June 28, 2021
Our dog is a relentless counter surfer, what can we do to address this?
Full Question:
We are having difficulty getting one of our dogs to stop counter surfing and going through gates which he has now learned how to open. In almost all cases he is doing these behaviors in search of food. We do a pretty good job of keeping food off the counters but this guy is relentless. What sorts of things can we do to address this nuisance behavior? I don't want him to eat something and poison himself. His appetite seems to have no limit. He has already eaten himself sick once when he broke through two gates and got to our cat's food. 
Cindy's Answer:
It sounds like since he has learned to work through barriers you have limited your options. If he gets rewarded with any food at all even once out of 50 attempts this only strengthens this behavior.
If I owned a dog like this he would be contained in an escape-proof kennel or crate when I couldn't supervise him 100% of the time and he'd be on leash with me when I was home so I could supervise and correct him for this.
It might not be a bad idea to increase the exercise and general training for him to stimulate his mind and body. Is he seeking food because he's bored? Not being exercised enough? Dogs turn to food for entertainment just like people do sometimes.
You could also teach him to wear a muzzle. It won't stop his behavior of searching but may keep him from eating the wrong thing and getting sick.
I don't know the level of training you've done with him but that's always the place to start.
If I owned a dog like this he would be contained in an escape-proof kennel or crate when I couldn't supervise him 100% of the time and he'd be on leash with me when I was home so I could supervise and correct him for this.
It might not be a bad idea to increase the exercise and general training for him to stimulate his mind and body. Is he seeking food because he's bored? Not being exercised enough? Dogs turn to food for entertainment just like people do sometimes.
You could also teach him to wear a muzzle. It won't stop his behavior of searching but may keep him from eating the wrong thing and getting sick.
I don't know the level of training you've done with him but that's always the place to start.
User Response:
Cindy,Thank you for the response. I think our dog gets a decent amount of exercise. We take him to the dog park a couple of times a week, he goes to dog daycare where he can run around a couple of times a week, and he gets several walks a day. We have another dog and they always run around and wrestle together as well.
We've trained some basic obedience with Jack, and he's not stupid, albeit a little stubborn. I would like to work on some more training with him though. I am teaching him to go to his bed when we are in the kitchen so that he does not try to get on the counters when we are preparing food for either the dogs or ourselves.
Thank you again for your advice. I may take a look at some of your training videos.
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