Jumping On Counter

Question
Hi, I cant believe I'm asking a question on such a simple topic, but I cant seem to solve the issue.  My Newf puppy, about 5 months old now has developed a strong habit of jumping up to the counter, the table, anything! Im very big on Positive training methods only, so I figured if she never got rewarded, the behavior will disappear on its own.  However, lately she did get rewarded a couple times, finding pieces of chicken and apples.  Even when shes not being rewarded though she still seems to like going up there and watching us prepare our dinner.

She is baby-gated in the kitchen, and is rarely let into the living room (where she got the chicken).  When she does get in though she goes straight for a chair and surveys the table for any scraps.  The way I've been working on it is in the morning when I cut her sausage for training, I give her treats (pieces of the sausage) every so often for remaining on the floor. And it works fine when I'm doing that.  Or if she gets into the living room and puts her forelegs on the table, I say "aha ah!", pick her up, and put her back in the kitchen.  

My family is getting impatient though, and starting to yell at her and push her off roughly, claiming "the passive method isnt working!"  I get mad, but I have to agree it isn't working as well as I'd like.  After I'm done training her with the sausage, she'll jump right back up there again to seek out scraps.  And I'm sure shes doing it when we're not in the house.  What actions should I take exactly...before I used to wait for her to get off the counter on her own, at most saying "Off", or "No", she'd usually then look at me, and realize Oh HE has the treats! and get off the counter.  Even that is short-lived though, the counter is like the focal point of the kitchen, where all the food is prepared. If I was a dog I'd want to get in on the action too

Plz help! lol

Stanley

Answer
Hi, Stanley. While I appreciate your views, I have to tell you that I am a believer in using a combination of both 'motivational' and 'traditional' methods to train with. I believe there must be a balance of positives and negatives.

To be frank with you, your dog is blowing you off. **grin** She knows there are no consequences for bad behavior, so why >>should she<< listen when you tell her not to get on the counters? I think now is a fine time to start introducing some corrections for inappropriate behavior.

The first thing I would do would be to stop giving her treats or food from the counters/tables. You need to break her focus on countertops, and to do that, you're going to stop all rewards from coming from those areas. In the mornings, when you are making her sausage training treats, ignore her completely. Don't look at her, talk to her, or let her have a piece of sausage! When you're through, put the pieces in a Ziplock baggie and back into the fridge (or whatever you normally do with them. Then go about your business. Whenever it's time to train, put the baggie in a treat bag (or, as I like to use, a cloth nail apron that I can get for $0.98 at Home Depot or Lowe's), not on a table or countertop.

Secondly, make SURE nothing is left up there that she could reward herself with by getting up on the counter or table!

Thirdly, you need to start taking a leadership role. :^) By now, she should understand that you do not want her up on the counters and table, but up until now, she's had nothing but positive experiences whenever she's gotten up there, so you need to start correcting her for getting up there.

I would put a leash on her and let her drag it around when you are at home. When she jumps up on the counters, tell her "NO" in a firm tone of voice, and jerk the leash down, towards the floor. Keep in mind you don't have to be Hercules and yank her off the countertops, but you should use enough 'force' to make it clear that putting her paws on the counter is not allowed. As SOON AS her paws are back on the floor, tell her what a good girl she is in a happy tone of voice, and pet her a bit. The praise is just as important as the correction. She needs the praise to understand what IS appropriate, just as much as she needs the correction to understand what is NOT appropriate. Make sense? One thing I would not recommend would be to give her a treat if you have to correct her off the counter. Otherwise, she could figure out that, in order to get a treat for getting off the counters, she has to first jump up there! **laugh**

You, and the other members of the household, should not physically push her away, or pick up her paws and put them on the floor. She has to make that decision on her own. Additionally, pushing her away can actually create an opposition reflex which will make her want to push back all the more. This is much like horseback riding; a horse will move >>into<< pressure from the rider's legs, or from the feel of the rein against the side of the neck. Dogs will do the same.

When you are not at home, you need to confine her in some way, to prevent her getting up on the counters or table, since you are not there to correct it. A crate is one way of doing this, and if she is already housebroken, you can get as large a crate as you like, because it's unlikely she will soil in it. I >>would<< recommend an x-pen, but she is probably strong enough to break out of one of those, or simply jump out of it. When you are not using the table, you can put a piece of clear carpet protector, teeth-side up, in all of the chairs to discourage her from getting up in them.



Another option is to try a system that is similar to the Invisible Fence, in which the dog wears a radio collar that emits a beeping sound, followed by a static correction if the dog does not heed the warning beeps. Innotek makes what they call 'Zones,' that are about the size of a CD or DVD, but about an inch thick. You place these discs wherever you want to keep the dog away from, such as near a trash can, under a couch or chair, at a doorway, or on the table/counter. You then set the range, and whenever the dog gets within that radius, the collar he is wearing emits a warning tone. If he ignores it, he gets a mild static correction. This is something that would work even if you were not at home, and I have used it on my cats to keep >>them<< off the counters, with success, so you can be sure that it will not harm your Newfie pup.