[nagdu] Picking up things from the ground

[Daryl Marie]

hi, Lisa,
Oh, how I can sympathize!  Jenny has also been a scavenger, though admittedly it has gotten so much better, particularly in the last six months.

A few things here:
1) this might never EVER go away completely, but the rules in my house are these:
a. if we're on a long leash (which for me is still short enough to pull her back) or at an off-leash park, she is to obey the "Leave it!" command. If she does drop whatever she has gotten, she is permitted to run and frolic and generally be a happy dog until it's time to go home.  If she does not obey the leave it command, or continues to scavenge, the leash goes back on, and fun is OVER, period.
b. If she is doing this in harness, it gets taken away from her, she gets a scolding, and if we're in a place I know well, I drop the harness handle and double up the leash so short that she can't dip her head down.  If that's not possible, then I have something in my purse...

2. I keep a Halti in my purse.  I don't know if Germany sells these, but they are basically small head collars.  The Halti clips behind Jenn's ears. There's a ring that goes over her nose with straps that go over her cheeks.  Her leash is clipped to a small ring about 2 inches under her chin, and another clip attaches to her collar.  When I first got this, I used it constantly, then gradually reduced its use, until now it just stays in my purse for either really REALLY bad days or a day where she's in a high-stimulating environment such as a vet's office or pet store where she is likely to dip her head and sniff EVERYTHING.  It took a lot of work to get here, but we're making it :)

3. Play the "Leave It" game at home.  You mentioned when your big boy first arrived that he would take stuff and chew it, so use this to your advantage to continue to reinforce that taking things is NOT OK.  I have done more redirection than corrections, just because of who Jenny is... for us, using treats as a reward for leaving whatever it is on the ground has been counterproductive, so praise has gone a LONG way to showing her that leaving the apple or popcorn (her weaknesses) on the ground is going to make me happy.

The scavenging is a tough one, because it often reinforces itself: doggie picks up something, it tastes good! Even if doggie gets sick an hour later they don't always associate it with that pulled pork sandwich they picked up an hour ago.  Work hard, you can do it, it WILL get better... but you are right; you do have to deal with this, and quickly.

Feel free to write me offlist if you'd like to ask any question.

Good luck!

Daryl
----- Original Message -----
From: Lisa via nagdu <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Wed, 17 Dec 2014 04:18:59 -0700 (MST)
Subject: [nagdu] Picking up things from the ground

Hello everyone!

Taylor does great guidework and we enjoy every day we spend with this 
playful and energetic dog. But there's a big problem that bothers me.
Taylor picks up things from the ground, mostly during our walks but 
sometimes also in harness, when it is something very "delicious". Of course 
I try to be very quick, correct him and/or take it out of his mouth but 
especially during walks, when he is on the long leash, that's not possible. 
So he gets the chance to swallow things like leftovers from a sandwich 
including its packaging, napkins or any other stuff that's attractive to 
him.
The consequence of this behaviour is that he throws up aproximately once a 
week. Then, together with his food and water, a piece of plastic or paper or 
any other not-digestable thing comes out again. Well, I'm glad that it does 
come out. But it's stressful anyway. For him, too, of course, no one likes 
being sick.
We saw the vet, so I am sure Taylor has no serious problems in his stomach. 
The only reason for throwing up seem to be the things that he picks up. I 
really do my best to monitor him but when he's sniffing around on a meadow 
and suddenly grabs and swallows something, what can I do?

I would be really interested in how you manage this problem--labradors are 
greedy creatures, so probably I'm not the only one who deals with it.

What kind of training could I do to avoid this?
Any ideas are greatly appreciated!

thanks and greetings from Germany
Lisa 


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