The dogs eat outside since it's easier to clean up the mess from raw (and Cousteau in general) there. Whichever dog gets to me first and sits gets fed first, so usually Cousteau eats first. The dogs eat about 5 feet apart when I feed them. They rarely, if ever, have any snarky problems.

DH feeds the dogs at night. Roughly half the time Havana snarks at Cousteau, even if he isn't obviously doing anything to move in on her space. Havana isn't particularly foody and Cousteau willingly submits to her, so she doesn't do a lot of alpha behaviors with him, although I'm fairly certain she is the alpha dog.

Now, DH does sometimes mix up the order of who eats first and where he puts the dishes. Cousteau is always fed on my left and Havana on my right when I feed them. DH also feeds the higher value food, at least since I've been pregnant.

So, I'm trying to figure out if Havana gets snarky because the food is higher value, the positions are changed, or because she doesn't see DH as being leader enough. (DH has completely abdicated all dog care except for evening feeding. Great human dad, rotten dog dad. ) Ultimately it doesn't matter why, but it isn't behavior I like to see. She doesn't have possession issues with anyone else (including Bug) and only has these issues when DH feeds at night. It's just weird!

I imagine it is the change in ritual. It could also be that Cousteau is looking at her or something you aren't catching that she feels needs to be corrected.
Honestly I don't feed RMB like that. I do have rescues that are guarders but that aside, I just feel like there is too much potential for choking down food with other dogs looming around.

There could be so many things. I would lean towards the change in ritual as well, but more possibly because you're pregnant and she's feeling the need to control things from different angles. I would try to see if the same position will solve the problem, otherwise, you may need some sort of "ritual" to show her that DH is a capable provider and she doesn't need to control the situation when you're not around! Collies are weird like that - if they feel the situation is not being adequately handled, they will step in. If they think you're doing your job well, they leave well enough alone.

I would guess that maybe Havanna might be irked by the places being switched or that if Cousteau starts first, he might finish first and wander over to her food, so she's just letting him know that he better leave her alone?

Based on the David Mech studies and what I've read of Jean Donaldson's stuff, resource guarding has nothing to do with hierarchy.

We never ever change the feeding order, we don't feed in the order of which dog we feel may be the so called alpha It just happened we started feeding Dillon first, Tori second, Chance then Cassie, Beau then Athena (whom is the most dominant of all the dogs). They know the routine and the routine makes them comfortable. Screw up the routine and the dogs become confused and little spats break out. I like to think our group of 6 dogs works so well not because we have a peaking order but because we have a good routine in place, & we try not to confuse them

This isn't a suggestion for Calypso's original post, but the question of feeding multiple dogs in a certain order is an interesting one, so I hope this isn't exactly a thread hijack either.

I once had a trainer who was very dog-wise, and she said that it was super-important to feed dogs in the same order every time and that the order should reflect their rank in the pack. She had GSDs.

I don't do that and never have. Perhaps this has played havoc with the psyches of my dogs -- how would I know for sure?

I feed Rudy first, because he's the one who doesn't spin and bark and generally act the pest while I'm fixing the meals. He's the gentleman.

Next I feed Sundance, because he behaves better than the girls, both of whom can approach hysteria when the food bowls are on the way.

Then I feed Pip and then Shiri, and last I go out to the porch, where I've sequestered Guy, and feed him. Guy eats outside because he often pees after he eats, without troubling to move from the spot he was eating in. He's *really* old. It's easier to just move him out of the kitchen. Also, he gets underfoot and then gets stepped on, which causes him to fall down, since his vestibular episode he is the Leaning Tower of Guy.

Anyway, I often change the order of feeding, the only constant is Rudy first. It doesn't seem to throw any of them, but maybe it does and I am just not paying attention. Or maybe they just aren't particularly rank-conscious dogs.

Those of you with multiple dogs, do you feed in a particular order and is it important that you do so?

When I had three dogs, all three were fed together at the same time. They are all required to sit and wait while I put the bowls down. Then I give the "OK!" and they can eat. Even though one dog (usually Freddy) would already be sitting and waiting patiently, he had to wait until everyone was waiting patiently. I don't know how this method would work with more dogs than that, although when I've had fosters or houseguests I've changed it up a little. Some dogs don't know the routine or how to sit and wait and I have to deal with that. It usually doesn't take too long to teach them though.

To Calypso's original question... I would venture to guess that your DH doesn't handle them the same way that you do and Havana is taking your job to remind Cousteau that her meal is hers. You may not realize it, but your body language probably says a lot to both of them when you feed them and your DH's body language is probably quite different. If you were up to it, you could probably do an experiment where your DH actually feeds them with you present and see if that changes anything.

No intelligent thoughts to add to Calypso's situation (but my gut reaction was Amanda's guess), so I'll just answer connie's question.

R&B get fed in their crates in the order of whoever got their first about 90% of the time. Doesn't matter how much first - sometimes Roscoe just doesn't bother coming over to the kitchen to wait, which makes him first by default.

5% of the time they get fed by being asked to wait and then released to their bowls individually (my attempt to teach them to discriminate between their names and not assume very command is for both of them)

5% of the time they get fed however it happens because we're feeding them as we go out the door and we're in such a hurry we don't even think about how it's happening.

They have moderate to serious food guarding issues over everything except their dinner dishes. Roscoe can go over and stand practically on top of Bella while she's eating her dinner, and she doesn't bat an eye. And vice versa. Then when whoever is finished last is done, they lick out each other's (already sparkling) bowls.

But a Charlee Bear that landed behind the TV out of reach of anyone and unbeknownst to me? Enough to start WWIII if someone decides that it should be hers/his.

Some clothes that have BBQ sauce smell on them piled up in the laundry basket? Worthy of Fort Knox level guarding.

It's really weird.

connie, we've had multi dog house holds for many years. We have never ever had to separate any of our dogs during meal time Even when we were children and had a few dogs we always fed in a certain order and same routine. We never thought about it it was just something my Mother had always done when she was growing up and my Grandfather did etc.

When I worked at the kennel and my boss had a few Newf's housed together she would tell me the order to feed the dogs. With our current dogs all of them were adults with the exception of Chance when they started living with each other, 2 with major food aggression issues which stopped after they got used to the routine. All the dogs eat in the kitchen, Beau and Athena in the living room all loose:) and after each dog finishes they go around to each others bowls to lick them to make sure the other dogs didn't miss anything. What I found causes spats when you mess up the routine is in our household the dogs know which dog they are going to get fed after...if you screw up the order they end up knocking into another dog, which ticks that dog off and they retaliate. As long as we keep the routine things are excellent

I remember at my friends kennel she told me to feed her Newf's a certain way and these 2 in the compound had to be fed in a certain spot. I screwed up and fed them so they could make eye contact (which is another thing that can spark a fight during feeding time - none of our dogs are fed in a way that they can make eye contact at all - except Dillon and Tori). Anyway, the male was eating and the female happened to catch his eye and then he just flew across the compound and tore into her. It was pretty bad and the female was hurt. My boss had to explain to me the importance of not allowing the dogs to have eye contact during feeding time. I guess in the past I always lucked out and never had the situation come up where they could make eye contact.

I have 99% of the dog responsibility here and I feed in the same order everyday, becaues the Monster will inhale her food before I have even sat it down...so he goes in the kitchen, gate up, she goes in the den. They know the routine and she waits in the den, he waits at his dish...he does sit and stay and leave it until I am ready to say the magic words "take it"...just my way of reminding him who is the boss of everything in this house...makes for a much happier pup. I am not an expert on dog behavior but my mother always did the same routine with our dogs growing up and guarding food was never an issue. I am all for routine with dogs...I think it just makes it easier for them to know what to expect.

Well, more information has come out once I questioned DH's leadership skills in front of friends. He ALWAYS feeds them in the same position in the evenings, but he gets lazy sometimes feeds them close enough together that Cousteau's butt rotates around and hits Havana while she's eating. That's typically when she snarks. Ummm, yeah. I'd snark too if I had a big yellow butt slam into me while I eat! Cousteau has little body awareness in general, but when he's eating all he knows is his dish, so he doesn't know why Havana's told him off. Of course, all I hear is "Boy, Havana's really being a bitch tonight." By the time I get over there the food is gone and the problem is solved. DH has never given me the details before.

I told him to put waaaaaaaay more space between the dogs when they eat and we'll see how that works out. If there is more snarking, I'm going to stand behind DH when he puts the dishes down and we'll see how that goes.

On a side note - RMBs are not eaten side by side. Each dog takes a bone and goes to an opposite corner of the yard to enjoy. DH gets grossed out because they're dragging the meat through dirt and leaves, but seriously, the dogs are eating raw chicken - it's not like it was that pristine to begin with!

well that makes sense, if someone stuck their butt in my face while I was eating I'd be snarky too.
To answer Connie's question, I feed according to who eats the slowest to fastest since the only dog I currently crate at mealtimes (not including bones I always crate the dogs when they eat bones. I don't want one to feel the need to swallow something whole because the other one is looking at them)is Brenna. I always crate my pups until I feel they have enough sense not to stick their heads in the wrong dogs dish. Skye doesn't resource guard at all but she will take you out if you mess with her food. I imagine a product of growing up at animal control. It was Months before "I" was able to approach her at meal times.
All the dogs give a behaviour before the dish comes down and three eat together in the kitchen while Echo and Brenna eat in the office, this is just because I don't have a kitchen big enough for all of them.

I would too!

Sounds like there was a logical answer to the conundrum, or let's hope that was it!

About RMBs -- I too separate the dogs when I feed those, just for the reason that Kathleen mentioned: the proximity of another dog can cause a dog to gulp or eat too fast. This is our RMB distribution: Rudy in the kitchen, Shiri in the bathroom with the door closed, Guy on the deck, Pip in the yard, and Sunny in the stairwell by the basement door.

That makes perfect sense what was happening to your dogs to cause problems during feeding time. Bumping into each other etc is very upsetting for most dogs.

With my dogs I'm fortunate they are really good with RMB's. They all have their own spot for their RMB's and I give them out in the kitchen before leaving for work. Athena takes hers to my bed, Beau to my futon and Chance on the floor on a doggy bed beside Beau. Chance does eventually end up with Beaus bone and Beau with hers...they are bone swappers...I can almost here them yours looks better than mine can I try? sure go ahead can I have a taste of yours? yummy Cassie and Tori also are very good with their RMB's and not protective of them. Dillon is the bad one with RMB's he has to be put away in the kennel part of the compound.

Athena, Chance and Beau can be left unsupervised loose in the house with RMB's with no issues at all. They do not eat a lot of the bones, just get the marrow out, muscle parts, cartlidge and meat. They may chew a bit on the bone but not that much. I don't worry about them at all.

It makes me think of the Jack in the Box smoothie commercial that is on right now... the one where the sweaty nasty guy is putting his butt and pot belly in the face of the guy sitting at the smoothie place. Only that guy doesn't snark... but if it were me I would!!

Hopefully this new information will lead to less snarking.

it's funny what details husbands leave out