Have seen that before. I reserve the right to take things from my dog, but I prepared him for it from a young age as he is naturally possessive.
However I see no need to mess with him while he is eating. If you messed with me when I was eating I'd tell you to do one too
My mind is boggled when dogs do react as per the meme, and the owner is mystified at why, because of their inability to read body language, their selection of a breed or type of dog genetically inclined to be possessive and then not teaching it to give things up, and constantly confontationally taking, taking, taking and giving nothing back and then wondering why the dog doesn't like it.
The trick is not to let it get to growling in the first place.
We have always trained our dogs to accept someone moving their food dishes, or taking something out of them if necessary, although we don't mess about with their food on a regular basis, once the acceptance is established and I think everyone *should* be able to take anything away from their own dog.
However I do agree that there are a lot of dog owners who don't seem to have the first clue.
Mine is brilliant and I can take anything from him, and I also think he deserves to be able to eat his breakfast and dinner in peace. However, if he ever went for me, or growled at me if I tried to take something, he'd get my slipper up his backside.
I have posted on here about Aleds guarding issues before. They were already deeply ingrained in him when we got him, and as there is only me and the OH, we work around him (for right or wrong).
Having Luna from a pup, who tried to eat EVERYTHING, she is quite happy for us to take anything from her mouth. She is left to eat her food in peace, but is quite calm and indifferent if we have the need to go near at feeding time, when she has her bones etc.
I once had to take a bone which had got stuck across the tongue, in the back teeth, out of a small terrier's mouth. This was not my dog, it had not been taught to accept people removing it's food when necessary, it was panicking and making choking noises, it owner and her 10 yr old daughter were panicking.
Fortunately the dog was small enough for me to tuck it under one arm while prising the bone from between the jaws which were being held open by the bone. That incident proved to me that we are correct in teaching our dogs that we can move/take their food if we want/need to do so.
I remember crawling round the floor sticking my hand in the original pups’ bowls to ensure they wouldn’t be food possessive. With the younger two, we spent lots of time playing with paws, putting hands in mouths, just to make them willing for vet exams. They’re very tolerant.
I wasn't allowed near the family dogs when they were eating when I was a kid and they would have had me-but our family dogs were completely untrained and I kind of look back in horror now at what they did and my family's attitudes.
My rescue collie was extremely food guardy and we got around it by use of the leave and sit command-then you could take it, he had major fear aggression issues too so any hand movement around his head without giving him a heads up (unless it was me) was a mistake. I don't mess with them (or the ponies) when they are eating but its good to know I could intervene if I needed to.
my last/current four I could/can take anything off them and it came in useful for OH when Fitz got some bone stuck across the roof of his mouth one time and I wasn't here. both dogs also have a very strong leave command -even if they are eating something they shouldn't.