How to teach your dog to share
Can you approach your dog while they’re eating and move the food bowl?
Are they possessive of their toys?
Does your pup growl at you when you sit on ‘their’ sofa?
Do they growl at your friends and family when they approach you?
All of these situations are versions of “Resource Guarding”.
If you’re unsure what your dog’s reaction might be to any of these scenarios, watch them closely in these situations as their behaviour may be more subtle than you realize.
Dogs have Big Teeth
Often people think dog bites come out of nowhere but you’re usually given many chances to back off before a dog finally resorts to biting.
When most dogs feel threatened, they’ll move through a progression that ends with a bite. The signs can be subtle, like becoming very rigid, giving you a hard stare or curling their lip.
However, if you don’t read the signs effectively your dog may follow them up with something more obvious like a growl, snap or bite.
If you’re lucky you’ll get all of these warnings, but some dogs skip a few steps and go straight to the bite. It’s very effective.
It’s really important for you to learn what your dog’s signs are and to teach them that sharing is fun.
How to teach your dog to share
One of my client’s dogs used to steal balls from other dogs at the beach and then guard them. She was a big girl and very intimidating when she got growly so her mum hired me to walk and train her.
I started out by training her at her home to “drop” certain objects, using the steps below.
Then we went to the dog beach and continued training in the real world with real distractions (balls, dogs, and people).
It worked so well and as a result she was happy to give up whatever she’d stolen for a food reward.
Follow the steps below to teach your dog to “Drop”
Tips for a successful training session
Load yourself up with fantastic treats – liver, chicken, cheese etc.
Remember that you should only move on to the next step once your dog is successful at the step you’re on.
Progress slowly. If your dog stops relinquishing the object, you have pushed too hard, so go back to the previous step.
Keep all training sessions short and fun.
Step 1
Give your dog something of low value such as a toy they don’t really care about and wiggle it in front of them until they put it in their mouth.
Encourage pup to give it up by showing them your treat and saying “drop it”.
When pup drops the toy, reward them with a treat, and then give the object back to them.
Step 2
Now move onto an item pup has guarded in the past but don’t let go when they put it in their mouth
Ask them to “drop it”’ and when they let go, quickly reward them with a treat.
Repeat this process over and over again with every object they’ve guarded.
Step 3
Give pup an object they’ve guarded in the past and let it go this time.
Ask pup to “drop it” and then treat them.
Step 4
Repeat step 3, but after you’ve let go of the object, back away across to the other side of the room, wait several seconds, then re-approach and practice the exchange. Repeat over and over with all objects.
Step 5
Now leave objects lying around and when pup spontaneously picks one up, practice the exchange.
Practice in a variety of locations with as many different objects as possible so your dog learns to be relaxed about their possessions and is happy to share.
For more puppy raising tactics, save your seat in my free masterclass
“3 Simple Tactics for Raising a Well-Behaved Dog”
