How to Keep Dogs Out of the Kitchen Using Positive Reinforcement Only
By: David Codr
Published Date: December 9, 2020
For this Omaha dog training session worked with a pair of Dachshunds, teaching 5 year-old Etta and 14 year-old Hulk to stay out of the kitchen using positive reinforcement.
The dogs were very excited when I arrived for the session but for completely different reasons. Hulk was barking in protest and Etta was barking for attention.
I offered hulk some high-value training treats to start establishing a positive association and for the most part, ignored Etta until she settled down.
A lack of early socialization had resulted in Etta not having as much confidence as I would like to see. I spent quite a bit of time going over the importance of reinforcing and rewarding positive behaviors, how rules and structure can help the dogs feel more confident in their environment and tips to reduce their barking.
Both dogs were very unpracticed as impulse control. This is a common issue for a lot of the dogs I’m called in to help. I find that incorporating rules and structure, such as asking the dogs to stay out of the kitchen when food is being prepared is a great way for them to develop this skill.
The guardians looked at me like I was crazy when I suggested that they keep the dogs out of the kitchen when preparing food. It’s not actually as difficult as you think if you use positive reinforcement to train the dogs to stay out of the kitchen.
I grabbed one of their dog beds and some high-value treats so that I could show them how to teach the dog to stay out of the kitchen using positive reinforcement only. This is an easy method of getting dogs out of the kitchen that just requires some patience. Click the free positive dog training video below to watch and learn the secret to keeping a dog out of the kitchen.
The great thing about this tip to keep a dog out of the kitchen is how easy it is. Anyone can do it as long as they have patience, even if they are not a professional mini dachshund dog trainer.
Stopping the dogs from their barking outside will be a little bit more challenging. I recommended that the guardian set up a small enclosed area that is closer to the house instead of letting the dogs have full reign of the yard. This will make it easier for them to bring the dogs inside and increasing the distance between dogs and whatever they are barking at is always a good strategy.
I also recommended that the guardians place some paper over the windows that look into the backyard. Even though the dogs don’t currently bark at the window, there’s no doubt that they look out the window and see stimulus such as kids and neighbor dogs out in their yards. This can create a frustration or excitement level. By blocking the dogs ability to see outside into the yard, the guardians can effectively reduce any potential frustration that is contributed to their nuisance barking.
I’d also like the guardians to teach the dogs some new tricks and commence. Often dogs that bark when they are frustrated or excited to do so because of lower self-esteem and confidence. There’s a direct correlation between the number of commands of dog nose and it’s confidence level. Neither dog knew very many skills so I took time in the session to go over some basic commands. I’d love to have the guardians have one of our trainers come back to help them build on this so that the dogs can acquire a dozen or so new commands. Not only will this increase their self-esteem, it will give the guardians a dozen different ways to redirect the dogs attention away from barking.
Since we covered so many topics in this in-home dog training session, I pulled up my camera to film a roadmap to success summary video to help them remember. you can watch it yourself by clicking the video below.
Categorized in: Dog Behavior