Puppy mistakes can cost big later on down the line.
After working with hundreds of clients over the years as a professional dog trainer, I’ve seen how quickly things can go ‘wrong’ and the fallout from seemingly innocent mistakes at the puppy stage by well-meaning owners.
These early mistakes can significantly impact a puppy’s future behaviour.
With this in mind, I’m going to explore one of those common mistakes here and the potential behaviour problem that (in my opinion) can manifest if not carefully and pro-actively addressed.
After all, these mistakes can lead to huge emotional and financial burden down the line.
Here is one of the most common Puppy Training Mistakes (that I see) and its Potential Behaviour Issue.
- Chasing down and then grabbing items out of your puppy’s mouth
- Potential Behaviour Issue: Aggression and possessiveness over item. Otherwise known as Resource Guarding.
Resource guarding’ occurs when a dog feels the need to protect a valuable resource, which could be food, an item, space, or even a person.
Protecting a resource that is valued highly is a natural survival mechanism for all species, and we don’t want to deny our dogs the ability to express themselves.
After all it is a normal behaviour.
However, when your 30kg adult dog with enough bite pressure
to put you in A&E is guarding your child’s favourite teddy bear, it becomes a dangerous problem.
Signs of resource guarding include freezing (stillness), ‘whale eye’ (showing the whites of the eye, the half-moon), growling, and snarling (showing teeth) over the item.
Dogs will escalate to a bite if the above warnings to back off have not been heeded.
However in most cases we can prevent abnormal or extreme Resource Guarding.
Puppies can and do eat stuff they shouldn’t.
New puppy parents are understandably cautious and protective when it comes to their puppy picking things up in their mouth.
However, just because an item is in their mouth doesn’t mean it will always end up being swallowed. Puppies explore the world through their mouths, just like human babies.
Imagine this scenario: your puppy excitedly grabs a tissue that falls out of your pocket when you put your coat on.
You gasp and start chasing your puppy!
Your puppy thinks, “Ooh, this is fun! I like being chased.” Eventually, you catch up to your puppy and pry open his mouth, causing him to lose the item that he simply wanted to investigate.
He has lost his prize!
Next time it happens he may run a little faster. Next time, he may hide under the bed or kitchen table.
Don’t Panic.
What do you do when your puppy picks something up and runs off with it?
Handling Harmless Items.
- Empty chocolate wrapper
- A leaf
- Shoe
- Remote control
- Child’s teddy bear
- A banana
- A Tissue
We don’t need to worry about these types of items.
Yes its annoying that puppy has run off with said item but here is your chance to act appropriately and help your puppy make a better choice.
Understand Your Puppy’s Curiosity: Your puppy will naturally want to investigate and put things in their mouth just like a human baby.
And just like human babies, their attention span is non-existent – they get bored really easily.
Let’s not get into the habit of making a big deal of whatever your puppy picks up. For the love of dog!
A Leaf: Who cares?
That empty protein bar wrapper that falls out of a gym bag: Not a problem.
Your hubby’s trainer: Nope, not interested.
The TV remote control: Take it, I don’t care!
If your pup grabs and runs off with a harmless item, walk the OTHER WAY.
Never ever, ever walk or rush towards your puppy.
When your puppy picks up a harmless item, walking away can make the item seem less interesting. Soon, they’ll likely drop it and move on to something else.
With most puppies, if you walk or run away and act as if there are more important or fun things happening in another room, it’s likely that your puppy will experience FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) and follow you, forgetting about their ‘treasure’.
Once you walk out of the room, keep an eye on your puppy for a few seconds to observe how he is interacting with the item.
Resist the urge to intervene immediately and instead start engaging in something that will capture your puppy’s attention.
Pick up your electricity bill and pretend you’ve stumbled upon something extraordinary. With exaggerated enthusiasm, exclaim,
“Oh my goodness… what have I found… ooooh..!”
Your dramatic performance will likely catch your puppy’s attention, drawing his focus away from the item he was fixated on.
Puppies are naturally curious, and your feigned excitement can be an effective tool to redirect their behaviour in a positive and playful manner!
Sometimes, the act of leaving the room will be enough for the puppy to drop the item and think, “Where’s mum gone?!” toddle OR chase after you carrying the item.
If your puppy finds great joy in bringing the item with him, that’s your chance to exclaim, “Ohh! What have you brought me? Thank you!”
Always be glad that your puppy brings you something.
* If your puppy runs off with something, walk the other way.
* If your puppy brings you something, praise them, act happy and thankful without immediately grabbing the item!
Swap & Drop.
If your puppy does bring the item with him and you act happy, you can then reach for a treat and toss it gently away from your puppy. Your pup is likely to chase and eat the treat with enthusiasm.
This is your chance to calmly retrieve the “stolen” (found) item, especially
if it’s something important like granny’s glasses or the TV remote. If the item is just a leaf or a sweet wrapper, consider engaging in a mini training session of “swap and drop.”
After your puppy has chased the treat, let him see you pick up the sweet wrapper calmly, then drop another treat.
When he finishes eating that treat, let him see you place the sweet wrapper back on the floor. If he grabs the wrapper again, take a few steps away, but if he backs off from the item, drop another treat.
Repeat this a few times until puppy is no longer interested in the wrapper but more interested in your treats. That’s the time to toss another treat away again and then pick up the wrapper for good and dispose.
Puppy learns that him grabbing items makes you walk away. Backing off from things makes you drop a treat.
What do I do if my puppy takes something toxic or sharp?
Puppy Proof, Puppy Proof and Puppy Proof!
Expect that any item that you leave lying around the house in puppy’s reach is in danger of becoming your puppy’s next found sparkly treasure!
If your puppy is able to grab an item you don’t want him to have then I’m afraid that’s your fault for leaving it exposed.
- Put everything you don’t want puppy to have up high, in a cupboard and out of reach. It’s only for a few months while your puppy matures. As your puppy grows, you can start to bring things down and ‘test the waters’
- Ensure your puppy is regularly having access to novel inexpensive items/toys and chews that they allowed to have.
Hint; Empty eggboxes are lots of fun!
Harmful items that could potentially send your puppy to the vet include:
- Cocktail sticks/Skewer
- Washing liquid pods
- Medications, which can be toxic
- Small household items like batteries, which can cause severe internal injuries if ingested
- Certain foods, such as chocolate, grapes, and onions, which are hazardous for dogs and can lead to serious health issues
You must act immediately to get the dangerous item away from your puppy as quickly as possible. But again, do not panic.
Emergency Strategy:
In these instances, run the other way, making it seem like there’s a huge party at the fridge!
Grab some dog-safe food, like ham or cheese pieces, and throw them towards your puppy holding the dangerous item.
The objective is to make the puppy more interested in the tasty treats than the harmful item.
‘Ooooh its raining ham! Sod the boring kebab stick’
Once your puppy drops the harmful item to go for the food, swiftly and calmly retrieve the dangerous item.
It’s important to note that this strategy is an emergency protocol to avoid
your puppy becoming injured, it is NOT a training exercise.
To summarise.
To prevent extreme and ‘abnormal’ resource guarding that could pose a bite risk in your future adult dog, you must:
* Avoid conflict and drama and create a safe environment ensuringthat potentially dangerous items are out of your puppy’s reach to prevent any serious incidents.
* Avoid unintentionally teaching your puppy that you will grab things from his mouth at any given time, this will only teach him that you are a perceived threat.
* Teach him that picking things up and bringing them TO you is a good thing.
* Dropping items in your presence means that good things happen!
Your puppy is learning all the time. Not just in scheduled training sessions. Yes, even this very minute.
Visualize your future dog.
Be proactive, and create those expectations NOW.
