If your dog often snaps or growls while eating, they may be experiencing something called food aggression. This behavior is a common type of resource guarding. Being protective over food is a fairly normal thing for dogs, especially if they’re newly adopted. Though it’s a common problem, it needs to be addressed.
Dogs with food aggression often respond by snapping, biting, and scratching. This puts your family members and other dogs at risk of being injured. But your beloved pup is also negatively impacted by food aggression. It’s a clear sign of feeling anxious, stressed, and fearful during meal time, which ultimately harms their daily quality of life.
But food aggression can be treated. If your dog is struggling during meal times, there are ways to help. With patience and consistency, you can help ease your dog’s food aggression and make feeding time calm, safe, and fun.
Signs of Food Aggression
Food aggression is a defensive behavior in which a dog becomes angry while eating. It usually occurs when a dog or person gets close to them or their food.
Signs of food aggression to look for include:
- Growling or snarling
- Biting or snapping
- Lunging
- Hypervigilance
- Rigid body language
- Eating too fast (even to the point of vomiting)
What Causes Food Aggression in Dogs?
Understanding the root cause of your dog’s behavior can help determine the best ways to stop it.
Possible causes of food aggression include:
Ways to Stop Food Aggression
Identify and Address Triggers
Does your dog get more aggressive with certain people or animals? Does eating on the floor make them feel more threatened? Figuring out their triggers can help you determine how to avoid them.
Create a Consistent Feeding Routine
Food aggression may be more likely if your dog doesn't know when or how much they’re going to eat. Try to feed your dog at approximately the same time every day and measure their food intake to help them get used to a consistent feeding schedule. It’s also a good idea to choose a designated spot to feed them.
Try to Desensitize Them Slowly
The goal is to teach your dog that they aren’t going to have their food ripped away from them. A good way to do this is to slowly desensitize them to your presence. Start by standing near your dog while they eat and slowly move closer as they become more comfortable over time. Eventually, you can try placing your hand on their bowl while they eat.
Be cautious when trying this. If you do this too quickly without easing them into it, it could actually worsen aggression and put you at risk.
Create a Calm and Safe Feeding Environment
Make sure the environment in which your dog eats is calm and secure. Don’t put their bowl in a heavily trafficked area where people or pets may accidently kick their bowl. You can also help comfort your pup by talking to them while they eat in a soothing voice.
Feed All Dogs at the Same Time
If you have multiple dogs, try to feed them all at once rather than one at a time. Your food aggressive pup may feel more threatened if his or her siblings aren’t occupied.
Try Hand Feeding
Hand feeding is when you pick up bits of your dog's food and feed them directly by hand. It’s best to avoid this method if your dog has a tendency to bite, but hand feeding can be a good way to develop trust.
Once you’re ready to stop hand feeding, you can ease out of it by holding the bowl in your hands while they eat before eventually setting it down.
Reward, Don’t Punish
Positive reinforcement is far more effective than punishment. In fact, harsh punishment can make aggression worse in dogs. Instead, focus on encouraging your dog with rewards. When they get through a meal without food aggression, reward them with their favorite treat and lots of praise.
Work With a Trainer
If it feels like you’ve tried everything to improve your dog's aggressive behavior but it just doesn’t seem to work, you’re not alone. Even with a loving and consistent owner, some dogs are simply more difficult to train than others.
Working with a professional dog trainer is a great way to get personalized help from an expert.
Final Thoughts
Regardless of the training method you use, helping your dog get over food aggression takes time, effort, love, and lots of patience. Go easy on your pup (and on yourself) if the process takes longer than you expect. Stopping food aggression not only makes your life easier, but your dog will thank you too.