Dear Critter Corner: We have been having a hard time with our puppy stealing items in the home and not wanting to give them back. Lately it has turned into the whole family having to hunt the puppy down to retrieve the stolen item. Can you help us?
Oh the fun game of ‘Catch Me if You Can!’. This is an all-time favorite of most all puppies and dogs. It starts out innocently enough and before you know it your pup is stealing anything just to get the game to happen. Here are some tips to turn the tables on your thieving pup.
One of the first things I recommend is to pick your battles. This means that if he has stolen a sock, you let him have it and don’t chase him, after all it is just a sock. I would then maybe go and get one of his toys and make it exciting. Curiosity will get the best of him and he will want to see what you have and leave the sock or after he realizes that you are not going to chase him, he drops the sock on his own.
Teaching a ‘Drop’ or ‘Trade’ cue is another great option. Here you will start by giving him a ‘legal’ item and telling him to ‘take it’. You will then ask for the ‘drop it’ and present a high value treat and wait for him to let go of the item and take the treat. Repeat several times until you are getting a quick response then try with something a little harder or one of the ‘illegal’ items.
The last piece is of course to manage the environment. This means you may need to enclose him in smaller areas so he doesn’t get to roam the house unsupervised. You may also want to ‘puppy proof’ the house a little more so that there are less items for him to steal until he is a little more trust worthy and realizes that the game has changed.
Over time with the above suggestions, you should start to see a change in your pup. If you are still having problems, please reach out to our behavior department to schedule a 1:1 consultation at training@phs-spca.org or 650-340-7022 ext. 667.
Tasha Suda is the Lead Dog Trainer for the Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA Behavior Department. For more information, please visit www.phs-spca.org, call 650-340-7022 or email tsuda@phs-spca.org.
Source: www.mercurynews.com