Feasting Funny-Business
 At Thanksgiving everyone is in the kitchen, perhaps more than never. Ahem, ever. All this extra time focusing on food often uncovers a wealth of previously unknown, and definitely unwanted, behavior from your dog.
Last week we addressed the complication of counter surfing and this week we'll address another canine caper that commonly crops up at this time of year - begging.
If Thanksgiving dinner's at your place this year, know that your pup's incessant whining and under-the-table nudging will be about as welcome as an undercooked turkey.
So, prevent begging behavior before it even begins by never ever feeding your dog from the table. In fact, difficult as this may seem, your best bet is to completely ignore him during mealtimes. Period. He'll quickly learn that impoliteness gets him nowhere.
If begging's already a problem, don't worry. There's still time to get your dog on the right track before turkey time: Some behaviors - for instance, sitting or lying down on the other side of the room - are incompatible with lurking around the dinner table. So, brush up on the basics until your dog's sit, down, and stay are rock-solid reliable. Once he's a pro with those key cues, ask your dog for a down-stay before you sit down to dinner. Makes sense, right? If your dog is sitting or lying down, he can't be jumping in your lap while you're eating dinner. The first few meals may be especially challenging, so reinforce his admirable self-control by periodically going over to reward him with a treat, pet, and affectionate, "Gooooood dog."
|
It's Turkey Time!
Do you know what your dog is eating?
If a healthy, happy dog is on your list of things to be thankful for, make sure that this Thanksgiving your pup doesn't ingest anything that could cause her to be anything less. Plenty of human-safe foods can actually prove quite toxic to canines, so if your sweet potato pie recipe calls for raisins or you add extra onions to your stuffing, watch that Fido's not licking any of the plates. Top Ten Toxic (to Fido) Thanksgiving Foods/Ingredients- Cooked turkey bones
- Coffee (including beans and grounds)
- Onions
- Nutmeg
- Artificial sweeteners
- Chocolate
- Tomatoes
- Macadamia nuts
- Walnuts
- Raisins
|
