Resource Guarding and how we handled it with Scrappy

Every dog has their quirks. Out of all of mine, Scrappy is the most prone to resource guarding.  She was six months old when she came to live with us, so the pattern had been set (more about that later) and I needed to work on it with her.  The other dogs in the household don’t challenger her for her chews but if they get too close and she snaps at them they will back off. But when it comes to humans, it can feel trickier.

Now I don’t believe in removed chews from dogs out of some dominant desire, but there are times when I need my dogs to move from the place they have the chew.  For example, when Scrappy had a raw bone and decided she wanted to eat it on the sofa. If I went near her, she growled, warning me that this was her bone and not mine.  So what did I do?  I kept my voice playful, grabbed some treats and started exclaiming about the amazing treats I had.  Within seconds she was off the sofa to investigate, I threw the treats on the floor, grabbed the bone and put it in her crate.  Important to know that I have never as far as I can remember taken anything off Scrappy with force so there is no history of that, but even if there was, and there could have been before she came, the protocol would still be the same. 

So, from the time we got her, if she growled, I treated that as a warning and never got angry with her. If I needed to take away what she had, I always made an exchange with something even better. Over time she has learnt that we aren’t just going to swoop in and steal things from her.

The payoff? Just the other day she pottered up to me with a chew, handed it over, and happily took it back again when I gave it to her. She repeated this several times with me and also with my husband. Did I expect that? Not at all. Was I working towards it? Again no, it is just her demonstration of trust.

The other three dogs in my household will let me take anything from them because they know I’ll either return it or give them something else of value. That’s the principle: if your dog trusts you not to simply take, they learn to relax.

Why dogs guard

Resource guarding is natural. For some dogs it shows up around food, chews, toys or even a comfy sleeping spot. Breeds that love to carry and parade items, like spaniels or labradors, are especially prone. If too much gets snatched away when they’re young, they learn to guard or even swallow things. That’s when you end up with socks in stomachs and operations.

What helps

• Respect the growl. A growl is information, not defiance. It’s your dog saying, ‘I’m worried about losing this.’

• Exchange, don’t snatch. If you need to take something away, trade it for something better. Over time, your dog will learn that your approach means good things.

• Hand feed. Feeding from your hand helps your dog associate your presence with food arriving, not disappearing.  

• Issues around the food bowl.  When they are eating drop another tasty treat near their bowl so they don’t worry about your approach.

• Don’t make a fuss. Puppies often pick up tissues or random objects just to explore. Snatching them away only makes the object more valuable. Often if you ignore it, they’ll drop it on their own.

Final thoughts

Resource guarding isn’t something to panic about, but it is something to handle thoughtfully. Your dog isn’t trying to be dominant, they’re just trying to protect something important to them. If you think about it, why do we have locks on our doors - we’re guarding our possessions.  How would you feel if someone snatched your phone out of your hands, whether or not you knew them!  With patience, swaps, and trust, you can teach them that humans approaching their prized possessions is nothing to worry about.

Scrappy has shown me that what starts as a growl can become a gesture of trust. And that, more than anything, is worth guarding.