ldawntaylor
Loving the herd life
In reading these posts I was remembering when I got my dog Lady. When I got her about 10 years ago she would growl and came close to biting me when I would feed her. In just a few minutes I had gotten to know her well enough to realize a simple reprimand wasn't going to work. That German Shepherd/Black Labrador cross can be really stubborn sometimes.
Anyway, when I fed her the next time I found a long stick so that I could stay at least five feet away from her. I poked the food dish and she proceeded to break the tree branch. So I found a thicker one that she couldn't break.
Each meal I would jostle her dish, sometimes just once and sometimes several times. When she got used to the dish being moved like that I got a shorter stick and went through the process again...a few weeks later I went to nudging the bowl with my foot. She didn't bite but she did growl at me. But, I kept at it. Eventually she reached the point she wasn't disturbed by my kicking her bowl. At that point I started using my hand just to nudge the bowl periodically. Now I can take food from the bowl while she is eating if I wish.
At the point where I started kicking the bowl while she ate I also started patting her back or scratching her shoulders and such while she ate. Until that point I had not been touching her during her feeding.
Through out those weeks I had been spending as much time as I could around her and interacting with her. Giving her a bone and letting her chew on it in peace. But also throwing a ball for her and working to get her to give it to me.
Now if I stand still in the yard she will be sitting leaning against me. She often wants her belly rubbed and stuff like that. The level of trust that has developed has been amazing. I guess she got to the point that she trusts me to take care of her.
Anyway, when I fed her the next time I found a long stick so that I could stay at least five feet away from her. I poked the food dish and she proceeded to break the tree branch. So I found a thicker one that she couldn't break.
Each meal I would jostle her dish, sometimes just once and sometimes several times. When she got used to the dish being moved like that I got a shorter stick and went through the process again...a few weeks later I went to nudging the bowl with my foot. She didn't bite but she did growl at me. But, I kept at it. Eventually she reached the point she wasn't disturbed by my kicking her bowl. At that point I started using my hand just to nudge the bowl periodically. Now I can take food from the bowl while she is eating if I wish.
At the point where I started kicking the bowl while she ate I also started patting her back or scratching her shoulders and such while she ate. Until that point I had not been touching her during her feeding.
Through out those weeks I had been spending as much time as I could around her and interacting with her. Giving her a bone and letting her chew on it in peace. But also throwing a ball for her and working to get her to give it to me.
Now if I stand still in the yard she will be sitting leaning against me. She often wants her belly rubbed and stuff like that. The level of trust that has developed has been amazing. I guess she got to the point that she trusts me to take care of her.
