[NAGDU] [nagdu] counter surfing

d m gina dmgina at samobile.net
Sat Jun 25 15:46:02 UTC 2016


I would keep the dog on leash or buy a crate from wallmart that isn't 
all expensive.
If you have a spot in the living room put it there.
Then he still can see you plus not get on counters.
My crate can fold down if needed for the living room.
I will do that if I think she wishes to get into trouble.
It is hard with family.
Just do what the school says and let them worry about it.
Hope this helps.
I am just starting to get to messages today.
Original message:
> Hi all,

> Thai has been a counter surfer to an extent since the second week of
> class, but it's really become a problem in the last few weeks now that
> everyone is home/not working for the summer--three of the four people
> I live with are in college or work in a high school. The scavenging is
> manageable while working and at school, but it's a real problem at
> home because of the amount of reachable surfaces and the tendency for
> my family to forget just how food obsessed he really is. I also have
> to deal with the "you don't feed him enough" and the "guide dogs are
> supposed to be perfect" comments. Gotta love family...

> So far I've tried:
> 1. Click and treat for walking past food and/or getting off the
> counter as soon as I say so. I've had limited success with this, but
> it's difficult when there's food I don't know about or a lot of
> background noise that makes it hard to hear my super sneaky dog, even
> with a collar bell.
> 2. Obedience around food. He does a pretty good job leaving food when
> actively engaged in a heel, stay, or recall, but not so much once he
> is released from these activities.
> 3. Applying an aversive substance to the food. Thai isn't phased by
> much other than cayenne pepper. He will often sniff the food before
> eating it, either from a short distance away or when he actually jumps
> up and avoids the sabotaged food, which kind of eliminates the
> unpleasant surprise.
> 4. Walking past food with him on leash and correcting for any move
> toward it. Only works for that one piece of food in that situation. If
> we come back later or I let him off the leash, he eats the food. The
> reward of the food is apparently worth the discomfort of the
> correction.
> 5. Spraying with water or shaking a can with pennies inside. I don't
> like using aversive methods, but I got desperate enough to try. I've
> had some success with this, but we still run into the food is worth
> the correction thing. The penny can also absolutely terrifies my
> little pet dog... multiple dog problems.
> 6. Keeping him on leash or tiedown when ever we're out of my room and
> not engaged in a specific activity. This management technique isn't
> ideal, but it worked until about six months ago when the puppy was
> actually old enough to have freedom in the house. She basically wants
> to play all the time, and pounces on Thai every time he lays down.
> It's not really fair for him to have to deal with a puppy literally
> standing or laying on him without having the option to walk away. No
> one really wants to help tone down the puppy's enthusiasm, and I can
> only do so much on my own. That limits the time Thai can be leashed to
> when she is also on tiedown or upstairs with someone else.
> 7. Putting a cookie sheet at the edge of the table with  a piece of
> food behind it. It's supposed to fall to the ground when the dog jumps
> up on it and make a really loud noise... He wouldn't jump on it.

> I thought about crating him while someone is preparing a meal, which
> is the most likely time for him to find food unattended. A tiedown
> works just as well when puppy isn't around though, and since I'm not
> sure if we are keeping her (she was released from all service dog
> programs due to medical problems), I don't want to buy a crate just
> yet.

> I've also thought about using some kind of muzzle temporarily just to
> break the jumping on counters is so rewarding cycle, but this also
> would leave him at a disadvantage when playing with the puppy. They
> love to play bite each others' scruffs...

> I'm not comfortable using shock devices, so I'm fresh out of ideas.
> Sorry for the long post, but I feel like I've tried everything, and
> I'm getting desperate. I plan on contacting my school, but I figured
> it couldn't hurt to see if anyone had any other ideas.

> Danielle and Thai

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--Dar
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