Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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I'm getting to my wit's end about Rocket, the 'Keeper of the Krumbs'! He is not an aggressive in any other way except about crumbs!
Crumbs belong to him! If Comet just hints at sniffing the floor whether there is a crumb or not, he pounces the floor, has a nasty face and growls at her. He can be a mile away and still come and do it.
He's extremely bright and is good about treats and treat tricks together. I always give Comet the treat first and he's fine with that. I always make him sit before getting a treat. He's fine with that. But the minute you look away and if by chance Comet sniffs the floor - he's loses his temper.
I've tried crating him in the 'naughty crate' immediately after his loses his temper. (a crate not used for anything else) I've tried to put a toy in his face right afterwards before he notices any floor sniffing (that's works a little). We've tried pinning him down immediately after he has lost his temper.
He immediately gets submissive and will try to make up to Comet afterwards. But I'm afraid he's at the point of trying to bite her to get to the so-called crumb. She won't bite him. She growls a little but walks away. I am always right on top of the situation. And they are never alone with each other. (which rather sucks since I have to be keen on his actions all the time)
Anyone have any suggestions? ...short of giving him away!
He's so lovable to us and super duper bright, he has to know it's upsetting. It really upsets Comet because she likes tranquility and she hates that he makes us mad.
Comet - 1999 to 2011
She departed us unexpectedly  January 23, 2011 at the age of 12 1/2.
She was born with a deformed front leg and a tripawd all of her life.
Sounds like Monkeybutt needs to learn some manners. We recommend the Gentle Leader and the long lead line it comes with. The included booklet alone is valauable with its training tips and instructions for proper use.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Boy do I sympathize with you. Emily was the sweetest most gentle dog - we could take food out of her mouth - but when new toys entered the house she morphed into a monster. Even though there would be three of the same toy she would gather them together and stand guard over them not letting the other dogs play with them.
We would reach down and take toys and give them to the other dogs but as soon as we turned out backs she had them again. It got where we had to put her in another room so the dogs could play with their own toys! The next day she would be fine and the other dogs could take whatever toy they wanted. The ironic thing is she wasn't a toy-playing dog. She just stoood guard over them.
The only other time she did that was with rawhide bones so we just didn't buy them.
In all other aspects Emily was very gentle and non-aggressive so we just lived with it. Crumbs are more common place though. I don't have any solutions but I wanted to let you know that you don't have , or in my case had, the only brat! LOL!
Debra
Debra & Emily, a five year old doberman mix, who was diagnosed with an osteosaecoma. She had a right rear leg amputation on May 19, 2009. On November 10, 2009 she earned her wings and regained her fourth leg.
The gentle leader is a great idea! If that doesn't help, try a squirt bottle filled with water, if plain water doesn't work add a small amount of vinegar. It won't hurt the dog, but they don't like the smell. As soon as you see Rocket show the signs of pouncing on a crumb, squirt him!
I keep a bottle in the kitchen and in the living room, that way I have one handy when I need it. Works to keep Chuy from trying to steal food from us. 
Chuy, showing everyone that Tripawds do everything 3 times better than regular dogs!
Anatolians (Cemil and Mujde) are known for food aggression. What I do is feed them separately. When Mujde came to us, we had another wave of aggression, but, in addition to feeding each one in a different place, when it was treat time, I made them sit and gave them treats one at a time. If she looked interested in someone else's treat (or the crumbs they dropped), I scolded her and made her stay sitting. Finally after a few months, she figured out that there is enough for everybody and she gets her share and she stopped the aggressive behavior. I don't know if this helps--it sounds like you're aleady doing everything right. Feeding separately and making sure there are no crumbs may be the only solution.
Cemil and mom Mary, Mujde and Radzi….appreciating and enjoying Today
Another thing that worked when puppy training Jerry was an empty soda can with a handful of pennies and taped closed. At the instant of unwanted behavior, and quick hard shake can divert attention if not send Rocket scurrying.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Thanks all! I've never had a food aggressive dog in my life. I had big dogs that fought when excited or mad. I've got scars! So, I get flashbacks and it makes me probably more nervous than normal. These two probably wouldn't get hurt in a fight since she won't bite.
Dammit we used to have so much fun with Cherios - I would toss them to Comet and Rugby while I was on the treadmill and they looked so forward to it. I found out the hard way when we got Rocket, the Cherios days were over for Comet.
How would the collar thingy work? Would he have to be on a leash all day? He is trained and is pretty good. But he loses his mind over a crumb! He isn't the slightest bit food aggressive with the humans!
They are separate when I feed them. I have tried feeding him in his crate, also. So, he's pretty good about after eating meals and not going on the attack. But we have so many rituals with food. They get a treat when I leave and come back. They get a treat when daddy leaves for work. They get a carrot at night and then we do a treat trick every night where they get a paper towel as a plate on the floor and they have to wait until I let them eat the treats I have (one at a time). I know, they seem to get a treat for breathing it seems!
I'm going to try the water bottle, I've only tried it once because of his incessant barking in Comet's face when he wants to play. It upset him so I swore I wouldn't do it again BUT...
If he wasn't so darned cute, mischievious and lovable - I'd open the front door and wish him well! (just kidding!)
Comet - 1999 to 2011
She departed us unexpectedly  January 23, 2011 at the age of 12 1/2.
She was born with a deformed front leg and a tripawd all of her life.
Well, can it be that Rocket thinks he should be 'top dog' but hasn't had a chance to exert his dominance, so he keeps trying? I have generally been advised to let dogs in a household work it out, and also for humans to go along with the hierarchy as established by the dogs (rather than try to impose our own hierarchy, as it might seem if you punish Rocket when he tries to exert his dominance). Once they work out who it 'on top' (and it is highly unlikely they will do any damage), you should be able to leave them alone. It sounds as though Comet's status is probably reinforced a lot given the special attention she gets. But maybe Rocket sees an elderly Miss and figures he should get some elevated status. You definitely want a solution where you don't have to be present to monitor them all the time. If she acknowledges his dominance by withdrawing, he'll probably just try it a few more times and then be less grouchy. Just sounds like a dominance thing they need to work out.
Wow. Tough one. Do you get in his bowl while he is eating? I have done this with every pup I ever had and, knock on wood, none of my dogs have been food agressive. When I have had multiple dogs at one time, I fed them at the same time in the same room and would get down on the floor while they were eating and stick my hand in their bowls. If they growled, I would take the food away, wait a few moments and repeat. But you said monkeybutt does this with crumbs and is only agressive when Comet shows interest in a crumb, so that is tricky...
This may sound mean, but I wonder if you would be able to turn him against crumbs? i.e. if for the next week or so, every crumb he encountered tasted bad, maybe he could be convinced that all crumbs are bad to eat, so it wouldn't matter if Comet took interest. Cheerios sprayed with bitter apple or a touch of cayenne pepper? It would take some work, because you would have to work with him without Comet being around.
I cannot tell you why, but Opie will not eat things off the floor. If kibble is spilled outside the container, it willl sit there for days until I pick it up. Right now, I am looking at a one of those cheesy goldfish lying on the floor that has been there since two days ago. Opie is sleeping with his nose two feet away from it...weird.
One of my friends is a really good dog trainer, I'll ask her if she has any ideas.
WOW!
That is a great idea! We could set him up!
Comet is like Opie, she won't eat crumbs on the floor either. That is what is so frustrating. She could care less but she'll sniff the floor out of habit. And when we did the Cherios Toss, she'd only eat them if they landed on her pad outside. (I made sure most of them did!) Rugby would eat them laying beside a bug and if the bug got swept up with his tongue, so be it!
I'm one of those that like the training to be "ignore the negative and reward the positive". So, this is so hard. My other option is to do a 'controlled' Cheerio Toss until he learns to stop having a temper tantrum.
Comet - 1999 to 2011
She departed us unexpectedly  January 23, 2011 at the age of 12 1/2.
She was born with a deformed front leg and a tripawd all of her life.
Tazz,
I think you nailed it from what I read, too. It's a dominance issue really. It may be a teenager issue, too. I keep thinking have to keep the pecking order like it is. I'm afraid he'll bully her all the time. Don't know.
Admin - I can't do the pennies in a bottle. I'm pushing it with a spray bottle. This would upset Comet. She has all those emotional issues that I have to walk a fine line or she'll withdraw and get so scared. Disturbances are so hard on her. She is already upset that we are upset at him.
Comet - 1999 to 2011
She departed us unexpectedly  January 23, 2011 at the age of 12 1/2.
She was born with a deformed front leg and a tripawd all of her life.
cometdog said:
How would the collar thingy work? Would he have to be on a leash all day?
The head collar is a great training tool. You would need to leave it on, and use the included 12' long lead to work with Monkeybutt to break his behavior. Or use a regular leash and stage some crumb dropping action, then play the Look at Me game. Reward him only when he looks at you instead of the crumbs... just one of the valuable training lesson's we've learned from Sarah Wilson.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
Here is a great article about this, ahem, challenge, from our most favorite trainer, Sarah Wilson.
"Guarding and Showing Aggression Over Resources."
If Sarah can help Wild Boy Wart Hog Road Flare Wyatt Ray Dawg, she must know what she's doing! Check out our Amazon Blog video which shows her working with him.
Tripawds Founders Jim and Rene
tripawds.com | tripawds.org | bemoredog.net | triday.pet
I'm with Tazzie. It sounds like the new boy is actually top dog - he doesn't think he's top dog, he IS top dog, IMHO. The fact that Comet walks away confirms it. You won't be able to force your idea of the hierarchy on them, because it simply doesn't work like that. If you try, they'll still jostle for position, but behind your back, and unless you want to crate them every single minute when you can't watch over them, you won't win. Usually what tends to happen is that the aggression escalates when people try to arrange the pack order and one day you could get bloodshed.
If it were me, I'd start treating Rocket like top dog and see if it all calms down - I'm willing to bet it will. What you need to remember is that dogs don't care what position they hold as long as they know where they are. And the worst fights happen between 'betas' so it's not a case of you exerting your own dominance over the pair of them, either.
This doesn't sound like ordinary food aggression (unless there's consistent sniping at meal or treat times) but for normal food aggression, I recommend separating at mealtimes.
You can work on a dog's acceptance of you being near his food - I do it by making sure that I'm touching the dog somewhere when I hand over a treat. I put a hand on their shoulder as I offer it and don't immediately remove it. I also hang onto the treat for a second or two before I let go - and I do this when I put their dinner down too. With a new dog, I have one hand on his/her shoulder as the dish goes down. Once this is OK by the dog and they show no sign of wanting to rush off or any sign of suspicion towards me, I also briefly touch them in passing while they're eating. I let them know I'm coming by talking to them, and it's just a second and I'm gone. 'Trading up' is the next step, where you offer something even more desirable in exchange for what they're eating.
I've had two dogs now with some degree of food aggression. Both ended up perfectly safe after doing this. 🙂
cometdog said:
Tazz,
I think you nailed it from what I read, too. It's a dominance issue really. It may be a teenager issue, too. I keep thinking have to keep the pecking order like it is. I'm afraid he'll bully her all the time. Don't know.
Admin - I can't do the pennies in a bottle. I'm pushing it with a spray bottle. This would upset Comet. She has all those emotional issues that I have to walk a fine line or she'll withdraw and get so scared. Disturbances are so hard on her. She is already upset that we are upset at him.
I'm glad you weren't offended when I suggested it was a dominance thing that you might just let unfold. Tazzie was not bothered by anyone, so if a runty dog wanted to be food aggressive, he just walked away. He still preferred to be around a grouchy dog than to be without any dog. I'd just let Rocket do his thing and see what happens, even if you are a bit nervous about that. It sounds as though Comet will avoid him. After a few times, Rocket will lighten up, but then you sadly have to accept their hierarchy, which you understandably don't want to do.
Last weekend I walked a cranky malamute, Noka, along with a teenager labradoodle, Lupin, who happens to be nearly as tall as a Dane (really!). Noka pinned Lupin to the ground at first, but you could tell he wasn't actually biting into his neck or doing harm (although it sounded bad). After that, Lupin gave him a wide birth, thank goodness. By the end of the walk, Noka would just give one dirty look to Lupin and Lupin stayed back. You could tell that Noka was proud but also starting to like Lupin by the end, once his dominance was well-acknowledged. I'm sure they will be good buddies next time. (Of course, we'll all let Comet be dominant on the tripawd website.)
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