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My puppy is resource guarding. How do I stop this aggressive behavior?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Australian Shepherd | Male | neutered | 3 months and 26 days old | 37 lbs

I just noticed my 4 month old puppy is resource guarding (his food bowl and crew bones..) He is our only pet but we visit our family and there is 3 dogs there and I only noticed this behavior when we got back from visiting them. One of my parents dogs guards his toys (so I was thinking maybe mine picked it up from him??) He now growls, shows teeth and snaps if you go near him when he is eating or crewing on edible bone How do I fix or stop this new aggression behavior?

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA

Veterinarian, Certified Dog Trainer

Published on February 18th, 2018

Good for you for wanting to work on this behavior now, while Jax is young. Resource guarding is a common behavior in dogs. He acts this way because he's afraid you are going to take away his food or bone, and feels that he has to protect his stuff from you. Treatment for this problem is focused on changing the dog's emotional reaction to having you approach. Essentially, you want to teach him that great things happen when you come near - so there's no need to get upset and growl or snarl. You can start by standing at a distance and tossing treats to him while he's eating or chewing on a bone. From there, as long as he's comfortable, you can progress to walking by and dropping treats on the floor or into his bowl. Eventually, it's possible to work up to touching his bone or food bowl, praising and giving a handful of tasty treats, and walking away again. NEVER try to deal with this problem by punishing Jax or taking away his things, as this will only make him more tense and defensive around you in the future. If you have difficulty with this training plan or if you are not seeing improvement within a few weeks, I would recommend consulting with a veterinary behaviorist or a good reward-based trainer who can help you in person. I also highly recommend the book "Mine!" by Jean Donaldson - it's an excellent guide to dealing successfully with resource guarding in dogs. You can search for a board-certified veterinary behaviorist in your area here (www.dacvb.org) or a qualified trainer here (www.ccpdt.org)

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    Answered By Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA

    Veterinarian, Certified Dog Trainer

    Published on January 31st, 2018

    This is a great question! It's always best to be proactive and prevent problem behaviors from developing when possible, rather than trying to fix them once they've already started. You want to teach Jeter that having you approach him while he has a treat or bone is a great thing, not something to be tense or worried about. You can practice this with him as a puppy by walking up to him when he's chewing on something, and dropping a tasty treat for him to eat (like a hot dog slice or piece of cheese). Do this a few times every day, and you should start to see him perk up and wag his tail when he sees you coming, rather than getting tense and crouching over his bone. When he's completely comfortable with having you approach, you can progress to harder steps. Try bending down and gently touching the bone, then give a treat and walk away. Eventually, you can work up to briefly taking the bone away, giving a delicious treat, and then immediately giving it back. The idea, always, is to teach him that you are not going to take his stuff - and in fact, you'll usually give him something better. For more detailed information on resource guarding and how to treat or prevent it, I highly recommend the book "Mine!" by Jean Donaldson.

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