My 7 month old Bruiser is a terror when it comes to stealing things from the counters/table! Food, keys, papers, headphones....anything is fair game to him. I've tried giving treats when he jumps down, shaking a can of coins when he jumps up, spraying bitter apple when he jumps up, eeeeverything and nothing phases him! I live in a small house with 4 girls, so it's hard to keep things entirely off the counters. Has anyone had this issue/how did you resolve it?
Hi there! Sounds like your dog is a normal Lab My dog was around 8 months old when we got him and counter surfing was a passion of his, so I feel your pain. We recommend positive-only reinforcement training here on the forum, and so can't endorse the use of things like shaking a can of coins to scare the dog. As you have seen, it either doesn't work or, it could end up with the dog frightened of you, rather than being frightened of counter surfing. Bitter apple can be a deterrent to some dogs (for others it doesn't phase them at all) but it is not meant to be used by spraying it at the dog, the idea is to spray it on things he is might chew (like a table or furniture legs). It won't work for counter surfing as you would have to spray everything you leave on the counter which won't be practical. I'm not sure of the ingredients of bitter apple but it might irritate your dog eyes so I wouldn't spray it al him any more. So, what to do? Well, as you have mentioned, the best way to stop this from happening is to keep everything off the counter. Or, don't allow your pooch in the kitchen. He does this because he is rewarded when he does it. If he doesn't get any reward, he eventually will stop. As your pooch gets older this will eventually get less thrilling for him. I used to have to have spotless counters at all times. Now for the most part he generally keeps off the counter except for the odd time, just to keep us on our toes You will have to tell your kids (and OH) to keep the counters clean. It feels like a huge pain to start with, but it eventually just becomes a habit and it's no big deal. Good luck and let keep it posted!
