Let’s face it, most dogs love food.It’s one of life’s finer pleasures.But that longing for food can transform a normally well-behaved dog into an annoyance.A begging dog causes stress at mealtime and makes for difficult entertaining.What can be done to stop begging and to prevent your dog from ever starting?
The cardinal rule for preventing begging is to never EVER feed your dog anything unless it’s in his food bowl.That way, your dog understands that food is delivered there and only there.It’s vitally important to be consistent.You cannot say “just this one time” to a dog.They learn awfully fast.Yes, it’s very easy and tempting to give your dog a few pieces of pretzel as you watch TV on the sofa.But before you know it, your dog is standing in front of you, drooling and even barking at you to feed him, disrupting your relaxation time.So then what happens?You give him the pretzels just to shut him up.You’ve created a pattern that’s extremely difficult to break.
I admit that I am very guilty of feeding my dogs raw vegetables as I fix my salad.I’m able to justify in my mind that it’s okay because the food is healthy!They stand by my side waiting for the carrots and tomatoes.Now every time I enter the kitchen food prep area, I have dogs underneath my feet and in my way as I try to prepare meals.It’s my own fault.The dogs know they get good things when I’m in that spot.
How do you undo the begging pattern?There are two methods, depending on how pushy your dog is.For the less determined dog, ignoring the begging works nicely.Eventually, your dog gets the idea that he is not getting anything and will give up.It may take time but hang in there.Here’s where your job of being consistent is important.If you slip up once, you will confuse your dog and he will continue to beg.
If you have tried the ignoring approach, a more disciplined method may be required.Teach your dog to go to a certain place and remain in a ‘stay.’So, if you dogs like to beg during dinnertime, begin teaching your dog to ‘go to your place’ and stay there.Yes, this takes time and practice but good results take work.This is the approach I have taken with my dogs in the kitchen.As I prepare meals, they must lie down in the foyer, within eyesight of me, and they must stay there.We’ve worked hard to be able to accomplish this but we are all happier and less stressed as a result.
Thanks to my brother and his Chihuahua, JJ, for inspiring this article!