Stealing from the table

I was just wondering whether anyone had any general tips about what to do if a dog jumps up and takes food from the table. One of our dogs used to do this a lot. One piece of advice we read was to put a jar of mustard near the edge of the table. The idea was that the dog would be put off stealing again by the strong taste. We tried it and our dog took a mouthful of it. A few minutes later he came back for more!

 

A spray bottle with water can help stop the behavior. I used it on my cats and my dogs if they are on surfaces they aren't supposed to be on. I put the spray bottle on stream and when they make a run for something I squirt them and say no. So far so good and I have only had to do it twice. A number of years back I had one that it didn't work with so I took a coffee can and put some change in it. Every time he did something he wasn't supposed to do I would shake the can and say no. That took about 3 times before he gave up and stopped the behavior.

 

When our dog tries to steal a food on the table, I will angrily say no with an angry face and that works.

 

If you want to train your dog not to get food off the table start by not allowing him to lean on it or jump on the table and peek at what's there. You have to let your pet know that the table is off limits food or no food. Saying no assertively or as MzMonka suggested using a can with coins are good ideas to discourage the dog from jumping on the table. You have to be consistent with enforcing this rule so that your dog will learn not to approach the table even if there is food there.

 

With Homer, nothing works. When he wants something, my angry face won't stop him. So the only thing that I could do, was buying a bigger table, I also always make sure that the chairs are under it. This way I'm sure that no matter what, he won't be able to jump on it.​

 

Terrible behaviour, if your dog can get away with this type of act there is something wrong, personally a tap on the nose and being removed to another room or the backyard until the meal was finished. A case of the dog ruling the human, a big no-no in my book.

 

TheBrit, in my opinion there is nothing more wrong than hitting a dog, even if it's only a tap on the nose. Any kind of violence is unnaceptable. I don't beat children, I don't beat dogs. Removing him to another room might work though.