Oops! You caught me!
Many dog owners make the mistake of disciplining their dogs after they have misbehaved. Let’s say the birthday cake you have just baked for your boyfriend has just disappeared from the table. Your dog is nowhere to be found. But there are trails of cream and crumbs across the kitchen, leading to one location you are familiar with. You finally see Spotty laying contentedly on his blanket, wagging his tail. There’s a trail of something dark brown across his face. It smells like chocolate. You found your culprit!
This is a situation, people, where you had better do some kind of correction. Otherwise the next time your dog feels like misbehaving (and I mean aside from eating what’s not his, there are many worse things he could do. For instance, chewing shoes), he will go right ahead and do it. Your dog does not care if it is a cheap, foul tasting cake sent by your arch enemy or a precious imported something from LaDuree. The only thing your dog remembers is that he ate your cake and you had no problem with it!
Here are two appropriate forms of correction:
- Take a shoe, newspaper or other light objects and tap your dog firmly on the nose with it. Don’t hit. Just tap him. Then hand him a chew toy of his own.
- Claim the object. Your dog will then recognize the object as yours, and that he is not supposed to be touching your property. You could claim something by stepping in front of the object with your feet spread out. Have your head and shoulders up confidently the entire time. Also be sure to maintain direct eye contact with your dog throughout this entire procedure. Make the dog sit or lie down. You keep standing there, staring, until he turns away from you or moves away completely. That means she has surrendered. He recognizes the item or the space as yours, and knows that he is not supposed to go there without your express permission.
Good luck!
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