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Originally Posted by pbhound ...we have always played with her food as she was eating, taken bones from her as she was chewing on them, and even rubbed her face cheaks, and chin/jaw, even had the kids do it while we were supervising it.... |
The only thing you should be doing while she's eating, if anything at all, is dropping a tidbit or two in her dish to reassure her that your presence near her dish is a good thing, rather than a chance she may lose her food. Otherwise, you run the risk of actually teaching her to be food aggressive. Let her eat in peace!
As far as bones go, those are a very high value item for a dog. If you take them away, you must give them back immediately, too, in order for her to learn that she need not be threatened that her bone will be lost forever. Or offer a trade to her .... you give me your bone and I'll give you my bone. Don't take it away without offering her something equal in value TO HER in return. Once she learns by experience that you can be trusted with something so important to her, you won't have a problem removing them without needing to trade for it.
Most importantly of all, you should NOT be putting your children at risk by teaching them it is OK to mess with the dog when she has a meal or a bone or anything else that is of high value to them. Saying you are supervising is all well and good, but the reality is if your dog decides she has had enough and goes to bite, it will likely happen so fast that you will only be a witness to it. Children should be taught to leave a dog alone when it has food, a bone, or any other item that the dog may try to protect.
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Originally Posted by pbhound as i said that we have punished her by gating her into the dinning room away from the rest of us, she is whining so much and talking you would think we are beating her, i dont know how long i can keep her in there before i get sick of her whining. my wife wants me to do it over night to help it sink in that she is not aloud to growl at anyone like that. |
Well, your wife is wrong. Dogs to not reflect on their behavior for hours on end. If they are to be corrected, you must correct them IMMEDIATELY because after the first few seconds they will not make a connection between behavior and punishment or understand why they are being rejected and will only see YOUR behavior as something very confusing. If your dog doesn't get the message from you immediately, you could isolate her for weeks and nothing more would sink in.
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Originally Posted by pbhound she thinks she is a person and has to get the last word in most of the time |
It sounds more like her owners think she is a person to me! Dogs do not think like people, they think like dogs. Get her into obedience classes and buy yourself a copy of "Culture Clash" by Jean Donaldson and read it cover to cover, twice!
It's a great book and will really go a long way towards helping you to understand how a dog sees the world and how you can help her understand her place in it. That makes for happy owners, happy dogs, and safe and happy kids.