RSS
Home
Taking treats respectfully
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
Here we see a dog being presented with her favorite treat.
She knows she can't have it if she hurts my hand taking it.
Taking treats should be something that all pet dogs can do politely and without anyone having to worry about their fingers being nipped. Some dogs never have a problem with this, while others seem to get so excited by the treat that they just snap at it and get fingers by accident. I have a few suggestions for how to combat this. Please consider your own pet’s quirks before attempting some of these for yourself.
One of the most obvious ways to teach a dog gentle treat taking is with lower value treats. For some dogs, a Milk Bone is far easier to take gently than a meatier treat. It can be that simple! Start with Milk Bones or less valued treats (to the dog) and when he can consistently take them appropriately, try something a little more enticing.
For some dogs, it’s a matter of how the treat is presented. If you hold the treat as though you were feeding a horse- with an open palm- there is less of an issue of fingers being in the way. To me, though, just offering a treat differently does not stop the dog from snatching it or being overzealous, and not everyone offers treats this way. There may be a situation where someone who doesn’t know the dog offers a treat and gets their fingers nipped, so to me, this is a band-aid solution.
This next suggestion is something that I personally do, but I can’t advise it for all dogs in all situations due to a potential for injury. If the dog is food aggressive, starved, or aggressive in general, don’t attempt this method. If the dog is a generally well-behaved dog that just gets carried away at treat time, this may work for you. Instead of offering the treat with your fingers out of the way, try presenting it with your fingers encasing the treat. The dog will know it’s there, but generally will know better than to just bite your hand, so usually it slows them down. While he’s trying to figure out how to get the treat without getting your fingers, ask him for a known cue (if he doesn’t know any, his calm behavior can substitute) release the treat once he complies or encourage him to chew on it in your hand if the treat is big enough. Below is a picture of a dog chewing on her treat while it's firmly in my hand. This activity reinforces to her that I control the treats and I released this treat after she demonstrated she knew better than to get my hand in her mouth.
Often times, children like to offer treats to dogs, this reason alone is enough for me to ensure all my dogs take treats gently. While it may work for the owner to just toss the treats at the eager dog, respectful treat-taking is a very important skill for our pets to have. The three suggestions above are just a few of many ways to combat overzealous treat-taking, it’s less important to me how it’s taught than THAT it’s taught.
Related Articles:
Add a Comment
