Problems with rescue dog! Aggressive with other household dogs / food aggression

As some of you know, I have rescued an 11 yr old cross from fairly bad conditions. On the whole she is settling really well and I am really proud of her and my other dogs. They are also coping well with the new addition. My main problem is aggression. It is not all the time. She has coped amazingly well (coming from a flat as an only dog into a house with another 4!).
She is very food protective (is that the right phrase), she gets quite nasty when food is around, hers or mine. And has snapped and fought on a number of occassions. Not over her own meal or the other dogs, meal times are fairly calm. It is in between when she is stealing or scavenging that the fights break out. My other dogs do not challenge her but just walk past her and she turns really nasty. What should I do? I tell her NO and remove her from situation, is this right?
Also, there is a problem with the cats. She has accepted one, but wont let the other in the house! Absolutely goes berserk!
Is it a territory thing? She is also very protective of me! Sorry to waffle! I know all will take time, just want advice and reassurance that I am doing things right!

hi

not really sure what to suggest - however just wanted to say it takes a while for a rescue dog to settle ( u probably know this) and not sure how long she has been with you - persevere with what you are doign as it sounds like you are doing the right things - sure someone else can offer some more constructive advice - but good luck and in time she will settle I am sure. ( she probably doesn tknow what to expect from you as well and might be trying her luck too)

Hi Miss Potter it is still very early days for Pooh and it sounds as if you are all getting on pretty well. It may be that things will calm down as she settles and gets more used to the cats and her new home . The girls will find a natural order among themselves in time and unless it looks as if someone will get hurt I would try to intervene as little as possible.
I guess you already feed meals/treats separately so the is less cause for squabbling . Not sure what you mean by food aggressive with you? Does she growl at you while she is eating? If so this is probably resource guarding because she is not used to having others around who may steal her food. Also I am not sure how much training Pooh has had and can't really get a picture of her general attitude..

You say:
I don't quite understand how/why she is getting nasty when your food is around?

As mealtimes are calm I assume you are doing the right thing and feeding them apart and supervising if they are eating in the same room

Food guarding is not uncommon, and can be even more intense if it is something that the dog has found rather than its set meals. Does she guard any other resources such as toys or her bed? Pooh is used to being an only dog. She is not used to sharing anything or anyone and probably is somewhat unskilled in the social niceties towards other dogs. Also her age will mean that she is rather set in her ways and is possibly disinclined to put up with potential challenges from younger dogs.

How does her 'protection' of you manifest itself? As with food, toys, etc. she mat be regarding you as another 'resource', but it would be useful to know exactly what she is doing.

I would let them sort things out between them as much as possible as they need to know where each stand, but do be prepared to step in if it looks like getting out of hand - after all, you are the ultimate 'top dog' It is early days and Pooh will still be in 'settling in' mode, learning what is & what is not acceptable. Are you doing any basic obedience training with her?

I can't really help with the cat problem, it may just be a matter of time - or a short, sharp lesson in manners from the cat

Pooh will sit in front of me or by my feet and basically not let any of the others near! I made a big mistake the other day and got them all bones. Pooh was snarling and growling and snapping at anyone that even looked at her! I have learnt with Pooh if treats are involved, she needs to be in a separate room, not just at the other end of it!

Thankyou for all your replys, needed reassurance that I was handling it right! The change in her is amazing, she is loving walks and company and has a real spring in her step!

Miss Potter I realise you have three dogs and probably not a lot of time for training Pooh ,but a little training may help her to learn her place within the group and to prevent her being quite so defensive of food. I think if you tried the NILIF programme where you can that would help Also once you can get her to sit/stay have the cat sit on your knee (if it is not too scared) make Pooh sit and stay then allow her to approach the cat gently to sniff and get a tipbit and lots of praise for being gentle.

http://k9deb.com/nilif.htm

Thankyou Mini. Reading that, alot of her behaviour is nervous and fear based. She is going to be unsure, it is a huge change for her. She went berserk yesterday when 2 men came in the house and delivered a new cooker! I had to put her on a lead and remove her from the room. She is wary of men anyway, has been mistreated by the previous owners ex-boyfriend in the past.
It is really strange with food. Dog meal times are fine, they are all fed in the same order, and stick to their places. There is no pinching or scavenging. Today I was eating my lunch in the armchair and Pooh sat in front of me snarling and snapping at all the other dogs that even looked at me! She wasnt facing me and begging, so not sure what was going on there!
Thankyou for the article, will give those methods a go!

She has only just started responding to her name. She does not seem to have any training as in sit, stay etc. So will start that gently!