[Romulus]

Lately Rom has been VERY aggressive with his food towards my 15 year old foxie. I know Bullies can be intolerant towards other dogs, but hes only 20 weeks old.

Its pretty scary, he doesn't just growl at him, he grabs him by the throat and pins him! I'm afraid its only a matter of time before he becomes aggressive over anything.

He is NEVER like it towards me or any family members. He wont even touch his food before we give the command to eat. We can all take the food away from him at any time without him becoming aggressive.

I tried feeding them far apart, be he will run straight for Bundy ( the foxie ) and start attacking him. I tried pining him to the ground and being VERY firm with him. He submits to me. As soon as I let him up, off he goes again, straight for poor bundy.

Bundy tries to be the dominant dog, but Rom will have no part of that. I hear people talk about "game" dogs, well look no farther then my boy Bundy!! he puts tries to fight back against Rom who is 4 times his weight.

I have now started to feed them where Rom cant get to Bundy. When no food is involved, they play like best friends.

Anyone got any tips that may help stop Rom from being aggressive towards Bundy?

Thanks for your time

[Teal]

If the only time aggression occurs right now is when food is around, then don't let them be around each other when food is involved! Feed in separate rooms with the doors closed, or in crates.

[Dray]

Hi it does sound like he is feeling his feet and the only thing you can try is to feed Bundy first and while Bundy is eating you stand in between the two and demand that Romulus leaves well alone. This really only should be done to see how bad the aggression is and if i was you i would always feed seperate from now on.
There has to be a top dog and what does Bundy do when he approaches Romulus while he is eating, does Rom growl first or straight attack? All my dogs will behave how i want them to and they do have the odd growl but as i never have them together unless i am arround i can always shout at them to BEHAVE! and that is all it takes as no matter what the problem might be i am their pack leader and therefore in total control. You may want to consider seeking the help of a behaviorist as they will assess the situation from the outside looking in and you will see it totoally different.
Romulus is now at that age when they start to fancy their chances and as long as you are consistant and remain on top of the slightest disturbance, remembering that you have to let Romulus do something slightly wrong so that when you tell him off he knows what he has done wrong.
Please let me know how you progress as i strongly believe that if you say he is submissive to you then you should be able to control this situation as long as you are always around, never leave them alone together until you can trust them both 200%

Dray x

[Mollie's Nana]

Always feed them separately. I don't ever feed Bella and Mollie at the same time. I block Mollie from the kitchen when Bella eats, and when Mollie eats, Bella is in her crate, it's the best way to avoid an altercation between them over food.

[Tahirih & Christian]

let me offer an alternative.....in my house we have 7 dogs (2 rotts, 2 foxhound/pit mixes, 2 AmStaffs and a catahoula) plus 1 foster (pit) and everybody eats and drinks together. Whenever we have added a new baby, we hand feed everybody together for a few minutes, then place their food bowl back down. Using a touch method, we correct anyone who gets too pushy or "grumbles" or growls. If we have to give the same dog a second warning, we physically block them from the bowl with our body and allow the others to continue eating. Once the offender has calmed down, we allow them to rejoin. Some dogs adjust to this very quickly and some need more time and patience. We make it very clear in our house that certain behaviors are unacceptable and will not be tolerated. Consistency is the key to success with this but the same methods work for toys, treats and bones. EVERYTHING is shared in our house and when another dog comes as a guest our dogs share with them as well. Think of it this way, would you want to have to lock one of your children in their room to feed the other kid? NO, so why do that with your dogs? Now, that said, some older dogs who have never had to share can be very difficult to re-train to share and especially if your new addition is a puppy, it could possibly be hazardous. MN has sort of that situation with Mollie and Bella, as I understand. I have had dogs all my life and have never fed any of them seperately.

[Dray]

Originally Posted by Tahirih & Christian let me offer an alternative.....in my house we have 7 dogs (2 rotts, 2 foxhound/pit mixes, 2 AmStaffs and a catahoula) plus 1 foster (pit) and everybody eats and drinks together. Whenever we have added a new baby, we hand feed everybody together for a few minutes, then place their food bowl back down. Using a touch method, we correct anyone who gets too pushy or "grumbles" or growls. If we have to give the same dog a second warning, we physically block them from the bowl with our body and allow the others to continue eating. Once the offender has calmed down, we allow them to rejoin. Some dogs adjust to this very quickly and some need more time and patience. We make it very clear in our house that certain behaviors are unacceptable and will not be tolerated. Consistency is the key to success with this but the same methods work for toys, treats and bones. EVERYTHING is shared in our house and when another dog comes as a guest our dogs share with them as well. Think of it this way, would you want to have to lock one of your children in their room to feed the other kid? NO, so why do that with your dogs? Now, that said, some older dogs who have never had to share can be very difficult to re-train to share and especially if your new addition is a puppy, it could possibly be hazardous. MN has sort of that situation with Mollie and Bella, as I understand. I have had dogs all my life and have never fed any of them seperately.

Well explained
Your house, your pack, your rules and so a happy friendly home
Dray x

[Rosies Mum]

Daisy our youngest was never aggressive or food guarding but I always put a treat on the top of the food, a spoon of natural yogurt or something, and she would nip around the bowls and pinch this tasty bit.

We fed her separately for a few weeks until she got the idea that the only way she could stay and eat as part of the family was to behave and eat from only her own bowl, she soon learnt.

He will get there, at 20 weeks he's just being a stroppy teenager and you need to treat him the same way as you would a stroppy teenager, setting strick boundaries and sticking to them until he learns

[Romulus]

Yeah, im being tough on him. As soon as his food is down, and i give him the command to eat, he will go straight for Bundy, no matter where he is. I have bundy locked on the back porch, far away from Rom, and he will still charge over to him. I pin Rom on his back, be very firm with him , but as soon as soon as he relaxes and i let him up, BAM straigh for Bundy again. At puppy preschool, he couldnt have been less interested in teh food there and fighting over it.

To answer some of you Questions Dray. Bundy doesnt approach Rom, he is fine to be fed at teh same time. Rom will go to Bundy and his food and bundy would growl, then Rom would grab him by teh throat and pin him. Even though Rom has his own food, he doesnt care, he will ALWAYS go for bundy. I have now seperated tehm for every feed.

Ill Keep at it though. Thanks guys