my 7 month lab has just worked out that if he puts his paws up he can reach the kitchen worktops. has so far stolen a tub of margarine and some milkshake powder. someone suggested putting somesaucepans piled up on the side with a tasty treat to catch him . idea is he will go for the treat, knock the saucepans over and the noiswe will frighten him so he wont do it again. Any body agree with this idea or any other suggestions please.

Hmmm idea will work but what happends when you knock the sausepans getting them out and he gets frightend for life?  Is their any way of keeping him out of the kitchin?  Make sure everything is out of reach if possible?  If he has nothign to jump up for he won't jump up! :)

We have 2 that are masters of counter surfing, Kayla has been doing it for almost 3 years and Idõ is her apprentice :D So far we haven't worked out how to stop them, we just keep stuff out of the way and have taught them the command 'off' but they still do it when our backs are turned or when there's something tasty about!
It annoys us but apart from what we already do I can't see what we can do, another joy of being a dog owner!
Emily

It's certainly worth trying - it MIGHT work - it didn't for our Simba, the sausage-roll snitcher, whose record was 32 with only the crumbs under the tray giving it away - and his guilty look!

Margot

Apparantly tin foil works well too, not that ive tried it.  Alfie is king of the work top surfers, his speciality is eating the cats dinner which is supposedly out of the reach of big ginger paws :p

Apart from not leaving anything edible on the worktops (I still haven't learnt that one :D), another trick that's used is putting parcel tape along the edge of the worktops (sticky side up) they hate getting on their paws.  I wouldn't do it while you're out - just make sure nothings left out, but you can try it,  for added effect, you could attach a can with a few stones in.  As it is pulled off, the can gives them a fright.  I would avoid anything that makes a loud noise if you have a sensitive puppy though.

Well, all my dogs have stolen at sometime or another.  Most have actually grown out of it but I think one I have never will!!!  And although some of the posts are suggesting trying various things they all seem to indicate that it MIGHT work.  In other words, do try, but you may well find you just have to live with it and do what we all do, put everything away - hassle I know!!

Are your worktops very low then, Dachsie lad?  (Dachsie = Dachsund right?)

I have a vision of a pyramid of Dachies(sp) co-operating to reach the food :D

Anne

LOL - we have a GSD who was really bad at stealing when she was a pup - but never does now and as for the 2 dachshunds - well somehow they get up there - think they scrabble and leap, and hope for the best!!

From experience, I too can only recommend that you don't leave anything within reach. Dogs have no moral concept of theft. Shay can easily reach the benches/table in our house and, although he's grown out of the habit to a cetain extent, if he knows his favourite foods are about (fish being a particular weakness), he'll still get up to see what he can get his paws on. You do need to be vigilent, though...I had a bit of a blonde moment (despite being brunette) last week and left a large block of parmesan cheese near the edge of the table without thinking. Found the empty wrapper on the floor about 2 minutes later and Shay licking his lips!! I Thought he deserved to be sick but showed no ill effects at all. Definitely need to step up the vigilence...especially since there's a rapidly growing Newfie in the house too!

A good tip if you have to leave food out to defrost is to put it in the microwave and make sure the door is properly closed (as I have caught Shay tring to get the door open!!)

The only sure way to prevent this becoming a habit is to never leave food within reach :D  Always keep it in cupboards or the fridge.  I shove things in the oven or microwave if I need to leave the kitchen whiile preparing meals.  Scavenging is part an parcel of being a dog, and success rewards this.

Hi
  My Basset is a master of surfing she may be short but she stands on her back legs and stretches her neck and she can reach even to the back of my kitchen surfice.
They are always after food even when  they have just been fed.
So what I had to do was get a metal child gate and my O H fixed it up for me, so when I am in the kitchen cooking or have food on any surface she is locked out.
She can still see what is happening but cant get in to steal food anymore, this really made it much better for all of us.
I hope this hlps
Carol
This is just an odd note as the sire of my basset is called surfer.

Just a quickie to say that none of the recommended solutions worked on my bullmastiff, and its not just food with her, its cutlery, utensils, anything at all. Just have to try and keep the sides clear, which I still forget to do after 2 years. We get through a wooden spoon a fortnight!! Sam.

had to laugh after reading about theft my cats are worse than the dogs or should I say they work it together ....."I'll knock it off and we'll share"!!!!!
just dont leave anything out I use the microwave and oven to if I have to leave the kitchen .
Also another one to watch with my two anyway is kitchen roll just been out into the kitchen and the back door is open so they can run around the garden and they have pulled a full roll off and dragged it around the garden they've never done this before....... hope is not a new game!!!!!

I once found my cats helping themselves to a gourmet fish platter- they thought all their Christmas' had come at once but they got to finish it - just not on my dining room table!   But they are infinitely worse scroungers than the dogs!

there is a terrific tool called a scat mat that really helps teach them boundries,..the 3'' by 46'' works great for counters http://www.hdw-inc.com/scatmat.htm

Apologies as this is a long post.

Have you tried training discs, created by John Fisher.  You have to introduce them properly to the dog, but they create a noice which is unique to the discs, so you are not using a noice to frighten the dogs but a noice which when introduced properly tells the dog to stop whatever it is doing at that moment. Also because it is a unique noice there is no worry that you may inadvertently make a noice (such as with the pans) which could confuse or really frighten the dog. (no offence to the person who suggested the pans)

To introduce the discs, you need a bowl of titbits. Offer the dog a titbit and tell it to take it.  Do this about 10 times.  The 11th time go to put the titbit on the floor.  The dog will automatically go to grab it.  Drop the training discs and reove the titbit.  Make sure the dog is not rewarded by actually getting the treat.  To start with you may not even get the treat on the floor before having to drop the training discs. Repeat putting a treat on the floor and dropping the discs and removing the treat.  It normally takes 3-4 times before you will find the dog will actually back away when you put a treat on the floor.  when he starts to back away again offer him a treat and tell him to take it( you may need to encourage him that it is ok).  Then go back to putting a treat on the floor. The idea is that the dog will realise that if you offer him a treat and tell him to take it then it is his, BUT if you want to put YOUR treat on the floor then no four legged hoover, no matter how cute he is, has the right to take it.
I would also start telling the dog to ' take ' any food he is to be given.  You could also set up a sting.  Put something tasty on the bench but hide behind a door and when he goes to take the food throw the discs into the room.  The idea is NOT to hit him with the discs ( even if you did, they are light enough not to hurt him ), but for the sound to tell him to stop what he is doing. I would put the food at the back of the bench because if you time it wrong you don't want him to get the reward of actually eating the food. Again the idea is to convince the dog that if he is told to  'Take ' any food  that is OK, but if not then it is yours, and he shouldn't touch it.
I have tried this and it does work and can be used for other unwanted behaviours but only concentrate on one thing at a time.
Hope this helps and sorry again this is so long.
Taro

not sure how this method translates into stopping counter surfing?

Dogs are opportunists, they are hardwired to make the most of resources that are available as who knows where the next meal is coming from.

Just make sure you don't leave food where it can be got out, prevention is better, safer and more reliable than cure............

Hi Tohme,  I agree that prevention is better than cure, but this method does work ( or did for my last dog).  I think the reasoning behind it is to teach the dogs that if you give something to them thats Ok, but it's not Ok for them to take what does not belong to them.
Mind I have only ever had GSD's and Rough Collies.  I've never had a Lab or retriever, who from what I hear, are eating machines on legs.  I just found the training discs really good to use if you have to stop a dog doing a particular behaviour.

Can I just say ( nothing to do with the topic), that I am fairly new to the site and am finding it great for advice and different points of view.

Taro

Living with gundogs is slightly more challenging in the food department!

Having said that I have a GSD who is just as, if not more, keen on his nosh than my gundogs............

Discs may work whilst you are actually present, but dogs are very aware of discriminative stimuli, hence when the cat's away............ ;)