Any Advice?

[Motoxxxracer096]

Hi, I have had my Basenji since February and needless to say it?s been a long road but we are coming along lol. I have him fully potty trained, somewhat crate trained. But by nature of the breed he likes to get into mischief. One problem I am having is I can't stop this dog from knocking over the trash can and will do everything in his power to steal food off of your plate while you eating it! Has any has anything like this with their B or a different dog and what are some things that will help rid these habits. Thank You

[lisastewart]

We have always kept our trash cans under the cabinet or on top of bathroom sinks, they are irresistable to basenjis

[tanza]

I think the problems that you are having you would have with any puppy. If you leave a trash can out, it is an open invitation for a puppy to get into…. and as far as going after food at the table, again, same thing. Try pupping the pup in their crate when you eat. Have you been doing any training with the pup? Sits/stays? Off? Leave it? Have you gone to puppy class?

Good manners come with training .....

[listeme]

We got somewhat decorative small trashcans and keep them on the dressers Pups make you see the world differently, neh?

As far as the plates go, it really depends on the family personality. My best advice is if you can't stop him from begging and you REALLY don't want him to, crate him whenever you eat. Don't let him keep succeeding at something you don't want him to do. We are fairly chill about begging here, but we don't want them eating FROM our plates. So we have a few "rules". Feet on the floor for anything like a treat. You'd be surprised how fast a pup can catch on to this rule. I like my dogs near me, even when I'm eating yummy things, so I start early with teaching that calm behavior gets you bits of my food. Begging does not. Leaping at the plate does not. Whining does not. Sitting on my shoulder chewing my hair definitely does not. Lying nicely at my feet does. In the beginning you have to heavily encourage the behavior you want, so anything like lying peacefully gets him the bit.

At four months, Simon has caught on to this very well. He knows that if he is nice, he'll get a bite of food at the end of the meal. My previous basenjis did, too. Food motivation is awesome

Again, if you don't want to interact with him while eating, I'd crate him.

[tanza]

Well put Listeme, great advise…. and I totally agree. My puppy girls sleep though meals or just lay in their beds and watch... they too have figured out that naughty behavior gains nothing... good behavior earns a treat when we are finished.

You have to be consistant in your training and positive and ready to reward good behavior.

We solved the trash problem with a compactor...gggg ... and in the bathrooms, waste cans are on the top of the potty... along with the TP Paper too!... somethings are better put "out of reach" as temptations are sometimes way to much.

[nobarkus]

Any dog or any animal for that matter, not just a Basenji will get into the garbage. All mine are up high. As for dinner time as the others have said it's either the crate or train to just lay down or sit nearby. These 2 problems are food related which is a high motivator for that kind of behavior.

[MacPack]

Just to be sure your dog isn't so 'food assertive' due to hunger, you might feed him early, before you eat. Ours sleep at our feet till they sense we are almost finished, then they get restless, but they always get some of our food after we are done, in the kitchen.
I agree with all listeme said. Also some good positive basic obedience classes will help.

[sharronhurlbut]

We use a squirt bottle to spay the b's when they came over to beg. We only had to do it a few times, and now, we just p/u the spay bottle and show it to them. They know they get a treat after we are done, and we never give food from the table.
Re trash, put it where they can't get it.
Sounds like this pup has too much energy, and needs more walking….

[basenji_fan]

Another option for the trash can is you could try a scat mat. They are kinda expensive, but I love them. They come in handy for many things. scat mats use a slight "static" shock to deter the to dog from the area you don't want the animal (cat or dog) from going to. They learn pretty quickly not to go there. They are harmless but will startle them. I have accidently stepped on my many times, it will surprise you but it doesn't hurt. I have even stepped on mine barefoot, it is just like a mild static shock. They use a 9 volt battery to operate. And have 3 power settings.

I had a tall lidded trash can when I got my Basenji as a pup and tried all re-directive training and none of it worked and finally put down the scat mat that I already had. He tested it three times and never tried the scat mat again. After that I turned it off, for my sake I kept stepping on it.

I can use them now to block door ways to keep the dogs in, and they won't cross it. However if the basenji is all riled up he will blow right through it. But if he is calm he refuses to step on it, and most the time I can just leave it off. The boxer he refuse to cross it for life, limb or eyesight

Most the time you can find them on Amazon for the cheapest.
http://www.amazon.com/ScatMat-20-Inch-Electronic-Training-Large/dp/B0007NTBJ6

[starrlamia]

I would put the trash somewhere they cannot access it, or use a locking lid.

As for stealing/begging I would work on stay and go lie down or go to bed, that way when you eat you can send them to go lay down and leave you in peace to eat.
Or simply remove them from the room while you eat.
My dog does this as well, we either give him a treat while we eat (usually raw bones or chews) or he is in his crate.

[Shaye's Mom]

We simply ignored ours when they were begging for food - so now one lies at our feet, and the other lies somewhere in the area. After we are done, they get a little bit in their bowls - this has stopped them constantly trying to climb into our plates.

Dog naturally try to get into trash cans - we got the kind you have to step on a lever to open the top. Then we turned the top toward the wall, and they wasted some time trying to open the part with the hinge, and now have given up on it. all the other advice above is great.