My client yesterday was so frustrated that her dog was still surfing her kitchen counters. She tells him "Off!" when she's there and she tries to keep the counters clear, but in her family, that's a challenge in and of itself. He's gotten pretty good at staying off the counters when she's standing right there, but when she leaves the room, all bets are off! Frankly, this dog keeps counter surfing because the behavior works for him. When he gets up there, he almost always finds something to eat or play with. He finds crumbs, empty food containers, half eaten meals, dish towels, and sponges. His favorite kitchen chewing items seems to be the large wooden spoons near her stove. I know we've talked about this before, but it bears repeating. Dogs will continue to do things that work for them unless you show them that the behavior doesn't work anymore AND that you know something better that they can do. This isn't about punishing the dog into compliance, it's about showing him better alternatives.
When my client is working in her kitchen, she will now not just tell her dog "Off!" when he comes up on the counter. Instead, she will direct him away from the counter and to his mat where she can give him a treat and tell him to "Stay!" If he stays on his mat, she will periodically go back and reinforce that stay with a small, desirable treat (not something she is cooking, but something just for him). If he gets up from his mat, he will be sent back one time, and if he leaves it again, he'll be removed from the kitchen for the remainder of the food prep time. Thus, the dog learns that NOT surfing AND staying on his mat, means he gets tangible rewards. If he surfs and breaks his stay, he's removed to a place where he can no longer be part of the action. For now, all counters will be absent of anything he can take. We want him to get up there and see that when there aren't people in the kitchen, there are no chances for rewards at all. Anytime someone enters the kitchen and finds the dog NOT on the counter (and bonus points for being on his mat), he will get a reward. It will also help this plan to succeed if we can train her husband to stop feeding the dog what he is preparing at the counter, but we all know how much harder the humans are to train than dogs!
Basically, when you ask yourself that question as to why you can't get your dog to stop doing something, you really need to decide what it is you want them to be doing instead, and find a way to show them that the alternative is more rewarding than their original behavior. This applies to barking, digging, destructive chewing, etc. Digging dogs need an appropriate outlet for their digging and hard core chewers need to have a variety of items to chew on being made available daily, and rotated to remain interesting. And barking dogs? It's fine to tell them quiet, but then what should they do with their energy that they were expending on barking? How about redirecting them to a toy or game instead. Or bring them indoors (if they were barking outside) and get them focused on a quiet activity.
I know this is frustrating, however, we all have to remember that our dogs would have stopped doing many of these annoying behaviors before if WE hadn't made doing so quite as rewarding for them in the first place!
As always, if you have questions about your pet's behavior, you know where to find me.
If you want your dog to stop begging at the table, then stop making being at the table while you are eating so rewarding for your dog! Don't pet them, don't give them treats, and show them where they should be while you are eating. Definitely give them something rewarding in their place away from the table. If they come back to beg, remove them from the room until the meal is over. Your dog will learn that not begging and staying in their place means they get to stay and watch what's going on, AND receive a reward for doing so.
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