Of course you can. Dogs are VERY intelligent and can learn. The big question is are you and your roommate willing to put in the hours of training that it will take to accomplish the task?
We have trained Boo the Boxer to leave the Yorkies' food alone through hours upon hours of patient and creative training with little or no scolding or "punishment".
This type of training goes against the nature of dogs, so it will take huge amounts of time and effort. First of all you have to feed both dogs at the same time, each dog in their own place, and get them both to the point where they finish their meals in a reasonable time period - reasonable meaning the amount of time you have that you can directly supervise every single meal -- without exception. You quietly praise each dog for eating their own food (without causing them to get excited). During the process every single time you even think that one of the dogs is going to leave their bowl you distract them - timing is critical - it has to be done immediately - before the dog even makes a move to the other bowl. When you distract the thought process you quietly praise when the dog goes back to eating from their own bowl. Once you get each dog to finish their own meals from their own bowls you can move forward, but this critical step must be consistent before you move on. |