# HELP Dog problem (text heavy sorry)



## pookycb (Feb 14, 2014)

First some background information:

I have 2 small dogs. Harley who is a pomeranian yorkie mix, he is 11 lbs and Tinkerbell who is a total mutt (we think probably terrier maltese mix) she is 7 lbs. 

Before Harley and Tinkerbell, I had a schnoodle named Smarty. She was getting really old and we bought Harley to "replace" Smarty once we put her down. We had Smarty and Harley together for about 6 months and then it was Smarty's time to be put down. When we first brought Harley home he was a normal puppy and was extremely small. The first week we had him home he had an accident. My younger sister was rough housing with my dad and ran and chased my dad into the bedroom and the wee Harley followed and my mum and my sister and dad didn't see him until it was too late. Harley was stood on by my sister right on his neck for only a brief minute. He was immediately rushed to the emergency vet. Shockingly his neck was not broken but he had had oxygen cut off from his brain for long enough that he had brain damage and we had a tough decision to either put him to sleep, or spend an insane amount of money and try and save his life (the vet was confident that he was young enough he would regain brain function and he would make a full recovery although it would be a long process). SO we spent the money and saved his life and like the vet had thought he did regrain brain function and he learned to walk again and eat again and now you wouldn't know this ordeal happened to him when you first met him. He does have some small side effects such as he can not quite master being house trained so he sometimes has accidents in the house, he does sometimes lose his balance, he has bad depth perception and he is extremely scared of fast movement and people walking near him but other than that he is the sweetest little lover and cuddler and is a great dog.

Once we put Smarty down we were content to only have Harley but we soon found that he missed her terribly and whenever he saw a white dog of any kind he would cry and cry. So we started looking for a small white dog friend for him. We also hoped that another dog would help Harley relearn more doggie traits. We found Tinkerbell on Petfinder.com. When we first brought Tinkerbell home she was 2 years old and Harley was a year and they got along famously! And as we had hoped Tinkerbell helped Harley learn new things she helped him better learn to be house trained and how not to be scared to go on walks and how to play with dog toys. 

But as Tinkerbell is getting older (she is now 7) she seems to becoming a real grump. About a year maybe 2 years ago she had to have dental surgery and get her teeth cleaned and had some teeth pulled. This for me seems to be when my problem started. 

Smarty had also been a rescue dog and we let her free feed so her bowl was always filled with food and on the floor, so when we brought Harley home he learned to be a free feeder too. It has always worked well for us with him and Smarty they never over ate. So when we brought Tinkerbell home I wanted to feed her like most people do and feed a specific times so the food wasn't always available. But Harley did not eat the food when it was given to him at these specific times he just did not understand and we tried and tried. So Tinkerbell had to learn to free feed as well. Harley and Tinker also have always shared a bowl. Even if we give them their own bowls they still will eat food out of both. Tinkerbell and Harley free feeding has never been a problem until she had her dental surgery. 

She had to be switched from dry food to wet food because she had a lot of teeth pulled and was recovering. So we gave them both wet food seperately and they ate right after we had dinner. No problem. Then once she was all recovered we had to introduce their new dental care food to them. We had told the vet they free feed and he said it was fine for Harley to eat the dental food because it would help his teeth as well. But I guess Tinkerbell thought this food was just hers so she would guard it and snap at Harley when he went to get food. So we gave them their own bowls again. The problem is that the food is big and has to be worked at to be chewed and broken apart so both dogs do not stay at their bowls when eating they take the one piece of giant kibble and go somewhere else to eat it. Which at first we saw no issues with it because Harley usually eats in my room and Tinkerbell would go somewhere else. But recently we have noticed that Tinkerbell will either follow Harley with his piece and she brings her piece as well so then she snaps and barks at him intenionally because she followed him. But what she also is doing is even if Harley isn't eating his own piece of giant kibble (he could be just peacefully lying on my floor in my room, or downstairs in his bed or anywhere) Tinkerbell brings her piece of food to wherever Harley is and will set it down and lie down slightly away from the kibble and waits. She places the kibble in such a spot that if Harley wants to leave the area he is and go to a different spot or different room he has to pass the kibble and then Tinkerbell attacks him because he went to "take" her food. Once we noticed she was purposely placing the kibble we would take the kibble away from her so she she no longer had a reason to attack him. My mum and dad are pretty good about taking the food from her if shes purposely placing it. But what I also do is I will tell her to eat the kibble or I take it, which works she usually will eat it before Harley is near her. 

But now she is also attacking him when they get their treats. I give them a treat in the morning when I wake up and usually we all go back to my room and they eat their treat no issue. But then she started not eating her treat at the same time Harley was and she was "saving" it and placing it just like the kibble. So I did the same thing I woud tell her to eat it or the treat gets taken from her. But now she is attacking Harley for his treat as well as keeping her own. And she is vicious! She knows he does not understand how to fight (something he doesn't understand and hasn't learned because of his brain injury) and she can knock him off balance and pin him and she goes for his neck or head. I yell at her and make noise and loud bangs to try and get her attention. I am afraid to pull her off of him because that's how vicious she is and I know its not safe to get in the middle of a dog fight because I could get hurt. But the past 2 times (1 time for sure) there was blood. I give Harley his treat and am now telling him to go on my bed and eat it. This seems to work because she will not go on the bed to eat anything so they both eat it and then she leaves him alone. But this is getting worse and worse. 

I am not sure what else to do. She only is mean and attacks him when treats are involved or if she is purposely placing the kibble. The rest of the time she is cuddly toward him and us and doesn't do anything. Does anyone have advice on what to do? I am sorry for this long tale. My mum said if we cannot resolve the issue Tinkerbell will have to be rehomed. Which I know is fair to protect Harley but I would feel so bad for Tinkerbell because she is super sweet and I don't think she would understand why.


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## Jessiferatu (Apr 30, 2014)

I am by no means a professional anything, but I did have this problem when I first brought my girl home (Sandy). Rusty, our boy, is a bit older and very relaxed. Sandy is younger and came from a shelter and I suspect she may have been a stray. When we first got her home, she was resource guarding (which is what it sounds like your pup is doing). This caused a few nasty fights. 

We started feeding them in separate areas. It did take Rusty a few days to realize that he was only getting food at specific times, but he caught on once he got hungry. We gave them treats separately also. They were not given anything that would linger (bones, rawhide, etc.) or toys in the same place. If they scuffled, whatever was causing the fight was immediately removed from the area.

Eventually, I started feeding them in the same room again but on opposite sides with close supervision. Then I started introducing treats and toys, again with close supervision. Now they are fed twice a day, in the same room, and without incident. They don't always clear their bowls right away either.

The biggest thing I've learned with dogs is that positive reinforcement is key. When they do something you like, reward them immediately (treat, attention, playtime - whatever they prefer). If they are doing something you don't like, you do not give them ANY attention. Yelling, making noises, swatting - these things really don't help and tend to reinforce the unwanted behavior. You definitely don't want to stick your hand in the middle of a doggy scuffle because you will most likely end up bleeding. But what you can do, is immediately remove Tinkerbell from the area if she is showing signs of aggression. Eventually she will learn that her behavior is not acceptable.

I know your dogs have been together for a while, but sometimes changes in routine can cause an uproar and you have to kind of start over. And sometimes it just takes time and practice to get things right. I hope you don't have to re-home Tinkerbell. Best of luck.


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