New dog stealing treats from old dog

strandroad

And so we have two fellas now, having introduced a new dog a few months ago. They are 12yo and (the new one) 2yo, so obviously of very different temperaments but they get along fine; they are not affectionate but they can share a sofa or the backseat just fine, they run up to you together when called, gang up on you for walkies etc.

The only thing is that the new dog is a horrible thief of treats. If the two of them are given anything nice to eat/chew, he will devour his treat or abandon it and go after the other dog's treat, hovering around him and getting in his face until he can grab the treat and run away. We are spending a lot of time trying to train it out of him (he responds to training well in general) but the pull is just too strong. The older dog is bigger, we will growl or bark to chase him away but he is slow and the youngster will keep trying anyway. It's about the game/greed and not hunger - he may leave his own treat behind to go after the other one. He's not aggressive either, just sneaky and relentless.

I want to protect the oldie, his health has not been great and he should not be put in any situations where he can get injured, stressed etc. Falling over is not safe for a dog his age. The newbie means no harm but he's big too and accidents may happen, plus the oldie is visibly annoyed that he can't be left alone to enjoy his treats. Just this morning I had to give the newbie a proper telling off because he bumped into the oldie really hard but he seems to think it's all a game and the regular training message does not sink in. Eventually they were left without the filled bones I had prepared for them because the newbie wouldn't stop until he was squatting on both (they have rubber toys too of course and these are shared fine, it's just edible treats that trigger the game).

Any practical advice on how to teach him to leave the other dog in peace?

boomerang

I always separate my crew when giving treats, so there can't be any rows. Josie goes into her crate to have her treat and then Boo is loose, so they can eat in peace. If you don't have a crate, how about giving them the treats in seperate rooms, or if it's dry out, put the younger lad outside to enjoy his, until your older dog is finished eating his?

strandroad

Oh yes, I forgot to say that we do it successfully with smaller treats, but the biggest issue is with larger treats designed to keep them at it for hours - filled bones, frozen kongs, the likes. The layout of the house (open living space) is such that we can't really separate them for longer periods, unless one is locked in a bedroom/crate... not a great perspective when apart from this one issue they are good to be left to roam the house freely!

Ehhh dogs

DBB

Would it work if you were to find a way to tie one dog's chew at one end of the room, and the other at t'other? Or would youngster abandon his and go pester the other fella anyway?
Or, a puppy playpen can be made into a fence to temporarily divide a room up... Very, very handy.
I wouldn't be letting him do what he's doing either, and if I was there with them, I'd either do the above, or I'd keep youngster on a lead and harness, and attached to either me or a sturdy piece of furniture in the same room as me, until he's finished. Or rather, til the other fella's finished!

strandroad

I think he'd go after the other one anyway, he just wants them all and wants them now! The filled bone wars continued tonight, even with both of us in the room he wouldn't focus on his own and kept pestering the other dog. I think we'll have to stick to treats that can be consumed quickly as we are then able to control him; it's a pity that they can't share "endurance treats" peacefully I think it's more important not to enforce this grabbing instinct and to give our oldie the best quality of life he can have, would you agree?

aonb

Yes, think its so important that your old guy isnt pestered by the rougher young dog. His quality of life is more important to maintain in his twilight days. I have an elderly and a young brainless greedy git too. Like your two, my younger pest (that we adore) ALWAYS wants what the oldie has. And will leave his own treat/toy to go take Oldies :mad: Sometimes oldie puts up a fight (growl), sometimes gives up and sighs. They get on fine 99% of the time. The young dog is a greedy, jealous, paranoid, anxious, territorial, ADHD type, we've accepted that this is his personality (hes so very loveable in other ways I swear). We will sometimes put oldie up on the couch with his treat, and one of us guards it. We let the old one go into another room with his treat. We have a 'playpen' type fence as DBB mentioned - young dog goes nuts when he cant get at his friend and the treat! But we really try to ensure that the old dogs get some space from the young pest, and that they get some individual time with us for TLC etc

DBB

I'd be very keen to make sure the oldie isn't pestered too: he's got this far, he doesn't need a little whippersnapper giving him gyp!
I wonder... what'd happen if you could convince the younger lad to stay with his own treat? Say, for example, you were to give both of the a short treat, but you stay with the young lad, with your foot on his lead. When he finishes, ask him to do a task, say sit for 5 seconds, then voila, he gets another! When he's finished that, same again. Gradually extend the time he has to wait for his next treat, whilst the older lad can chaw away in peace? This may just help teach the young lad that controlling his impulsive behaviour pays off (a good life lesson no matter what way you look at it).
If this works, you could then start to graduate them onto slightly longer lasting treats (Kongs, maybe?), doing the same thing again, until eventually, the younger lad has been so reinforced for staying with his own chew that he continues to do so with the longer lasting stuff. I think, anyway!
You may have to tinker around with a few ideas, because you know yourself, every dog has little quirks that we need to accommodate, but the youngster really does need to learn to be more polite: looking down the road a few years, you might get a new dog, and that dog may not be as polite as your older fella is now!
I'd be inclined to build lots of impulse control stuff into his training: getting him to wait for increasingly long durations before he gets his treat, or toy, for doing X, Y or Z.

strandroad

aonb, this is exactly what's happening in our house LOL! Our upstart is a complete dote and very smart, he makes amazing progress seeing how he's a poundie. Resting with his head in my lap right now... But the senior has to be protected and spoiled the way he deserves.
DBB, thank you for this advice, we do need and will be training him like his, regardless of the treat snatching issue. He's still young and hyperish and anything that slows him down is appreciated. We can see a gentleman coming through too, luckily