[alkalineangel]

Argh... my 2 year old Walker Foxhound is driving me crazy. He scrounges at all times... but it isn't just the scrounging, it is the fact that he gets on my counters, my sink, and he will eat any and everything. Is there a good way to keep him from stealing my dinner again? :mad: He just doesn't respond to scolding. I typically throw him in the back yard, but the minute I let him back in, he goes right back to it, whether I'm in the room staring him down...

[cromptondot]

I don't know of anything,short of a muzzle. Mine does it to,but not inside,just outside,any and every covered up pile of cat pooh,also some kind of leaves,not grass. Sometimes I feel like I am walking 2 cows,they graze.I have even tried prying the mouth open to make her drop,but those teeth are clamped on it,and I am NOT swiping out cat pooh, the weeds are not as bad.

[Jessyfay]

Huh... I can't relate, my dog tries to get away with it maybe once a week but all I have to do is give him the stare and he'll back away. Maybe more supervision and a strict routine for awhile until he becomes more obedient.

[cromptondot]

I would never put a muzzle on my dogs,sometimes the frustration makes you think ",What else can I do"? The stare does not work,I just get the" pitiful look".

[labman]

The key to most behavior problems is approaching things using the dog's natural instincts. Dogs see all the people and dogs in the household as a pack with each having their own rank in the pack and a top dog. Life is much easier if the 2 legged pack members outrank the 4 legged ones. You can learn to play the role of top dog by reading some books or going to a good obedience class. A good obedience class or book is about you being top dog, not about rewarding standard commands with a treat. Start at Raising Your Dog with the Monks of New Skete For more on being top dog, see Establishing and Keeping Alpha Position

A mousetrap is very effective in making a dog leave something alone. Most
Dogs will stay away from anywhere they were surprised by a snap. The best
Part is that it is not you that is correcting the dog. It works whether you
Are around or not. The mousetrap is very patient and is always on task as
Long as you reset it.

Better than mousetraps when you aren't around is the crate. Other dogs may
Not be as bad as the young Labs I am plagued with. Still your house and dog
Will be much safer with the dog in a crate when you are away. The dog may be
Happier in its den than loose in the house. It relaxes, it feels safe in its
Den. It rests, the body slows down reducing the need for water and relieving
Its self. Dogs that have been crated all along do very well. Many of them
Will rest in their crates even when the door is open. I think the plastic
Ones give the dog more of a safe, enclosed den feeling. They are harder for
Dogs to open too. Metal ones can be put in a corner or covered with
Something the dog can't pull in and chew. Select a crate just big enough for the full grown dog to stretch out in.

Leave it some toys. Perhaps a Kong filled with peanut butter. Don't leave
Anything in the crate the dog might chew up. It will do fine without even any
Bedding. You will come home to a safe dog and a house you can enjoy.

Accidents and damaged possessions are the fault of whoever was watching the puppy. When you are watching it, immediately correct it as soon as it goes for anything except its own toys. In a quiet, but firm voice ''Bad dog, its name drop!''. Gently remove what ever and replace it with one of her toys, or if older, hold eye contact until the puppy drops it.


A dog that has not been crated since it was little, make take some work.
Start just putting its toys and treats in the crate. Praise it for going
in. If you have been able to trust it with any bedding, put that in the crate.
Feed it in the crate. This is also an easy way to maintain order at feeding
Time for more than one dog.

Eye contact can be very effective. If you hold eye contact until the dog looks away, it is acknowledging your outrank it.

[alkalineangel]

We have been through obedience training, and he is fully aware I am the boss.He listens to his command and understands. On any other subject he will back down and listen. He is outside all day while we are gone, so he can run and play with the various toys outside. He has a hut outside, that my husband built... its a little like a small shed but with only 2 sides, so he can see around him, but provides cover from the elements. He is a good dog, and listens well, its just the nose gets the better of him I think. We feed him PLENTY, so I just don't understand the scrounging. In fact, he knows he is bad after wards. If I don't catch him doing it, but come up after the fact, he will just run and lay somewhere giving me the "Im sorry" look, and basically gives himself up. We tried crating him when he was younger, but he is very afraid of a crate seeing as we rescued him from a poor condition where he was crated with several dogs in a dirty environment and never let out. Also he is about 80lbs and close to 3 feet tall, so I would think even if we got passed that, it would be uncomfortable for him...



I will try the mouse trap. My husband uses his training collar on him when he jumps, (he hunts) and that works sometimes, but I'm not a big fan of that. Thanks for the answers I appreciate it.

[Jessyfay]

In the book of "how to be your dog's best friend" by the monks of new skete it reads that the stare is part of effective obedience, therefore the stare does work if used correctly.

[RubyPitbull]

Alka, I have seen you on the boards. I like a lot of your answers. Unfortunately, at this moment, reading your post has made my heart sink. Okay, I know people use dogs for hunting. I don't really have a problem with that because your dog has a job. Always good to give a dog a job. But, I am strongly against any type of training collar that uses the shock method. I am also against the use of muzzles. My reasoning behind it all is that these are negative reinforcers. You need to use positive reinforcers and get the dog to make the connection as to what you want from him. The link labman has given to you is a good one. I think you will benefit greatly from the training advice given by the Monks of New Skete.

You may think that you are the boss. I can guarantee you, that your dog doesn't agree, or else you wouldn't be having the problems that you are having.

This is very important: If you don't catch your dog in the act of doing something that you do not want him to do, he absolutely does not make the connection as to what he has done wrong. All he knows is that you are sending him body and eye signals that tell him that you are not happy with him. He doesn't understand why. All he understands is that you are someone in his pack that he has to be wary of.

You need to actively start from ground zero in retraining him again with the counter situation. Set him up. Put food items, training biscuits within his reach, on the counter. Every time he starts to go for it, say "OFF' and push him down. You don't need to be rough about it, but don't be too gentle either. You need to be able to force him down with one sweep of your arm without hurting him. Every time he starts, do the correction. If he doesn't do it while you are around, you will need to get creative. Leave the treats out, and pretend to walk away. If you can hide behind a door or to the side of a doorway then do so. Put yourself in a position where you can either see him without his seeing you, or listen carefully to his movements. When he goes for the treat, quickly move in towards him stating firmly, in a bark like tone "OFF." It will startle him and he should drop down. If he doesn't, again, sweep of the arm and push him down. You need to continue working with him on this. This definitely won't be resolved within a few days. Until you know that it is fully under control, you have to make sure that there is no food or packages left on the counter when he is around. You cannot turn your back on him for a minute without retraining yourself to always be aware that he is a dog who you are retraining to correct this problem.

P.S. If this doesn't work, start using the mousetraps as labman suggests. I also think reintroducing him to a crate in a positive way, is a very good idea.

[TheSavage]

Mouse traps always worked for me -But it helped that I used them the moment the problem started-- Savage

[labman]

I agree with Ruby on the negative punishment. Most of the dog training world is moving to more positive methods. Some otherwise obedient dogs are very persistent about counter surfing. Ours are largely gathering dust. We haven't used them much since 5 puppies ago with Kate. They are much more effective with some dogs than others. One bad experience getting snapped is enough to make some dogs leave things on the table or counter alone. Others become adept at taking things without setting the mousetrap off. I once tied a mousetrap to a cracker with a string. The dog was very surprised when the mousetrap came down too. Nugget learned they only have one snap. He would nip at one until he set it off. Then he would prance off with his prize.

Do fox hounds sometimes carry their tails curled forward? Our son has a dog from a shelter. We found the shelter's identification as a Plott Hound improbable. Except for the tail, she seemed to meet the description of a Fox Hound very well. Could be a mix.

[RubyPitbull]

I live in a hunting community. From what I have seen, most hunters who have dogs, train them for hunting and keep them outside. They don't actively train them in the way most of us do, because the dog is actively trained for his specific job. So quite a few of the people around me have these dogs that aren't taught the "house and people" rules when they are pups, and it isn't apparent there is a problem until they start allowing them inside and including them as family members. So, with things such as jumping up on people and counter surfing, you have to go back to the basics and then use the little tricks such as mouse traps when the normal training methods aren't working. Yes, the mouse traps will probably teach him a lot more quick, but it won't resolve the problem of keeping him from jumping on people. He needs to be taught that inside the house, the no jumping rules apply across the board. At this point in his life, it will take a lot of patience from Alka and hubby. They need to raise the bar and think outside the box when he is not responding to the basic positive reinforcement methods.

[alkalineangel]

I just want to clarify that my dog is not a hunting dog, He is my dog and has been an inside dog since birth, with the exception of running around in a fenced backyard while I'm at work. And the collar is not a shock collar (eek!). It gives of a high frequency sound. My husband used to have hunting dogs, but does not use them any more. The collar was just something he had around. I have read the link from labman, and I think there were some things that will be useful, but I'm still going to try the mouse traps. Thanks for all your help!

[alkalineangel]

To answer labmans question, yes foxhounds carry their tail forward. They resemble a beagle with very tall legs (in fact we were told ours was a beagle, and were greatly surprised when he was the size of a full grown beagle at 5 months.) Also the fur along their spine is courser than the rest of their fur, and almost curly. Also be forwarned, if it is a Walker foxhound, like ours, he can and will climb trees.. very well... or garages, or anything else within reach. We have found him on the garage a number of times... so we removed the tree next to it.

[RubyPitbull]

Thank you for clarifying Alka. That changes things. Definitely follow labman's advice.

[alkalineangel]

No problem, I didn't want you thinking I was so inhumane. I love my dog, even if I hate the habit. I would love to try reintroducing him to the crate, but he cowers and shakes any time we get near one, and if I try to coax him in with treats or a toy, he will tuck tail and growl. We even tried getting him in a dog house and a dogloo, the same reaction with both. That is the reason the shed thing in the back isn't fully enclosed.

Also I would like to add that he is otherwise very well behaved from his early obedience training, no jumping on people and such... just the scrounging... I really appreciate all the advice, its nice to hear from people who have experience with dogs. I have been told its just because he is a hound, stubborn, and his life is run by the nose, but I know he can be better than that.

[labman]

Having grown up in a culture where the worth of a dog depended on its ability to run rabbits, I am very familiar with Beagles. That is exactly what she looks like, an overgrown Beagle. So far they haven't reported any problems with climbing or scrounging.

[alkalineangel]

Lucky them, hopefully she won't start.:rolleyes: Thanks again for your help... I've already started trying some of the things in that article.

[Jessyfay]

You know I was thinking and a less painful approach may be before cleaning up the dinner table leave a few scraps of food on the plates and drench them in tabasco sauce. I know I use tabasco sauce to prevent my cats from scratching my furnature and I used it to prevent my dog when he was a puppy to not to chew on cable cords, but I guess you can run into a dog that like hot sauce.

[alkalineangel]

Oh believe me, we've tried that and bitter apple... no effect on him, I think he would lap up tomales if we let him... :D Thanks though!