How to Stop My Dog Stealing From the Table

The one thing that really makes meal time stressful is trying to keep my dog from begging and stealing food from the table.  I know that other people with dogs don’t have this problem, but I do.  What can I do?

There is one important thing that we must understand about dogs stealing food from the table.  They don’t place an implicit ownership on food.  If they see food left unattended, it is just like their finding a dead animal in the wild.  If they are hungry, they will naturally eat the food.  So, as humans, we need to understand that if we leave food unattended with our dog nearby, it might be gone when we return.

With this said, we must also understand when it is not acceptable for our dog to steal from the table.  If we are providing our dog leadership while building a bond, establishing trust, and delivering companionship; our dog will see us as their caregiver and leader.  From our dog’s perspective, it is not acceptable to take food from the leader until allowed.

When our dog attempts to take food from the table while we are at the table, he is breaking that natural rule and we must, as the leader, let him know that he is doing something wrong.  In order to do this, we must set the scene to allow him to either try and steal the food or respect us and not encroach.  Here is a little exercise for you:

• Establish a perimeter around your table where you don’t want your dog to cross when you are eating.
• Make sure you have toys, goodies, or even your dog’s dinner placed outside the perimeter.
• Place a leash on your dog.
• Create one or two plates of “smelly food” like cheese, cold cuts, hamburger meat, etc. and place them on the table.
• Everyone with a plate needs to sit down at the table and keep their chairs placed far enough away from the table so that they can easily stand up.  Everyone must sit “side saddled” (like our Mom always scolded us for doing).
• Make “yummy sounds” and nibble on the food while you watch your dog out of the corner of your eye.
• If your dog begins to approach your boundary, quickly stand up, face your dog, and loudly say “No” in an authoritative, guttural tone.  If you need to, gently pick up the leash and guide him away to his toys, goodies, or dinner.
• Praise your dog with a high pitched “Good boy” for doing the right thing.  (You might have had to show him what was right, but that is OK.  He is learning.)
• Return to your chair, always facing your dog.
• Slowly sit down and repeat the process until your dog looses interest and does not approach you.
• Repeat this every day until you no longer have to actively keep him away from the table.

Having to deal with a “nosy dog” while at the table can be a big pain for your family and friends.  Practice this exercise regularly and we are sure you will soon have an enjoyable time at the dinner table.  If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at The Best Dog Trainers in South Florida.

Read More..

Last Minute Tips Keeping My Dog Safe for Christmas

By now I have been given multiple tips to keep everything great for my doggie and guests during the Holidays.  I have had a few people over up to now.  The main event is about to occur.  Is there anything else I should think about now that we are finishing the tree and taking all the presents out of our closets and putting them around the tree?  EVERYONE is coming over on Christmas day, so it will be very busy and crazy.  What are my last tips?

The Holiday Season has been going on for the last few weeks, but for many of us, it is now “show time”.  Without trying to overwhelm you with an entire list of every possible thing you might experience, we would like to focus on just a few items.  These are the items that you and your dog are about to experience within the next two days.  So let’s get going:

• Your Christmas Tree: 
• Decorations…
• Now is the time that you are finishing decorating your tree with balls and tinsel.  If your dog is “ball crazy”, you could be encouraging him to “go after” your Christmas ornaments and try to pull or “catch” them.  This could cause your wonderfully decorated tree to fall over.
• Remove all Christmas ball ornaments from your tree to eliminate any “grab the ball” issues. Replace them with ornaments that aren’t round.
• If you see your dog focusing on the tinsel, remove it.  Your tinsel can also gain your dog’s attention when you have the tree’s Christmas lights turned on.  Check this too and remove the tinsel, if necessary.  You could use ribbons and bows to decorate your tree in place of the tinsel.
• Eating tinsel can possibly be harmful to your dog.
• Presents…
• Christmas presents introduce new objects and smells into the house.  Right about now, you are probably putting out the remainder of those presents around your tree.
• The sights and smells of the presents can stimulate your dog to investigate and possibly steal.
• If you are giving your dog presents, do not put them under the tree.  This will probably insure that he will explore and dig through everything under the tree.
• Give your dog his current toys on the other side of the room from your Christmas tree to redirect his interest.
• Place your presents tightly around the base of your tree.  This will minimize the visual distraction and will make it very difficult to “investigate through the presents”.
• If you see your dog approach the tree and presents, correct him with a low toned “No” and have him come to you.  Give him his toy and engage him for several minutes.
• Christmas Dinner:
• You do not want your dog bugging you and your guests for all the great things that will be on your plate.
• Do not feed your dog from the table or give him any of your “fixins” in the kitchen.  As soon as you have done it once, you have told him it is OK to demand food from you.  If he approaches, ignore him.  If he continues to bug you, stand up and tell him “No” in a firm, low tone.
• Do not leave food unattended.  Your dog will think that you are relinquishing ownership of the food and he can how have it.
• Feed your dog at the same time that you are having dinner.  This will redirect him away from you and your guests.  It will also fill his stomach so he won’t approach you because he is hungry.
• Remove foods that raisins and fruit cake from your menu.  These items, if eaten by your dog, could cause issues.
• Last Few Thoughts:
• Keep your dog on a six foot leash when everyone is over.  If he starts to go crazy or going somewhere you don’t want him, simply step on the end of the leash and guide him back to you.  You will maintain maximum control and focus with the minimum effort.
• Don’t let your nieces and nephews play crazy with your dog inside the house.  As the kids and your dog ramp up their playing, the adults will start to get them to stop.  This will simply increase the situation’s adrenaline and will increase your dog’s craziness. Chances are, things will be broken or spilled before you can get control of the situation.

Just use come common sense with your dog and you will have a great Christmas Eve and Day.  If you have any questions, please contact us at The Best DogTrainers in South Florida.

Read More..