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Why take steps to manage resource guarding

  • Safety

    Learning to manage your dog's guarding behavior can help protect them and others from a potential incident.

  • Strengthen your bond

    Understanding your dog's behavior, and managing their environment, can help foster a sense of trust and build a stronger relationship between you and your dog.

"Resource Guarding"

Why dogs resource guard


Dogs are programmed to not want to share valuable resources with others. This often means not wanting to share food, toys or their human’s attention. The emotional underlying reason your dog guards is because they are afraid of losing the thing they value. Learning to recognize your dog’s body language is the first step towards managing resource guarding.


Signs your dog resource guards


• They spin to protect their food when you approach


• They take a new chew toy into another room and turns their back on you


• They use their body to block access to an object


• They exhibit other body language such as standing frozen, curling their lip when you approach, growling and even barking


Pro tips


• Never bother your dog when they are eating a meal.


• Don’t try to take an item from your dog. Always make a trade.


• If guests, children or other animals come into your home, remove all items from the ground that your dog may choose to guard.



"Trade Exercise"

What to do if your dog is guarding an item, and you need to get it from them


• You should make a trade


• To facilitate the trade, toss your dog something REALLY special like a piece of chicken or a favorite toy


• Toss it far enough away from your dog that you can safely grab the item you need


• The goal is for your dog to recognize that when you approach, and they have an item, good things happen


• Over time, as your dog learns to trust you, their tendency to resource guard will decrease