Fear of losing something of value and associated behaviours
Natural behaviour – dogs are scavengers
Behaviours chosen based on how successful they are
What does it look like?
Barking
Growling
Staring
Scratching
Any stress signal
Be aware
Any negative change in behaviour when resource appears – coping signals
Is the behaviour appropriate? Dog growling at other dog, other dog backing away = effective > if it keeps happening then not effective = being rehearsed – becomes default behaviour
What is resource
Anything
Vehicles
Food
Toys
Bed
Lead – predictor of something else
Shoes – predictor of something else
Socks – puppy steals socks > owner chases = fun > socks predict fun = valuable > taken off puppy = fun ends > RG
Everything – generalised
Some behaviours are more of a problem than others to owner (always a problem to the dog), e.g. lick lip v growl – relationship is compromised
Best to pick up early signals
Anxious dog = decrease in learning and performance
Distance from resource = increase in stress signals
Can vary depending on situation – may guard from one dog but not another
Don’t want the dog rehearsing
Deference protocol to promote calm
Tuggy – over arousal – whites of eyes – eyes looking everywhere else
The more overt the behaviour the lower the cortisol as the overt behaviour allows the dog to cope
Resource holding potential – the ability of an animal to win an all-out fight if one were to take place
puppy development – they decide what they value based on quantity in the environment – depending on personality
Singletons – don’t have the opportunity to try out communication skills with littermates
or
larger litters need to compete for resources – practicing RG behaviours
Value – inherit value (e.g. is dog foodie), scarcity, perceived ability to keep (history of winning a flight > more likely to try to flight new competitor
Daring – personality trait – still going to try to fight even if they don’t have a history of winning
Worry + arousal = fear response
Work on arousal balance + thinking through arousal
Avoid excessive value
Not going to lose a resource – give it up, get it back
History? Know the dog
Your/other dog’s distance
Behaviours
Resource distance
Pick your battles – need to give dogs food but not squeeze toy
Every negative response is a rehearsal – don’t give the opportunity to give negative response
Doorways can be high arousal areas
Aim of management is to reduce negative responses while you work on training
Situation Management
Don’t put the dog in a situation where they can fail
Boundary games (not crate as they may resource guard)
Be aware of choices – some dogs (working) are better with lots of choices, some better with limited choices
Games
Remember
I value that
I imaging I’ll lose it
My arousal levels are high
For all games
Start easy
Play with items with no resource guarding history
Learning will transfer
Be creative and safe e.g. toilet paper (something of no value)
Value games
Value balance – share the value between toys – low value then surprise with high value
Value reduction – place the resource everywhere = no longer valuable – reinforce ignoring something high value e.g. ball obsessed dogs – ensure dog is not anxious
tennis ball in crate > dog disengages > tennis balls comes out of crate
does dog this ball is scarce – does it only come out on walks? Leave balls hanging around.
You never lose games
Toy switch game – high and low value, start with low value
Food switching – start with low value kibble, followed by high value > low value predicts high value
Always low value then high value until they’re good at the game
Arousal and impulse control games
Premack games
Ok go
Thinking in arousal
Mat games
Multiple dogs take turns in training – one dog does something exciting > other dog gets fed
Reward nothing game
Reward choices
Dogs are
trying to influence their own emotions, not the emotions of others
trying to achieve positive outcomes and avoid negative
not moral; good or bad is in terms of consequences, not right from worng
not stubborn
not spiteful
not vindictive
Affecting the likelihood of resource guarding
hunger
tired
pain
medication
stress/activity/environment
learned associations of individuals present
learned association of item and developed fear of loosing it
genetics – may inherently value something more like food
mobility – size – learned communication patterns
recent changes to environment
Comfort/displacement behaviours
when dog is stressed will complete behaviours to make itself feel better – comfort behaviours
items or individuals with familiarity and value can go from something that the dog likes to something that the dog needs when stressed
trying to interfere with resource whilst dog is stressed brings more exaggerated response
positive and negative stress are chemically identical
comfort/displacement behaviours can be the same as normal dog behaviours – apply context
Guarding food, bones, anything ingestible
how long? always – probably genetic trait? had to fight littermates for food
has dog been challenged?
relationship between dog and individual that the dog is guarding again in this situation, and in general?
practiced resource guarding in different situation? help in other ways
medication that effects appetite?
changes to environment?
Guarding toys (things belonging to the dog), chew and random items
dog may not like people moving ‘their’ possessions around
is dog fixated on item – is it play or compulsion (working frame of mind)?
is dog using item to pacify themselves in a moment of stress?
address cause of stress and manage the resource
any recent changes to the environment?
has the dog been challenged in the past?
relationship between dog and individual that the dog is guarding again in this situation, and in general?
has item been snatched from the dog?
practiced resource guarding in different situation? help in other ways
medication that effects energy level, more lethargic/grumpy?
changes to environment?
injury?
trauma?
Scenarios
dog has been playing fetch then choses to lie down and chew ball, bares teeth at approaching dogs – chewing is relieving positive stress – taking fetch too far
dog has been playing with other dogs, chooses to disengage and go to owner to make eye contact, chases away approaching dogs – fixating on owner, trying to communicate that the environment is too much
dog in dog park opts to dig hole, snaps at approaching dog – environment too much, calming but digging, don’t want to be interrupted
Guarding places of rest
is dog being disturbed when it lays down? allowed to ask for personal space
is the bed in a thoroughfare? dogs will often chose to lie where people can’t walk, like under a table
guarding a location where we would like to sit?
how has the dog been asked to move in the past?
has dog practice guarding in different situations and generalising?
medication making grumpy?
recent changes to environment?
Guarding faeces
some dogs see it as a food source
we accidentally cause this by panicking when dog approaches, push dog away and snatch poo, repeat, dog thinks poo must be valuable – racing to something increases value
Guarding people
common in herding dogs
the person being guarded is usually a constant in the dog’s life, when things get stressful, this person is biggest source of comfort – environment is too much
looks like
jumping up, attention seeking when people hug
standing in between that person and another
rounding up the person
tension as the person approaches other person
aggression towards the individual approaching the guarded person
trying to stop the person interacting with others because the dog NEEDS that attention
dog guarding dogs it doesn’t know – something about that dog is different – older, hyper aroused, moving differently, not desexed – dog doesn’t trust them
Guarding space and locations
what’s the learned association of the space?
feeding station
bed
is an individual there that they usually guard?
has the dog hidden something there?
usually more about the learned association than the location itself – manage safety
Things to consider
safety and management
supervision
barriers
proactively giving direction
building positive associations
away from resource
improve relationship
relationships built on trust
of situation, e.g. feeding a dog in a certain room and he’s never disturbed
take away the negative associations
learn dog’s body language and preferences – earlier it’s caught the better
positioning – standing over/in front of the resource
body tension
kiss to dismiss – grooming you can mean that the dog wants his space
growling
hard stare
snarling
snapping
freezing
slow/cautious movements
flight
evasive movements
turning head away
hiding/burying resources
consent testing
bonding exercise
empowers communication patterns
call dog over, settle down, pet for a few seconds, stop, wait for body language, respond appropriately
dog likes petting
they initiate it by moving into your space or nudging
putting head or body under hand
pull your hand using paw
face muscles are relaxed
eye contact softens
relax their body into you
dog doesn’t like petting
ducks head when yo reach for them
move away
look away
leave
yawn
scratch
lip lick
paw lift
whale eye
growl
snap
ambiguous
lick hands – could be grooming or asking for space
flip on to back – could be asking for more or asking for space
push against you with paws, stretching their legs = could be distancing or stretching/relaxing
lip licking – some dogs smack their lips in slow motion when content, much more common as stress signal
learn the dog’s preferences
keep a log
what distance from the resource does dog begin to show signs of stress
does the dog value something more than the resource
can we use it to trade
write a value ladder list of resources
how often is guarding happening and under what circumstances
what is the dog guarding
cut out similar behaviour
what does your dog avoid in other situations, e.g. putting on a harness, reluctant to recall
does dog growl/snarl/snap in other situations – dog is practicing this communication and either growing in confidence that it works or learning that it may have to escalate
train new, desirable behaviours away from the resource
drop
recall
bed on cue
looking up on cue
reward calm behaviour
stress break before introducing new training plan
if relationship is so broken that 2 individuals cannot relax around each other then a training plan straight away may compound the problem
training is likely to fail
what not to do
rely solely on avoiding the problem through management
doesn’t necessarily solve the problem
avoidance may not prepare the dog fro situations
can be useful for a stress break
do not confuse getting them used to something with building positive association
do not use physical force to take the resource
do not use speed to take the resource – don’t create a race
do not use distraction as a consistent method of taking the resource
do not use physical correction
do not use fear or intimidation
do not let dogs sort it out when risk of physical conflict
do not allow for normalising bullying between two individuals
different types of resource guarding
hiding resources like chews
in order to lay down and chew dog must concentrate on chewing
in order to do this dog must drop their guard
in order to do this dog must trust the environment
if dog is hiding chews then they are communicating to us
“I value this chew bu I cannot entertain this right now”
why is the dog stressed in the first place?
what to do
look at the situation – fast moving or new situations are more likely to cause stress
provide safe location where dog can dog its guard
value/taste – now novel is it – not novel = boring, less likely to guard
density – softer chews can be finished quicker
size – smaller can be finished quicker
avoidance
may look like
holding it in their mouth and avoiding coming close
picking up the resource and moving it when someone comes close
hold in mouth, turn head or body
times of high arousal, e.g around a visitor
actively using avoidance to keep a resource away from individual
this is not a game
do not tease or playfully snatch the resource
build the relationship of trust that the individual is not going to take the resource
set up a location and prevent others approaching
in times that can’t be supervised remove the resource
avoidance happens a lot – notice it
when avoidance is ignored dog learns to escalate
repetition of many mildly negative experiences and lead to mistrust
it doesn’t have to be a single experience
precursor to aggression
threatening or aggressive
when a dog steals or guards
trade
when the dog picks up the item
move away from the dog and towards the biscuit tin
this gets attention – they’re beginning to think rather than run on impulse
say come
hold hand low with a treat
don’t repeat come, don’t move towards
wait for him to drop item
if you lose attention, crinkle treat bag or rattle treats
when he’s come over reward
ask him to stay
retrieve item – do not race dog
reward when item picked up
if dog drops treat next to him do not pick it up
guarding rest spots
manage where resource is located – dogs access and other’s access
build positive associations with individuals going into space
when dog begins to show signs of stress
stop moving toward dog
take steps backwards until dog relaxes
avoid staring and confrontation
once dog relaxes drop down low and invite dog to you
if dog comes towards you reward
if dog doesn’t come move towards treat bag and rustle to gain attention
say come
hold hand low with treat
wait for him to come to you and reward
two dogs guarding items against each other
consider whether it’s appropriate to give the resource at all
supervise
consider how much enrichment the dogs get
separate when giving resource – may be codependent
look for other scenarios of unhealthy communication patterns
consider whether its fair for the dogs to live together
avoid forcing them to share
dog guards another individual
separate
calm the environment down
asses from underlying behavioural issues, separation anxiety and environmental stresses effecting dog’s emotional state
desensitise gradually
resource guarding and babies
dog’s life is going to change – be proactive
teach to use bad rather than sofa
define the items he’s allowed and what he’s not (use scent)
set up barriers well in advance
decide where dog and baby will sleep, acclimatise well in advance
build tolerance to separation in advance
resource guarding is symptom not problem
there will be underlying issues
break down in trust in a relationship
practicing unhealthily communication patters
environmental stress influencing emotional state
underlying medical issues such as exited, pain, medicinal side effects
