Self-Control Training for the Family Dog

As the weather cools, our activities move  indoors. People come over. Sometimes they bring goodies and gifts. Other times, you set out the delicacies. It’s all wonderful! (Unless you’re the family dog, and you get sick from eating these snacks.)

One cue could reduce the risk of a night in the emergency vet clinic. The phrase: “Leave it.” 

If your dog understands this cue, the dog will not go for an item when you say “Leave it.” If you’re not at least 99% sure that your dog understands this cue, keep reading. 

How this behavior is taught can mean the difference between a dog thinking: “When you aren’t watching me, anything goes” and “I heard ‘Leave It’, so there is no use trying to grab it – my winning behavior is to ignore that thing completely.” 

Do you see? The difference is your dog chooses to default to ignoring what he really wants in expectation of something better!

The steps to train this are very simple:

  1. Put treats in both hands. Show your dog one hand with treats inside a closed fist. Tolerate any amount of licking, pushing, pawing and nibbling your dog offers. When he stops and pulls his nose away, quickly bring a treat to his mouth with your other hand. Repeat until your dog immediately turns away from your offered fist.
  2. Open your hand and show him the treat. If he comes forward, close your fist promptly so he doesn’t grab the treat. If he waits or turns his head away, feed from the other hand. Repeat until he doesn’t take the bait, then switch hands to practice both sides.
  3. Bring the treat to the floor and cover it with one hand. He may start nudging, pawing, and nibbling. Just wait him out. When he stops and looks away, feed from the other hand. Repeat until he refuses to believe the covered hand will ever give him anything.
  4. Try the clamshell game. Put a treat on the floor. When he dives for the treat, be quick to cover it so he can’t accidentally win it. Repeat until he believes diving for the treat never works.
  5. Test your work. Put the treat on the floor and say, “Leave it.” Here, you are telling him what the behavior is called. You want to pair the correct behavior with the phrase, not threaten him into obeying. There is no punishment if he gets it wrong; he just doesn’t win the treat! Repeat this until the dog begins looking at you when you say, “Leave it.”  It helps if your treat delivery from the other hand comes from up high, from your face.
  6. Practice. Repeat steps one through five in different locations to be sure the dog understands the game completely. Once you can drop treats on the floor and say, “Leave it”, and your dog ignores those treats and looks up at you, you are ready to practice with treats on a chair, a table, in different locations, with different food, etc. Keep PAYING for good choices! Hard work should equal HIGH pay!

Enjoy the process and remember, if you’d like help, we offer plenty of classes here at the shelter for you and your dog. Sign up today!