Will Work For Food

Is your pup pushy?  Do they bark or paw at you for your attention?  Do they beg for food?  There are many things you can do to work through pushy behavior and this weeks tip is a great place to start.

Most dogs LOVE food….or at least they love treats!  So why not take the opportunity to make your dog work for you to get a treat?  You are giving the treat anyway so it is a great opportunity to train your dog in their daily life.  

So what am I talking about?  You probably already make your dog SIT for a treat but that can actually start to work against you because your dog starts expecting or INSISTING on a treat from you and this can cause pushy behavior.  The next thing you know, your dog won’t SIT unless you have a treat in your hand.  So who is in charge now?  

Let’s try something a bit different.  For the next week, every time you give your dog a treat…whether it is a piece of chicken while you are making dinner or an actual training or dog treat that you are in the routine of giving….make your dog do 5 different obedience commands before getting the treat.  Your obedience commands are GREAT for putting your dog to work. In this situation YOU are in charge of when your dog gets the food and they are “working” for you to get it.   If they have to work for what they want they will respect you more OR give up because it’s too much work.  🤣

This video of me and my dog shows an example of me making her work to get the treat.  She is the master of pushy behavior.


Don’t Forget – You can always ask me questions in our “Ask The Trainer” discussion group.

Happy Training!

Pamela Chandler
Founder and Head Trainer
Dog Sense Community

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