Need Help Urgently, If You Can...

ANY suggestions right now are needed, this is a life and death matter.

At the same time I was looking for a puppy, my co-worker/friend, Linda, was also looking for one. She rescues cats, she has between 20-30 of them (no she's not a hoarder), and an older female Doberman. Well, she found a litter of 5 month old Shepherd/Dobie/Sighthound mixes that had been given up, and kept going back to look at them. They all got adopted, blah blah, one came back up for adoption, and she adopted it. We both picked up our puppies yesterday. The puppy (un-named as of right now), was doing pretty well, playing with my dog and everything. I got a call from her at work today...the puppy had went after one of her cats while it was chewing on a treat, and also went after her other dog...so, food/treat aggression. She has a lot of animals-she really cannot have that risk.

She went to animal services to figure this out, they previously told her the previous owner had given them no information. Now, they say that all 5 puppies had lived in a small yard together and had to compete for food/treats. One of the other sisters, actually the one she had been originally looking at, had been returned to them because she had started growling and snapping. Linda asked about returning her puppy, and what would happen-basically, she will be euthanized.

I've never really dealt with food aggression. I suggested a behaviorist, but we were both worried because she can't afford paying a huge price, and if we find one for really cheap, the behaviourist might not be qualified and would ruin the dog. But she can't live with the risk of this dog that might bite if provoked. If Linda decides not to keep her, she will probably be returned tomorrow or Friday. She does want to explore every available option before she resorts to that. I only know what she's told me, I don't think the puppy snapped at her, but it is a danger.

If anyone has resolved this issue please please let me know. This is a really nice dog otherwise. :(

I've never dealt with food aggression in a dog that old. When we got Adele she was around 3 months old, and she had food aggression towards the other pets, not humans. Basically I just reinforced that she was at the bottom of the hierarchy and used NILIF.

BUT, I didn't feel threatened putting my hand in her food bowl, etc, because she wasn't aggressive towards me. Is this puppy agressive towards her owner, or just the other pets? I still seperate my dogs when they eat. Most of the time, it isn't a problem, but Adele has attacked Marta over a rawhide before (luckily this was when she was a puppy, nobody was hurt and now I know better and crate her with anything like that).

I know that the money is an issue, but if she wants to keep the puppy I would suggest at least talking with a behaviorist. Food aggression can be a very serious problem, especially since she has so many other pets. Sorry I can't be more help.

Food aggression is manageable in a multi-pet home. I have one dog with massive food issues and a couple others who have to eat and get their treats alone. Kayleigh was starved by her first owner. She was 2 when I got her. Her weight has almost doubled since she got here--she's at a healthy weight now of 120. She was 75 pounds when she first arrived. I believe that dogs can overcome and even forget a whole lot of hideous things. I also believe they never ever forget that they used to be hungry. Kayleigh is 7 now and still keeps something edible hidden in her dog house at all times. BUT food behaviors can be managed, changed and the puppy can live a long, happy life. Kayleigh has other issues that mean she has to be in her own pen, but all of my other dogs with food issues are now fully integrated pack members.

Puppy needs to be fed alone--dinner, treats, anything. She needs to be alone, in a spot where no other critter can get close to her food. Crated, her own pen, a room alone, whatever, but she needs to be alone. Eventually, she may be able to eat with other animals, but not now. She needs some time to learn that food will be available regularly. For a long time I fed Kayleigh at the exact same time every day. After a year or so, she knew that there would always be food the next day and now I can vary her feeding time. This puppy should not be allowed free access to food. She needs a schedule.

I hand fed Kayleigh for awhile. Still do sometimes. She learned to take food gently. Gradually I worked up to trading her--if she had something, I would take it and trade her for something better--kibble for a bone ect. I never ever take Kayleigh's food for any reason without giving her something else in return.

Puppy also would benefit from a nothing in life is free training program. She wants anything, she has to work for it. There's tons of info on the net about NILF training. A basic training class with a good instuctor might help too.

Any dog will bite if provoked. Dogs just have varying limits, but any dog will bite. If you pushed him far enough, my Earle, the sweetest dog alive, would bite. You'd have to push Earle alot farther than say Deuce though. Lower threshold, different experience for Deuce. IMO, dogs don't try to bite. If a dog snaps, it's a warning that something is really bugging the animal, that it is overwhelmed and needs help. A dog who wants to bite, will. I've been bit several times and I guarentee I had no chance to get away. The dogs' reactions were 100 times faster than mine.

This pup has had a rough start in it's short life. The key socialization period has been screwed up. That doesn't mean she needs to die though. She just needs extra work and attention. Maybe your friend can't deal with that due to number of animals, time, space, whatever, but I hope if she can't that she can find a better option than the pound for the puppy.