Begging Dogs

Does this look familiar? I have 2 Golden retrievers that are guilty of begging. Here are some signs of a begging dog and some ways to prevent it. If you have a begging dog you probably already know the signs.


Signs:
Dog habitually eyes, jumps toward or grabs food. Sits expectantly while you are eating. Follows and persistently blocks path of people holding food. Noses or paws a person's hand, arm or leg demanding a treat, petting, play or other attention. Dog begs, pushes for play by repeatedly dropping ball or toy in front of owner or in their lap.

Causes: Attention Seeking.

Corrective Actions:
Work with positive obedience training methods to establish yourself as leader, to let the dog know that you are Dominic over them. As long as the dog shows no signs of aggression, when he attempts to block your path, just continue walking so you gently bump him out of your way. Ignore gentle pawing, nosing or pushing. Take charge of toys used for games, such as ball, or flying disc and bring them out only when you want to play and put them away when finished.

Table feeding:
Dogs who beg from or push at people for treats during meals do so because their annoying behavior previously earned tidbits.

Corrective Actions:
Everyone must stop handing the dog food while eating. If family members, such as children drop morsels of food on the floor, confine dog away from the table to prevent accidental rewards that encourage begging. At first sign of begging, confine the dog away from the table. Never let the dog lick dinnerware and clean up scraps after meals.

Free Treats:
Dogs who constantly receive treats for no reason often demand them throughout the day.

Corrective Action:
Dogs must be taught to earn treats by doing something good to deserve them.

Sharing Snacks:
This will surely encourage him to beg for food.

Corrective Action:
Never share your snacks or allow others to share their munchies. If resistant children are too young to understand, separate the dog from kids while eating meals or snacks.

Treat Fixation:
Food based training is an effective is an effective positive method for encouraging proper behavior, but failure to reduce treats into randomly given rewards, rather than for every performance can result in a dog who expects a treat for every command given, and ignores you until he is given a treat.

Corrective Action:
Avoid using treats to bribe the dog into performing a command. The treat should always follow a behavior as reward. Combine praise with treats early in training to increase pleasant impact of praise. Study positive training methods or work with a professional to learn how to correctly fade treats while maintaining obedience. Don't fall into habit of giving a dog a treat despite an incorrect or half-hearted performance. Insist the dog complies with command as trained.