Dog Picks up from the Ground - how to Break this Habit

How to Break a Dog of the Habit of Picking up from the Ground.

The Manners "at the Table": Training of a Dog, What and Where It is Permitted to Eat

Everyone knows how to feed a dog, but not everyone can make it well-bred. And generally speaking, what is breeding? But everyday we face to different situations and our reaction to it consciously or subconsciously is a way of breeding. In one case we like it and we praise a dog, in the other one "don't" and we punish it at once, somewhere we just "pampered" it... A day after day, while our four-legged friend grows up and takes in the first, and the second and the third s well.

As the result, you get what you put in it yourself. Unconscious breeding, without any principles and rules makes an animal a reckless being. And here you are disabled to control the dog's behavior. Its habits are shocking not just for you, but for the surrounding as well. It barks unexpectedly or picks up "leavings" and just "does not react" remarks of the owner. But it is practically impossible to re-educate an adult dog. As we know, it takes its behavior for natural and remembers it since its "puppy" age. It is in a dog nature to pick up everything that is on the dog's way, as well as for a human to eat with hands. And the difficulty lays in the question, how to break an animal of the ancient instinct with a millennial experience?


The first difficulty lays in training a dog with the help of imprinting. In other words, it remembers what it sees. For example, a mother-dog eats a piece of food out of the plate, than a puppy does the same. If this situation repeats again, then a dog being already adult will unconsciously repeat this behavior, that is imprinted in its memory.


Our attempt to break a dog of instinct of "getting food" with the help of different obstacles is supposed to be the next difficulty. We explain it that a dog will gradually stop reacting to strange food. On the one hand out actions are right, but on the other one, you are not able to keep an eye on everything and everywhere. Here we have a rule of "unplanned" confirmation instead of "absolute dis-confirmation".


Improper feeding frequently serves as a signal for "searching for something edible". Owners treat a pet as a herbivorous animal instead of carnivore. They include into a diet products that does not satisfy dog body needs. It is fed with nutritious carbohydrates and boiled feed. Hunger and needs of a growing organism force a dog to be in search for additional food. In the intention to guard a dog from wrong actions it is important to train it to several rules of behavior "at the table".


The first rule.

It is important to feed a dog only from its plate or from hands. Don't allow other ways of feeding. Wherever you are, it is advisable to serve food only in some dishes. This kind of behavior trains a dog the way of thinking to eat only from a plate.


The second rule.

Performing of orders. It means that from the very little age you train a dog to set out to food only with your permission. You train the dogs feeling of self-control specially. For example, while feeding a puppy you halt it in front of the full dish 15-30 minutes and only then you ask a command. As far as a dog grows up you prolong the time of halting to train a dog's feeding only with a command.


The third rule.

Don't allow dog to eat a fallen piece of food. While feeding show with you behavior that a fallen out of a plate or a piece that is not in hand is not permitted to eat. In this order you should not beat a puppy, but just halt it and at once propose another piece of food from your hand. Let the fallen piece lay and do not feed a dog with it in any case. In the order to master useful rules by a dog you should held trainings with it. One can train a dog from the age of 2-3 months. While feeding, as if it is specially, drop a piece of food and follow a puppy's reaction. If it reaches for it, turn it off feed from your hand. While the puppy's growing train it not to react to fallen pieces of food. Train it to sit in front of food longer and at the same time feed it with some delicacy from your hand.

If you are walking keeping a dog on a leash, try to drop pieces of food around. This technique lets you to get to know if your dog has mastered the rules. As soon as the pet reaches for your hand but not for a dropped piece of food, you may praise yourself!


The fourth rule.

Do not train a dog to be fed from strange hands. Train a dog to a rule not to take food from hands of strange people. By the way, a dog should not react to a strange hand with aggression or fear. As well as in urban conditions children may want to feed a dog the training of a dog may play a great role. It is quite real to train a dog to such behavior. It is important for a pet to master that a strange person will never feed it. Even stretching a hand with a piece of food, he will not give it any way. And here it is important to underline once again that by this way a dog should not get the feeling of aggression or cowardice.


The right dog reaction is formed with the help of special training. For the training invite your friends and relatives. They should perform this action: give delicacy from hand for a dog and keep it in hand while getting closer. It is desirable to have as many participants as possible. If people are the same, a puppy gets used to it fast and the result of the training may be negative. It is good to imprint the lesson with your personal feeding of a dog after another person. It is important in such lessons that the feeding behavior is not fully denied. A puppy is growing and feeding up is quite natural for its body. If there is not of such, a dog may look for food "elsewhere".


The fifth rule.

To perform ll the rules above. There should be no exclusions. All the rules contain straight actions "non-receipt of food" from another source. So, a dog begins to understand, that why it should reach for something, if it will not be given any way. The danger of this situation may be "circumstantial" eating of food from a strange hand. It is desirable to exclude this way of acting, or all your efforts will be useless. And the process of training will become difficult.

Remember, that negligence is inadmissible in training of a dog. If you are a bad trainer, you will have a bad influence on the dog behavior. It will not only train any good, but on the opposite, it will imprint its wrong habits. That's why here only a "painful" signal may help to emphasize that food out of a plate or in a stranger's hand is dangerous. The "food reflex" may be the strongest for a dog and it it the most difficult to fight with. That's why there are a lot of ways to organize proper feeding. As it has been said before, it is the proper feeding that affects wrong actions. A dog begins to act as "a breadwinner".


The "second rule" has a very positive influence - to eat only with a command of the owner. The next rule defines the strictness of the place for feeding, only from a plate or from a hand of the owner. In the order to train a dog not to pick up food products outside, a dog can be muzzled or asked a command to carry a fetching object. Training of incompatible behavior has positive influence. While walking you train a dog to bring you different objects in change for delicious pieces of food. It is useful also to reference braking. Feeling of pain helps well to break a dog of the habit "undesirable food". One can spread something spicy , for example mustard, on pieces of food and let a dog to pick it up.

Try to decide on the training methods and treat your "friend" with a great responsibility. Then you will not have to blush with shame for its behavior and worry for its health.