniffaris" and ditch the food bowls for puzzle feeders (no slow food bowls please). It is key to remember that we too are part of the environment the most important part that our pets react to. Keeping our mood, tone of voice, body language positive or neutral are important.
3) Behavior Modification. Become a keen observer of dog behavior and be able to identify signs of stress and how they escalate along with suitable mitigations. Whether working alone or with a professional make sure you can follow along with the why’s and how’s of behavior modification protocols for resource guarding. Jean Donaldson’s “Food Aggression and Resource Guarding” and Patricia McConnell’s “Resource Guarding, Dog to Dog” are good ones to learn.
- Adding in small bouts of positive, force free training can help anxious dogs through structure and enrichment, build the bond and trust between dog and owners and encourage better behavior to meet human expectations. Teach alternate behaviors like "trade" when asking dogs to surrender a valued space or item - have a just as good, if not better, replacement obvious and ready when asking. Never forget that changing a behavior requires replacing it with one of equal or greater value. Be generous and consistent with rewards when training and reinforcing behaviors. One of the best doggy day cares I worked with had a floor literally covered with tennis balls. More is more. Remember, always keep dogs at a distance they feel most comfortable when working with them.
- If it can be done safely, hand feeding is an excellent exercise for impulse control, reactivity, affords structure, control and safety. Incorporating this into an exercise to teach "Off" and "Take it" and use those cues for releasing objects or spaces or engaging with them. This is an exercise that takes some practice to get the timing down. Remember, the dogs cannot get it wrong since they will only be following your behavior so work on your timing and keep it loving the entire way through, this is very important. (More on what this exercise looks like )
Keep a diary of what is going on what is happening each day, make sure to note any small conflict, behavior changes and around what resource they are happening in. It is far easier to change an emotional state or redirect an agitated one before it escalates too far up the ladder.
References:
De Kuster, T and Jung, H. (2009). Aggression toward familiar people and animals. In Horwitz, D.F. and Mills, D.S. (Eds). BSVA Manual of Canine and Feline Behavioural Medicine , (pp. 182-210). Gloucester, England: British Small Veterinary Association
Jacobs, J.A.. Coe, J.B., Pearl, D.L., Widowski, T.M., Niel, L. (2018). Factors associated with canine resource guarding behaviour in the presence of people: A cross-sectional survey of dog owners. Preventive Veterinary Medicine, 161(1) 143-153
Jacobs, J.A.. Coe, J.B., Pearl, D.L., Widowski, T.M., Niel, L. (2018). Factors associated with canine resource guarding behaviour in the presence of dogs: A cross-sectional survey of dog owners. Preventive Veterinary Medicine, 161(1) 134-142
Mertens, P. (2004). The Concept of Dominance and the Treatment of Aggression in Multidog Homes: A Comment on van Kerkhove's Commentary. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science. 7. 287-91
Overall, K. L. (2013) . Abnormal Canine Behavior and Behavioral Pathologies Involving Aggression, In Overall, K.L. . Manual of Clinical Behavioral Medicine for Dogs and Cats , (pp. 172-230). St. Louis, MO: Elsevier
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