What kind of punishment?

[DaveS]

Or none at all?  Our 5 yo male has been known to counter surf for food.  We've had him for about 9 months so he's well settled into life with us and the other dogs,  Yesterday he grabbed some dog treats from the counter while I was standing nearby (but not close enough to stop him).  What should I have done?  Swat his butt, grab his ears, yank his muzzle?  I sort of yelled at him in a negative way and put my hands on my hips while I scolded him in a negative voice.  We have two other greys and I've never laid a hand on any of them except to pat, rub their head, and/or do affectionate things, etc.

[MerseyGrey]

I think you probably just need to have a quite word with yourself about remembering to keep the dog treats out of reach…

[Time4ANap]

Keeping attractive things off the counter is # 1. 

There is never a reason to swat, hit or "punish" a dog.  They don't understand that. 

Training is key. Train the "Off" command when the dog counter surfs or goes for something they shouldn't. You can also train "drop it" or "leave it" when they pick up something they shouldn't.  "Leave it" has worked well for all of our dogs and they will normally drop even high value items when we use that command. 

[ramonaghan]

What they said. I have newbies too (6 and 9 months off the track) and since we're still working on training, an "unh unh" is often sufficient. 

[greysmom]

Some dogs are easy.  Some dogs aren't.  It's been shown that dogs in general have the mental capacity - language understanding, intelligence, emotional capabilities - of about a 3 year old human toddler, so if you wouldn't hit a toddler for punishment, you shouldn't hit a dog.

Number one - you have a smart, food motivated, confident dog who will pick up on the training mentioned above quickly with consistency and patience on your part.  "Leave it" and "drop it" are especially useful.  There are excellent Positive Reinforcement Only training videos for both on YouTube.

Number two - the best way to avoid unsafe situations such as counter surfing, is to not allow them to happen in the first place. 

I had a greyhound once who stole an entire package of dinner rolls out of a shopping bag I left on the floor as I was bringing in the rest of the bags.  By the time I noticed it, all that was left - fortunately - was the plastic bag.  He didn't eat the plastic bag and we only had a couple days of bad poops from all the bread.  And again fortunately, it wasn't the chocolate candy or box of artificial sweetener packets that had been sitting beside the rolls in the bag.  So lesson learned - don't leave anything tempting within reach.

Our treats are all stored in conveniently located, securely closed cabinets, never just out on the counter.  Food is in a closed container too high for them to reach.  People food is never left at a level that would tempt them to try and snatch it.  Dog proof your home as you would baby proof it.

And never, never hit your dog.  It doesn't train them to do anything but be afraid of you.

[FiveRoooooers]

Let's start with the title of the thread: What kind of punishment. 

Adding to the sound advice from everyone above. Never Ever hit your dog.

[BatterseaBrindl]

Would you hit a small child for taking a tempting treat that was left within his reach? 

[Beachbum1]

Remove and secure the temptation.  Voila...problem solved.  

[Mercsmom]

14 hours ago, ramonaghan said:

What they said. I have newbies too (6 and 9 months off the track) and since we're still working on training, an "unh unh" is often sufficient. 

I've been known to use an Ack! from time to time but I do try to stick to a softer "unh unh".  Jupiter, as Mercury before him, is so sensitive.  Once I reacted too quickly with a "No!" and scared the poor thing.

[DaveS]

Just to be clear, I had put three treats on the counter and was standing nearby, waiting for the third of our three greys to come in from the backyard.  Two had come in and it was one of these that surfed the counter.

Your comments make perfect sense and I agree with them.  It was my fault that I provided the dog the opportunity to grab the food.  He's a big boy (85 lbs), so it doesn't take much effort for him to reach a standard 30" counter.

As I said, I've never touched any of our hounds in anger or for training.  I've known intuitively that striking a hound imparts fear or negative feelings in a dog, especially a greyhound.  I suspect they've never been struck in anger during their life as a racer and I'm not going to start now.

Thanks for all of your replies.

[greysmom]

I think the ultimate answer to your question is that dogs sometimes do things we wish they wouldn't! 

Ideally, you would have stopped him before he could get the treats.  A sharp "No!" or other vocalization, or even a handclap to break his concentration would interrupt his focus and allow you to move either him or the treats.  Training a "leave it" would also be effective in this and many other situations. 

Understanding his motivation and capabilities helps keep you thinking ahead.  You'll be fine! 

 

[Apollo_the_Grey]

On 3/11/2023 at 4:58 PM, MerseyGrey said:

I think you probably just need to have a quite word with yourself about remembering to keep the dog treats out of reach…

This.

Hounds are hunters.  It's their nature to hunt.  Apollo loves to hunt for treats on the counter, a loaf of bread on the counter, boxes from the recycling, the little plastic packing material that has the air bubbles...and lots of other stuff.  It's my responsibility to keep that stuff out of reach.  It's not his.  He's a dog doing what dogs have done for thousands of years to survive.

As far as negative reinforcement goes:  it's ineffective.  There's tons of books and research done on this.  Rather than negatively reinforce (aka punish) re-direct the behavior and reward the redirected behavior.