Resource Guarding My Bed

[Guest jettimarie]

Hi everyone,

 

I apologize in advance for the length!

 

I am a first time greyhound owner [not a first time dog owner]. I've had Darwin for a few months now. Recently, Darwin has started resource guarding my bed. I blame myself a little, because I think I may have missed the signals. When I adopted him, the shelter told me he was easily startled and often would snarl if woken up abruptly, but would stop within a second when he realized what was happening. We worked on this, I would wake him up by tossing his favorite toy at him, or balled up socks, etc, from closer and closer until he was fine.

 

Still, every now and then if he was asleep on the bed and I or my boyfriend sat down too hard, or tugged the blanket, he would wake up and let out a growl. But then he would see us and lean in for a pet, so I associated with the startledness and moved on. He's not allowed on the bed during the day, and is usually very responsive to "off" and "up" when it is time to get out.

 

Recently, it's gotten a lot worse. He was asleep on the bed, and I crawled in. I simply shifted positions and he woke up snarling and stiff, but this time it didn't stop. I had to loop his leash around him and tug him off to get him out. Since then he hasn't been allowed in the room at all, but I hate locking him out of the whole space. I also don't want this to spread to his own bed or the couch or a chair.

 

I grew up with dogs/pets but generally we got young dogs/puppies, so training was fairly easy. I've never had to deal with resource guarding. Can anyone give some tips on how to fix this problem?

Everything I'm reading says "trade for something better" but does that really work for guarding space?

 

Thanks!

[Brandiandwe]

TBH I wouldn't be letting him on the bed at all or any furniture. Hermon had sleep startle which resulted in him biting DH. No injuries were done, but he was kept off all furniture for some time. He's now fine, but it took some time of setting boundaries and him understanding that if he wants I disturbed sleep, the dog bed is the place to it, not the sofa or my bed.

 

ETA there is a difference between sleep startle and resource guarding, although we've managed them similarly. Resource guarding is often dealt with by trading up, but sleep startle can't be done similarly because its a reflex thing. Hermon's resource guarding of the couch was dealt with by not being allowed on there and trading up. The sleep startle was managed by helping him feel secure with his humans nearby (which is why during thunderstorms we have two greyhounds wedged in between us on the bed), but it might not be something that can be resolved.

Edited December 18, 2013 by Brandiandwe

[Guest Wasserbuffel]

I would revoke furniture privileges for now, perhaps for good. It took a good year before my girl was no longer reactive when on the furniture. She'd go through good periods, then turn into a grumpus if we wanted to share the couch with her. I'd revoke furniture privileges for a week or so (leashing the dog to me in order to keep her on her dog bed during those times - crating at night) then slowly allow her back on while I sat on the couch and rewarded her for sharing nicely. Eventually she learned that she had to share if she wanted to be on the couch. She even started kicking herself off the couch if she guarded, then she just stopped guarding all together.

 

Sleep startle is something you might be able to slowly decrease in him. Toss soft objects on him (balled socks, stuffed toys) from a distance to get him used to being touched while sleeping. At a couple months he's still very, very new to this whole thing. Remember that in his life as a racer he had his own room and nobody ever touched him while he was sleeping. He needs time to learn that it's no threat to him that you guys move about in the bed he's sharing with you.

 

My dog went from snapping if we leaned over her, and growling if we sat on the other end of the couch, to now allowing me to pretty much sit on top of her. It took over a year, but it happened.

Edited December 18, 2013 by Wasserbuffel

[GeorgeofNE]

Sleep startle, not resource guarding.

 

No more sleeping with the dog for a while!

[a_daerr]

It sounds like your boy is space guarding. Resource guarding is a little different, usually when the dog refuses to give up toys, treats, bones, or some other tangible reward. For a resource guarder, "trading up" is a great method of training, but probably not helpful for your specific problem. The good news is that both types of guarding are EXTREMELY common in greyhounds. The vast majority get better with time and training. Both of my greyhounds started off snarky on the bed, and now, I can shove or jostle them in every way imaginable without so much as a peep.

 

As the others have said, your best bet is to revoke furniture privileges immediately. I'd do this for awhile, at least a couple weeks. If you're not there to supervise, close your bedroom door or gate it off. If you catch him jumping up on the bed, respond with a verbal command (like "off"), then lead him away by the collar. If he's snarky, you may want to have a leash close by so you can clip it to his collar and remove him that way. You want to do this as calmly as possible- no yelling or physical corrections. During the time that he's "banished" from the furniture, it's a good idea to implement some basic training, either formally or informally. Many people on this forum recommend NILF ("Nothing in Life is Free") training because it helps establish roles and boundaries. If, in the future you feel comfortable allowing him on the bed again, be consistent. If he snarks, then immediately respond with your verbal command and remove him. Eventually the dog equates growling and snapping = me getting kicked off, and that's punishment enough.

[Guest DogNewbie]

Hugs to you and Darwin!

 

I am no expert on the topic (Wiley is my first greyhound and dog!), I just wanted to say good luck! Wiley had some space aggression when we first got him. Whether it was us or other dogs getting to close to his bubble he would growl and snap. He has gotten much better! He is still a little leery of other people in his face or dogs but he is perfect with us! He sleeps on our bed and we can push him over and he is totally fine! We can even pet him on his bed! I think it just takes time, patience and trust.