Hey everyone, finally got back to the board!! anyways I got a puppy he's about 5 months old now i've noticed he really gets giddy when its time to eat....he acts like hes starving or something. and when I go to give him the food he lunges for it and sometimes spills the food all over the ground. what ive done for this is trying to get him to sit and stay (he knows how to do this but wont for food) but it doesnt seem to be working. he also is really aggressive when it comes to treats i'll make him sit and then i'll bring the treat down to his level and then he'll bite me because hes so agressively going after the treat..... and suggestions?

Is there any growling going on or is he just hungry and going after the treats and biting you by accident?

I would start with a really short sit - just long enough to get the bowl down without him getting air and knocking it down and start building from there. If that doesn't work try putting him on a tie out tied down low enough and short enought he can't get air and then work on the sit. No sit-no supper. As for the treats, try holding the treat in your palm , holding your hand with the back of the hand facing the dog - this makes the dog kind of have to feel for it. I also would use the uh-uh NICE to get him to take it softly. Any grabbing, nipping- uh-uh NICE! no treat until he softens his approach. Make him work for it a bit. Also when giving a treat have your hand down low enough so the dogs front end has to come down a bit - it kind of slows down the lunge (a bit). I have a dog-yard full of really enthusiastic diners without a lot of formal obedience training that I have used these methods on and I still have all my fingers(and teeth).

Romi

What I like to do with a dog like that is I'll place the treats in a ziplock bag, place them in my pocket. This is not to try to hide the food but for more control access and you don't soil your clothing. It stops him form jumping trying to take the bag from you. The control is letting the dog know that it gets a treat when and if you want it to have it. I usually give a down command, then treat him when the dog holds the down. When I do treat I bring it to his mouth, if he breaks the down he does not get the treat. I also close my hand until right at his mouth, and feed palm up, he still can bite you, but it would be intentional. Usually you will just feel his teeth scraping your palm, you can add a "easy command" to make him slow down, if you like.

As mentioned, if the dog breaks the down, I gently place the dog back in a down, and repeat. When he stays in a down, and calming takes the treat. We go to the sit, and treat. Then down-sit then treat. I kind of vary this so he doesn't know when the treat is available.

This moves on to a treat visibly on the ground and the dog is in a down or sit (I usally give a leave it command) he has to wait until you say he can have it. And of course being able to feed on command, without the food aggression toward you. He may still glup down his food, but not your fingers.

Food drive. . .it is a painful thing. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

 Quote:

Originally posted by VanCamp:
Food drive. . .it is a painful thing.

I was thinking the same thing...sounds like a high food drive...not aggression.

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Simple my dog lunged at the food too, but in one short session, i told her to sit, as i slowly put the the dish on the floor, the second her bottom left the floor, i lefted the dish again and said no, when her but touched the floor again i began to lower the dish again, i do this for how ever long it takes til i can put the dish on the floor, with her but still on the floor, than i say "ok" and point to the dish. i did it with the water bowl too( good way to practice since aggresive dogs won't show aggression for water). infact with mine, that was how i started was with the water bowl than when i did set it down let her drink a bit, than i picked it up and did the whole routine over, didn't take long at all for her to catch on. "sitting means food/water much more quickly than lunging for it" so than just practice that everytime you feed and water the dog, it works, he/she will do it automatically after a while.

All of the posts in this thread are dealing with FOOD DRIVE not food aggression, so I am closing this thread. Food aggression is a nasty little beast and I do not want someone reading these pup stories and mistaking hunger and food drive for food aggression...