15 minute read
real life
t r a i n i n g From Guarding to Sharing
Diane Garrod discusses the ins and outs of addressing resource guarding in dogs, presenting a basic definition for the behavior as well as suggested protocols for working through this common canine behavior
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© Diane Garrod When first adopted, Skye (right) would guard locations, food, and his new female guardian (author Diane Garrod); in his previous home, his extreme resource guarding behavior had caused him to bite his guardian four times and the pet sitter once, hence his relinquishment
© Diane Garrod Resource guarding is a common and, indeed, normal behavior in dogs and many other species, including humans (see also Re‐source Guarding or Rule Setting on pp.28‐30). In scientific literature, other terms, such as possessive aggression and foodrelated aggression, are sometimes used in tandem with, or even interchangeably, with canine resource guarding “to refer to a sequence of behavior patterns that dogs exhibit to gain or maintain primary access to a perceived valuable item when another animal or person approaches.” (Jacobs et al., 2018). However, as determined via a survey conducted amongst experts by Jacobs et al. (2018), the term resource guarding was “less likely to be negatively misinterpreted” by dog guardians and is “easier to communicate to them,” as well as “better representing the potential for behaviors other than aggression to be exhibited during the behavioral sequence (e.g., avoidancerelated behaviors).” As such, they settled on the following basic definition for resource guarding: “The use of avoidance, threatening, or aggressive behaviors by a dog to retain control of food or nonfood items in the presence of a person or other animal.” (Jacobs et al., 2018).
Antecedents, Behavior, Consequences
In my experience, resource guarding often starts out quite mildly, but risks getting worse if a dog is continually confronted for the resource (by a human or another dog). Understanding why a dog resource guards can help us set out a protocol to change their emotional responses to the items they consider worthy of defending.
Let’s first consider the circumstances which cause a dog to resource guard: He wants or already has a resource. He is confronted to relinquish the item (or thinks he is), which makes him get worried or stressed. In a nutshell:
p He’s going to lose the resource, an item he has in his possession and sees as important. p If he is confronted, or thinks he is being confronted, the guarding behavior starts. The dog guards the item because he is worried it will be taken from him. p When confronted often, the dog becomes even more stressed and worried and the resource guarding tendency increases, possibly, eventually, to the point where a bite could occur.
Now let’s consider what the dog is getting out of the behavior. In other words, what are the consequences?
p With resource guarding, the dog is keeping an item, or keeping another dog or human away from something he considers is his (another person, a dog, a location, air molecules, etc.). The perception is the dog’s reality. p The dog has discovered he can challenge the confrontation and get to keep the item. p As professionals, we know that if we change the antecedent (what precedes the behavior) and the consequence (what the
dog is getting out of doing the behavior), we change the behavior. Simple ABC. p Changing the consequence means we trade for the item, or we do a food drop, or we leave the dog in peace, so he does not feel confronted. We can thus set him up for success.
Types of Resource Guarding Include:
Tease and Guard: The dog grabs the item and teases a person or another dog with it until they get too close, then chases them away and/or bares his teeth.
Food Guarding: A mild case may be a dog starting to eat faster at the approach of a human or another dog. An extreme case may showcase high level body language such as growls, snaps, and/or attacks over the food bowl and/or the area around it.
Toy Guarding (or What a Dog Perceives as a Toy): The dog may
freeze if a person or dog approaches the toy, or grab it and run away.
Location Guarding: Any location can be a resource, from a hole dug in the lawn, to a seashell on a beach, to a dog’s bed, the couch, a chair, etc.
Guarding of a Person: Usually the dog’s guardian or other trusted person.
A dog may only engage in one type of resource guarding, or any combination of the above. Interestingly, Harris and Prouvost (2014) had dogs observe their caregivers praising and interacting with a realistic animatronic dog, as well as with socially irrelevant inanimate objects. They reported the following: • When their caregivers interacted with the fake dog, dogs had increased behavioral arousal and showed aggression toward the fake dog. • No such behavior was elicited by the socially irrelevant objects. The authors interpreted their findings as evidence of something like jealousy (or “proto jealousy”) in the domestic dog.
Food for thought indeed, but a discussion for another day!
The Look of Resource Guarding
What does resource guarding look like, then? Typically, the tail stiffens, freezing and/or a tensing of the body occurs, accompanied by or followed by whale eye and/or a hard stare. The dog may pick up or quickly grab the item of value and move it somewhere else to avoid confrontation.
As the behavior becomes more intense, there will be a definite pause and/or an evasive move often accompanied by a growl. The consequence for the dog here, which is reinforcing, is that the pursuer (most likely) backs off, and the dog gets to keep the resource. The more this is repeated, the more the behavior will escalate – because it has been successful. This may include bared teeth, a snap, and/or a bite.
Watch specifically for the following (especially in food aggression, but can relate to other areas too): 1 – Lowered head/neck over the resource. 2 – Stopping of eating and sudden freeze, a very pronounced pause. 3 – Frantically snarfing down food. 4 – Running away with the resource, sometimes tail is tucked and/or the ears are back.
Practice Makes Perfect
For me, the best starting points to change guarding behavior into sharing behavior are prevention, management, and supervision. The less the dog has the opportunity to practice, the better. This must be a part of the whole training program and may require a tweaking of the current environment and the habits of the humans in the household. This is essential because guarding resources can get worse. Why? People sometimes inadvertently teach their dog that their approach + resource = resource will get taken away. In the dog’s eyes he has no choice; he learns that he will lose his resource unless he takes action to keep it.
As we embark on our training protocol, the most important thing is to attempt to avoid all opportunities for the dog to rehearse the behavior. This means:
Prevention: Make sure the environment is tweaked to keep the dog successful and let him enjoy resources without confrontation.
Management: Create peace of mind for all humans and animals in the household by setting up safety zones, such as pens, baby gates, and crates, and use a muzzle(s) if necessary.
Supervision: Have a person on call at all times so any possibility of practicing the guarding of any resource does not occur. This could mean a leash drag (the dog has a leash attached to his harness and drags it behind him so the human can have safe access to it, if needed), knowing exactly where the dog is at all times, who is in the environment at any time, and allowing the dog to do only what he is able to do successfully. Otherwise, prevention and management are in place.
The goal of this is to change the setting events that are causing the behavior. It also means setting up the dog for success by rearranging the environment.
At this stage we need to take into account the ABCs (antecedents, behavior, consequences), the 3Ds (distance, duration, distractions), the 3Rs (redirect, remove, relax), and the CERs (conditioned emotional responses). We also need to identify all potential triggers. Exactly what is occurring and when? Write down who is present, the time of day, the location, what occurred before the incident, and any other pertinent facts. Lastly, we need to teach the dog to be responsive and reliable to cues. This will help the guardian redirect behavior quickly by voice control. This includes giving the dog the choice to engage in “other” highly rewarded behaviors (think, what do you want them to do instead?).
When guarding a resource, a dog keeps an item, or keeps another dog or human away from something he considers is his: The perception is the dog’s reality
© Can Stock Photo / jmpaget
© Susan Nilson This dog is guarding her Kong, as indicated by her stiffened musculature and freezing
Cue Development
An important part of working with resource guarding behavior is releasing the dog’s stress (see Canine Emotional Detox, BARKS from the Guild, June 2012, pp.36‐41). The behavior change process will also include setting up the dog for success by ensuring safety is a priority. Dogs with a bite history might need a tether, for example. Have something to safely remove the item being guarded, if needed (extended tongs, rake, etc.), but the chances are you will not need this if you go through the steps and develop voice cues to guide the dog without confrontation. Note that slow feeder bowls can be helpful with food aggression cases.
Never take an item from a dog’s mouth. Instead, plan ahead and keep conflict low. If you need to get an item back, treat toss, i.e. scatter a handful of high value rewards (meatballs, liver, chicken, cheese whatever the dog loves) far to the dog’s right or left side. As the dog moves away to get the treats, pick up the object quickly, put it away and sprinkle some more treats as you praise or mark the movement away from the resource.
The key is that the dog chooses to move away from item and the reward is highly reinforcing to that individual dog. This is what you are always working toward. Once it starts to reliably happen, you can add cues such as, “Get it,” “Bring it,” and“Drop it.” Click the action of getting it, bringing it, and dropping it, then reward the drop. Using a clicker (or mark/reward training system) gets better precision and clearly defines what the dog is doing right. Be sure to choose high value food rewards that the dog loves, otherwise they will not be reinforcing.
If the dog is location guarding, teach an “Off” cue with treats as follows:
• Start with treat scatter. • Name it “off” when you have at least 10 trials perfected. (First cue “off” as the dog jumps off or moves away from the location toward the treats; later, proof the cue by saying it before the treats are released.) • Name “up” as an asking permission cue by teaching a solid sit/wait/stay/ask. These can all become fun cues for the dog (see Resources).
As the behavior becomes more intense, there will be a definite pause during and/or an evasive move often accompanied by a growl. The consequence for the dog here, which is reinforcing, is that the pursuer backs off, and the dog keeps the resource. The more this is repeated, the more the behavior will escalate –because it has been successful.
© Can Stock Photo / pitrs Dogs may guard items such as food, toys, their bed, a specific area or location, a person or anything else they consider to be of value
Mechanics of Desensitization
As you start working with the cues, gradually increase the intensity of exposure at levels the learner can tolerate. This is where the 3Ds come in. Keep the distance easily doable for the dog, keep the duration of the exercises short and successful, and keep distractions at a minimum. All three will be slowly and incrementally decreased or increased as appropriate. The first resources should be low in value. You can move up from there, but only to where the dog can be successful. You do not want to see anything more in signaling than a stiffening of the body at this point. This stiffening is quickly dissipated as the dog learns what else to do. For example, go for a meatball tossed up and over the dog’s body instead of the resource when the cue is given.
Another technique that can be helpful is treat/retreat. Start with a onestepatatime approach, toss a treat away from the coveted resource, and then allow the dog to make the choice to retreat from the item to take the reward. Repeat the sequence and make it a fun game that always reinforces movement away from an item and gives the dog a choice.
You know you are progressing when you start to see a friendly head lift and other welcoming, approachable body language changes. Once you are at the stage where the approach of a person or dog means good things happen (as opposed to confrontation), you are well on the way to developing trust. Always watch the dog’s body language and do not move too fast with the training. Adjust any forward movement according to what the dog’s body language is revealing, be aware of distance increasing or decreasing signals and tailor your approach accordingly. Reach out to a fellow trainer or behavior consultant if needed, since the desensitization process can be challenging and potentially dangerous and the stakes are so high for the dog (as with my adopted dog Skye).
Sharing
As I said at the beginning, when a dog guards resources from other dogs it is normal behavior (to a degree). For example, a growl is elicited and the other dog moves away and heeds the warning. But trouble can occur if the growl is not heeded. Instead of moving away the other dog
may decide to try to get to the resource.
The goal is, of course, to have worked through the steps, read the situation correctly and not allowed it to develop to this point. But, if it does happen, go back to prevention, management, and supervision. Set up crates, gates, and pens for safety. Implement the acclimate, tolerate, accept (ATA) process, which incorporates five stages of modified desensitization and counterconditioning (see Fighting in Multidog Households, BARKS from the Guild, May 2017, pp.20‐26).
Yes, it is possible to teach a dog to share or, at the very least, to relinquish an item he wants. It requires a solid, nonconfrontational “Leave It”(see Resources) and supervision early on. It also requires your dog knowing he will have resources available without confrontation. Teaching a solid “Go to Place” and a solid wait/stay will also help.
How long does all this take? The flippant answer is “as long as it takes.” A more professional outlook would include setting up a threemonth behavior change process, setting milestones and end goals, evaluating regularly, and adjusting as needed. As we all know, each dog is an individual.
Once all goals have been achieved, then maintenance is paramount. Guardians need to be consistent and continue with their commitment to the process and not fall back into old habits. The end goal is the dog always happily releasing valuable (to him) resources and trading for highly reinforcing items. Trust builds and relinquishing items – even sharing them – becomes fun. n
References
Harris, C.R., & Prouvost, C. (2014). Jealousy in Dogs. PLOS One Jacobs, J.A., Coe, J.B., Widowski, T.M., Pearl, D.L., & Niel, L. (2018). Defining and Clarifying the Terms Canine Possessive Aggression and Resource Guarding: A Study of Expert Opinion. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 5
Resources
Cook, P., Prichard, A., Spivak, M., & Berns, G.S. (2018). Jealousy in dogs? Evidence from brain imaging. Animal Sentience 117 Dog Training by Kikopup. (2009, May 30). How to teach 'leave it'without intimidation [Video File] DomesticatedManners. (2010, December 13). Teaching Your Dog to "Drop” [Video File] Garrod, D. (2012, June). Canine Emotional Detox. BARKS from the Guild (2) 36-41 Garrod, D. (2016, September). Dodging Euthanasia. BARKS from the Guild (20) 14-20 Garrod, D. (2017, May). Fighting in Multidog Households. BARKS from the Guild (24) 20-26 Horwitz, D.F., & Neilson, J.C. (2007). Blackwell's Five-Minute Veterinary Consult: Canine and Feline Behavior. Ames, IA: Blackwell Jacobs, J.A., Coe, J.B., Widowski, T.M., Pearl, D.L., & 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 161 134-142 Jacobs, J.A., Coe, J.B., Widowski, T.M., Pearl, D.L., & 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 161 143-153 Nilson, S. (2014). Resource Guarding: Knowing the Signs. BARKS Blog Overall, K. (2013). Manual of Clinical Behavioral Medicine for Dogs and Cats. St. Louis, MO: Elsevier Skye - Blue Skies from Now on (Journey of a Resource Guarder)
Diane Garrod BSc PCT-A CA1 FF1 is the owner of Canine Transformations (caninetlc.com) based in Langley, Washington, where she conducts Treibball workshops, classes and private consults, specializing in canine aggression and reactivity.
