So this happened today... Videos

Don't know what his mother was. He was just given to me by a lady with a bunch of kids who just wanted homes for them. I thought mostly Labrador until I begun to notice a much more in your face temperament. Also he is too tiny for a Labrador.

I suspect there's some sort of Spaniel (or some medium sized high energy breed I am unfamiliar with) in him. I don't find his behavior a problem with Nigredo, BUT I am sure other dogs would not be as patient as Nigredo. I don't take my dogs around other dogs often, but still I want him to be sociable.

I have decided to do the puppy classes by the way. They cost less than the Embark! He isn't vaccinated enough or old enough yet at only 8 weeks, but after his July 21 vaccination I think we can enroll.

By the way, I don't "pop" him. I used the word "bop" which in my history is just one finger lightly tapping him on the nose. Does not hurt, merely distracts him and gets his attention. I would never ever smack him over or make him yell or anything. He's just a baby and I don't wish to punish him.

Never had a puppy this young or rambunctious. Definitely new to me.

Great news about the puppy classes Am sure you'll both find them beneficial.

Bear in mind though that some dogs like being bopped & come back at you twice as hard expecting you to rough & tumble with them! Especially the more rambunctious types as you describe.

I'm by no means a 'do gooder' who has never raised my voice or punished my dogs. My oldest dog was more roughly handled and corrected than my younger two, mainly because I didn't know any better & it was the way my mum said her family dogs growing up were taught etc. So, like you, I've used the tapping on the nose techniques which is why I know some dogs find it an invitation to play rather than a mild correction lol. My oldest, being a feisty little terrier, just wanted to chomp on your fingers harder & she would bounce around getting totally OTT and hyper. It's why I soon learnt time outs work so much better!

I have noticed the gentle bop only works sometimes with him. Sometimes he stops and goes away, sometimes he attacks my hand. Depends on how riled up he is. That's why I begun trying to train a solid SIT.

He does get time outs sometimes, mostly for trying to steal food, bite hands and feet badly, or bombarding poor Nigredo too much.

I'm just glad his little intestinal troubles have cleared up and he's gaining weight now. He's a cute and happy puppy. Totally unplanned for but I want to give him a good home.

Nigredo would enjoy a GENTLE brother but does not like overly playful or rambunctious dogs. He's very mild mannered and does not like to have to defend himself.

He is learning. He's a smart guy, he's just a bit rebellious. The food snatching/greed is MUCH better than it was. He's also learning sit.

I have finally finished the cheap canned food he was getting. He won't eat Nutro MAX puppy food at all. Goes to Nigredo.

I went and got a bag of Pure Balance Salmon and Pea. He picks at it. If given nothing else, he will eat a few bits during the day. It is a decent food and he will at least eat it somewhat so it is what he will stay on for now.

Here they are today. Malone has put on quite a bit of size and he's getting quite "thick" in his set. Bold as ever, too. Suffice to say that Nigredo has the patience of a saint. Having his tail pulled like a tug toy must be beyond annoying. I do remove Malone after a while. Nigredo will not hurt him, but bring constantly harassed can't be fun either.

Sent off his Embark kit today... Excited to see what it says about him. I honestly am not sure of his breeds at all. I really think there's some Labrador... But there might be some Spaniel too. His ears don't sit right for a Labrador at all.

Judging by how he seems to be growing and his temperament, I would not be surprised to see some sort of bull breed somewhere in him too. His legs are quite short but he is very wide. Very goofy, as well.

So Malone is not a huge fan of dry food. He picks at it. Since he's a puppy, I got concerned he wasn't getting enough. He isn't round like most puppies. He's slim looking. He's definitely growing but he's slim looking.

He also doesn't like watered down food. Won't touch kibble if it's soaked with water. He's also not a big water drinker. I noticed his pee was getting super yellow, which concerned me so I began to add canned food to his dry food in an effort to get him to eat more and also to get some more moisture.

He has already shown signs of food aggression but it has gotten way worse with the addition of this canned food. He eats every bit of food now but even walking by him when he is eating elicits snarls.



Pretty ugly... I have dealt with much milder food aggression than this, but this is new to me. He hasn't snapped at me... But I suspect were I to actually try to claim his food, he might. I never ever remove food from him or remove his food bowl from under his face.

I want to get his Embark results to see which training direction may be the most ideal for his breed mix. He is very IN YOUR FACE with how he acts and he is rebellious, but he is extremely intelligent.

He does sometimes bother the hell out of Nigredo, but I have been advised to let them work things out. If he bites Nigredo and it hurts, he does get punished by Nigredo... But he shakes it off and goes right back in.

Instead of touching him while he is eating, get a teaspoon and feed him some of his meal by hand. It will make the association of you approaching him being a good thing.

Food is survival and some pups will guard it as if their life depends on it. It's their instinct. By gently showing him that you are giving more rather than taking away (which he is afraid of) you should change his perception of what is happening

I do feed him by hand sometimes. I also have tried the adding food thing. The issue is that getting anywhere near his bowl earns you a snarl. Even just walking by earns a snarl. That's when I first noticed it was getting worse a while ago. I just WALKED by while he was eating and he snarled.

I have never taken anything from him.

Initially, don't put the food in the bowl.

Sit with the empty bowl at the side of you. One teaspoon by hand, then one in the bowl. When he's finished the bowl, another by hand slowly but surely build up so that he has it all in the bowl with you sat beside it. Then you stood beside it. The lightbulb will go on,, just give it a chance

I know you was touching him to demonstrate to us what he's actually doing, but going forwards I wouldn't. He's guarding through fear of losing the valuable resource & by touching him, in his mind, this only enforces the idea it could be 'stolen' at any minute. Did you check out the resource guarding link I linked to? It has some good tips on how to deal with this and is similar to what Chris has suggested above.

Also, how many times a day are you feeding him? At his age he should be on four meals a day.

Also, might be an idea to feed him somewhere more quiet. Even the presence of Nigredo/yourself milling about will likely make him feel anxious. I'd feed him in the same area every day and away from Nigredo and any real distractions.

Gotcha. I will give it a shot and see if it helps.

I don't agree that he fears me taking his food, though. Malone is a generally fearless and very assertive puppy. He is unlike anything I have seen personally as far as temperament goes. As he gets older and larger, he grows bolder. I honestly just think he is aggressive by nature and it needs taming while he is still young. I don't think he will be a LARGE dog, but don't wish to risk food aggression and whatnot with him as an adult.

I plan on putting him in puppy classes in August, but this behavior is annoying and definitely won't be tolerated.

They told me to feed him 3 times a day. He eats a ton. I feed him there daily. It has helped him ignore the cat food. He no longer steals it at all. Nigredo isn't allowed into the kitchen and never bothers him. I don't feed him in his crate. He doesn't like to eat in there.

Definitely try the methods Chris suggested & that the link explains in more details. Remember that it will take consistency. You're looking at weeks, even months, of continued training.

He is a smart dude. I don't suspect it will take him long to pick up on things. I have already begun and I do see improvement.

Malone is growing now. He's trying to catch up in growth. He did not gain any weight for the first two weeks I had him because he had so many parasites. He is getting wider/thicker more than he is getting taller. His front legs have a wide "bully" like stance for sure now.

His ear set is also looking like Nigredo's. Definitely not a Labrador ear set. He has some allergy to something. He has no fleas or parasites but he's got hair loss and he seems a tad itchy. Going to take him back into the vet to see if I can sort that out. He's also had a few pee accidents so I may have them do a urinalysis, as well.

The food aggression is getting much better much faster. Gonna post some progress updates soon.

His ears are really beginning to do something funky... Now I DEFINITELY think he's mixed with Cocker Spaniel or something. Super excited for his Embark results.

Excuse the nuisance yapping. He's quite the little monster.

So Malone went back to the vet today for the hair loss, which is getting progressively worse as you can see... He is not very itchy, which even the vet noticed.



Diagnosis - demodex mange. Lovely. This little dude has sure had a rough start to life.

So I got meds for that. They also gave him another vaccine. He is 9 lbs. On June 21 he was only 4 lbs. So at least he is growing now.

His stool was also retested to see if he has any more parasites in there. Will have those results soon. Vet was totally unsure of his breeds. She said she's very excited to see what he grows into.