How to train a dog from takeing food from the table and trash?

I have a 3-4 years old JRT and when i leave my house he gets in to the trash. I come home and its every where. Even when i go to the bathroom and my food is on the table he will grab it and eat it. He gets plenty of food in his bowl. He knows what he did but yet he dose it again and again. I've tried yelling with a stern voice and face and sending him to is bed but he still dose it. What should i do?How to train a dog from takeing food from the table and trash?
put the trash in a room the dog does not have access to - simple and effective. Or consider a crate.



stealing your food is BAD he thinks he's dominant over you. try leaving a plate of tuna sandwiches on the floor while you watch TV - everytime he goes near the food or even looks at it sya NO or make an ACK ACK noise dissapprovingly, keep working on it - he needs to learn that your food is off limits - always! - it can be done - my terriers will leave food on 'humans' plates even if it's left on the floor while I leave the room.



I have read that booby trapping some food can help - like make a piece of bread FULL of strong mustard and leave that around! but I don't think dogs are that dumb- I've not tried it - my other training methods worked! Good Luck!!How to train a dog from takeing food from the table and trash?
steal his food
Counter surfing is self reinforcing the reward he's getting may trump any punishment. Think about the rat who has learned that every time it hits a lever, a pellet drops. Now, take away the pellets. Does the rat hit the lever once or twice than walk away? No, the behavior actually increases initially. It is called an extinction burst and can be very frustrating if you don't know what is happening. A previously reinforced behavior is no longer paying off. This is why people kick soda machines.

Get a 4' dog lead and use that on your dog's collar (regular buckle collar only, never a choke collar). Basically you and the dog go hang out in the kitchen. Make sure you are always standing on the end of the lead. When your dog jumps up and hits the end of the lead and sits back down, praise and treat (click and reward if your dog is clicker trained). Only praise and treat when the dog is down. The idea is to reward not jumping on the counter and just sitting at your feet or laying down. Eventually, with consistency, the dog will have a longer interval in between attempts to jump up on the counter. If the dog gets bored and lays down, praise and treat that. Eventually your dog will come to learn that it's more rewarding to lay down than jump up. The goal though is to interrupt or redirect the behavior to something more favorable to the dog. You might get out some very tasty treats when they're sitting on the floor, away from the counter. Since I use drive to train, I would invite the dog to play tug, or have a handful of treats, and get the dog to ';push'; into me to get them. This gets them used to the feeling of coming to me to satisfy their drive-- not the counter.

You have to be consistent. If you are looking for an easy fix try double sided sticky tape placed on the edge of the counter. Dogs hate this, but it may not work.
He is still hungry !!



Your not feeding him enough !!



Filling his bowl up with what ever it is you feed him isn't filling him up......It's that simply !!



You've got to feed him more food.....Give him the left over food from the trash.....Before ...you put it in the trash



He's trying to let you know ......Yelling at him in a stern voice isn't helping him at all.......You are yelling at him for still being hungry !!



If you will start feeding him more food.....until he finally turns around and walks away from his food bowl.....With food still in it......You'll know He is finally full !!



When you start doing that.....He want get into the trash any more......And, away from your food !!



A lot of dogs eat more than just once a day.....Soooo, while your gone....make sure He has plenty of food in his bowl....Extra food



I don't know what you feed him.....Soooo, I'm guessing dog food........If it is ...He needs something more to go with it

When you start feeding him more.....He will stop getting into the trash and will stay out of your food !!

It shouldn't take a couple of days for him to not get into the trash at all.........But, if you don't start feeding him enough it will never stop....
i learned a long time ago when i first got great danes.....counter height to begin with - trash container HAD to have a lid, locking if possible or put in the kitchen closet. and no food left unguarded or uncovered on a table. you have dogs - you have to adjust or loose it. counter surfing for some danes is normal behavior! it's easiest on everyone to just remove the temptation!! there is one trick you can try and i've used it with success, a new clean mouse trap set on the counter for the ';counter surfers'; (old dog trainer tought me this) it is a definite deterrent - they're cheap and i buy them just for that purpose. and they won't hurt your dog - just scare him. it just depends on how hard-headed he is. a jack russell terrorist can be pretty hard-headed :)
sorry to just jump on a thread, but Snow, if you read this, you don't know anything about dogs and should not respond to any other dog-related questions, no matter how smart you think you are. Dogs are like kids, in the sense that they will want your food even if they aren't hungry. I want to agree with most of the other replies to this question, especially because learning a bit of psychology is wonderful since it can apply to people and dogs. I don't know about mouse traps though, if a dog set one off his jowls or ears could get snapped in it and that would be painful and traumatic. Talking sternly to or yelling (which is not helpful) at a dog will do no good, because unless it is done immediately after the bad behavior, they won't know what they did wrong, even if you point it out or (heaven forbid) rub their nose in it. You have to reinforce good behavior with rewards (small treats or praise), which is easier to learn than punishment (negative reinforcement) for bad behavior. Table scraps are ok for dogs anyway, as long as they are given at the end of a meal, and only as a reward for not begging or drooling and staring at the food the entire time. If you can't lock your trash up or put it somewhere that he can't get to, which is usually an inconvenience, you might want to try a baby gate on the doorways. When your dog tries to get near your food, go ';AH AH!'; quickly and loudly and stare him in the eyes. It is a bit jarring to the dog and is simple to understand, and it lets him know that you are the one in control (the alpha dog). When he backs away say something like, ';good boy!'; Also, watch that show on Animal Planet, called ';It's Me or the Dog,'; because the lady on there who trains dogs really knows what she's talking about. I have dogs and am strict with them, but also very fun and loving, and they are pretty well behaved and happy. The important things to remember are just to be patient and consistent. I really hope this helps! Good luck! =)