Resource Guarding
Often a very misunderstood behaviour that can very quickly spiral out of control and become very dangerous and unenjoyable to live with.
Dogs lose their lives every day due to Resource Guarding, which is a tragic shame.
However, Resource Guarding is also very common in Beagles and French Bulldogs too.
Specialist support
What do dogs resource guard?
The list of things that dogs can guard is endless, as it is all about the learning history of that dog and the reason why they are guarding in the first place, the most common examples of things that dogs tend to guard –
The good news!
Resource Guarding is workable
Building your knowledge about where it comes from, what can impact it and learning easy techniques to use in the moment as/when needed, alongside learning how to build new techniques ahead of time to change the dog’s current associations with what they are guarding is key to moving forwards.
Progress can definitely be made
Solutions can be set in place
Get help today
All behaviour issues are helped via my 8 week behaviour support program.
Customised for you and your dog’s unique needs and challenges, every program is tailor-made to ensure individualised solutions. No two programs are alike because no two dogs share the exact same traits and requirements!
Introducing Ellie
Professional and fully qualified with the APDT and ABTC, the UK's leading dog training and behaviour associations.
Ellie has transformed many owners and families lives with her dog training and behaviour support package.
The 8 week program is tailor-made for you, your dog and the problems you have, no two programs are the same, because no two dogs are the same!
IS YOUR PUPPY RESOURCE GUARDING?
You need The Puppy Resource Guarding Prevention Program, a self-guided video series designed to easily teach you everything you need to know about:
→ Why your puppy pinches everything!
→ How to get your puppy to bring you things instead of running off with them!
→ And most importantly, how to avoid accidentally teaching your puppy to guard the treasured items they have pinched!
Case study
“Ellie’s philosophy of allowing him to have some control back in his life by allowing him to make choices really resonated with me, and worked immediately with Rolo.”
I contacted Ellie after searching through the ABTC listings of accredited behaviourists – I had originally booked an appointment with a trainer but after reading reviews that she sprays water at dogs I was horrified and wanted to find someone accredited and who used positive reinforcement techniques.
I was originally apprehensive about an appointment on Zoom rather than face to face but Ellie reassured me that we would spend more time talking about the issues at hand via Zoom rather than worrying about dog behaviour when face to face and she was absolutely right!
Rolo is an almost 2 year old Border Collie/German Shepherd mix who I rescued from Spain. He had originally been in 2 previous families, as well as a foster home while the shelter tried to rehome him.
He wasn’t receiving the right attention in terms of enrichment or exercise and as a large, and very clever and sensitive dog, he had become very stressed. Add into the mix a 40 hour journey over from Spain in a van and once he arrived, he had become overwhelmed and had bitten my neighbours 3 year old daughter.
This was an incredibly stressful time for me and as soon as I contacted Ellie I felt immediately reassured that I’d be able to get through the stress!
I had 2 sessions over Zoom and both were totally invaluable. Not only did I come out with a tonne of practical tips, but I felt really validated that I wasn’t the only dog owner in the world to experience issues and I felt very listened to and that there was a clear path forward for me and Rolo.
What I was particularly impressed by (and hadn’t expected) was the level of breed specific information that Ellie was able to give to me.
She was able to clearly delineate why and what Rolo was doing based on his genetics and upbringing, and that in itself just made so much sense as to why he was behaving in certain ways.
This was completely above and beyond any of my frantic googling both before and after he arrived and showed why I really needed specific expertise from an accredited behaviourist.
A lot of the behaviours we worked on were around de-stressing Rolo and helping him to settle into his new life. He was resource guarding (new toys and food) and Ellie had some very practical training examples to help him reduce his desire to guard. He also needed help with desensitising to the car, and to his harness, both of which he hated and ran away from.
Ellie’s philosophy of allowing him to have some control back in his life by allowing him to make choices really resonated with me, and worked immediately with Rolo.
I really valued Ellie being available on Whatsapp to answer additional questions, and send videos to, so she could assess how we were doing and suggest tweaks, as well as her sending very specific training videos so we had a visual guide of what we needed to do.
Rolo is now 8 weeks into his new life in the UK and is so much more mellow than when he arrived! We still have lots to work on, but the techniques of positive reinforcement and allowing him to make his own choices have really worked well on him, and he is showing significantly less stressed behaviour.
