Resource Guarding

This is my dog, Colby. About 30 minutes before I took this picture, he had stolen another dog's food off the kitchen counter. A dog we were watching for friend, who needed to eat.

I was lucky enough to catch Colby right away before he could rip the plastic. I got the leash on him, preventing the never ending game of chase.

So there I was with the leash. And there he was with the food.

Neither of us were going to budge.

You think in a test of wills with a dog, a human would always win. Well, about an hour into it, I was ready to let him have it. I even called hubby and asked him to come straight home instead of getting a haircut after work. You see, when it comes to my dog, stubborn takes a new definition.

My dog is stubborn. He doesn't want to get off the couch, or go outside in the rain. But if you put a leash on him, he'll get up without grumbling. That's what most people think when I say stubborn.

No, that's not stubborn. He has a whole level beyond that. I call it his Asshole Phase. (coined by my brother). This is where the dog does something just because he can and there ain't a damn thing you can do. He'll walk by your shoes 10 times, but the 11th time, he'll decide to steal it. Then he'll either run around the house with it, or turn into a growling beast with a look that says Puny human. I have taken what you prize the most. I will destroy it now and make you watch because I am more muscular and I have these teeth.

That's Asshole Phase. Experts call it resource guarding.

I have tried every training method suggested to me and bought books on the subject. Nothing has worked. He just wants to be an asshole. Why did he steal the food? Because he could.Because it was unlikely I would put my hand near it and risk getting bit, so therefore, he thought he was going to get away with it.

He was almost correct, that asshole.

I tried making him sit and stay for 20 minutes. I played with the other dog, had a great time playing tug and fetch. No reaction. I wouldn't let him greet hubby when he came home. Gave the other dog big pepperoni slices straight from the refrigerator. Nada. Nothing was going to make him drop the food.

Eventually the plastic bag got a hole in it and food was slowly coming out. The other dog followed Colby around the house like a personal feeder.

He held this bag for an hour and a half.

Finally, I put him on the treadmill. We only use that to supplement walks when it's real cold out or pouring rain. This time though, it was to make him pant so that he couldn't hold the bag anymore. It occurred to me this was borderline abuse, so I kept the treadmill to a slower pace than if we walked around the neighborhood.

It worked. Twelve minutes on the treadmill and he started to pant. The food bag came out and the other dog had dinner.

I know better than to call that a success, even though I did get the food and didn't get bitten. I wish I knew how to stop him from stealing in the first place. Ever since then, when he steals something, he gets put on the leash and tied to my waist. Then I ignore him. That's what you are supposed to do with human assholes, right? I go about my business through the house and eventually he drops whatever it is he stole. When he does, he gets praised and released from his human harness.

I'm hoping he eventually sees there is no point to steal. Keep your fingers crossed this works.