Pumpkin

[SadButGrateful]

When I reach for something, more often than not I have to chase her all through the house to get it from her. She's such a little thief! But when it comes to bath time she's amazing! She stands still like a little show dog. When it's rinse time she puts her paws up on the edge of the tub so I can get her belly too. She loves bath time!

[Karen]

Aww, glad she is good about bath time!

But you should not give chase when she steals something - that makes it a game, and she thinks you are playing.

One way to combat this, is work on teaching her, "drop it!" Which means drop whatever is in your mouth and sit down, and if you do that, good things happen! (You know whether that is a bit of a treat, or praise, or whatever she responds to.) Make that a more interesting game than "steal the whatever mom wants" and she will chase!

[Freedom]

Having dogs which need regular bathing, now I am envious! Wonderful that Pumpkin is so good for bath time.

As Karen said, do not give chase, this makes it a game. Some trainers say you NEVER chase your dog, not even outside in the yard playing. Dog chases you, always, you chase dog, never.

Pumpkin has learned that, if she picks up something YOU want, then you give her attention! She has you trained!

In addition to teaching drop it, you can do this: show NO interest in what she has. This reduces the value of it. If it is not a prize, if it is not 'treasure,' she won't want it either.

Pick up a toy, something you WANT her to have, and make a fuss over it. Squeak it (if it has a squeaker), coo at it, put it on the floor (so it is in reach for her) and roll it, if it is a ball, bounce it. In future, (and this may take a few weeks of retraining), when Pumpkin wants attention she will come to you with a toy in her mouth. MAKE SURE YOU GIVE HER ATTENTION! Stop what you are doing and play with her - but no chasing. You want to reinforce the new behavior. You won't have to do this every time for the rest of her life, but you do need to do this the first few times, because this is still part of the training process.

Please post more pics of your pretty girl, in Dog General, now and then, so we can enjoy her too!

[SadButGrateful]

Thanks for the tip about chasing her. It does get a little annoying sometimes...like when I step out of the shower and the bath mat isn't there because she's taken it out to the hallway. I plead guilty though because sometimes she's just so funny I can't help laughing. She's very smart though and I bet it won't take long to retrain her. I appreciate the comments.

[lolli94]

She's beautiful! And it sounds like she has a good sense of humor lol

[Freedom]

Oh boy, the more you write, the more she sounds like my Willy! He has made the last 5 years of my life hilarious and annoying at the same time! He steals my underpants when I shower. So I put my clothes way back on the vanity and . . . he climbed up on the toilet so he could reach! If I close the bathroom door, he howls!

You have one very smart problem solver dog there, I think. You are in for some fun times, but must keep on your toes especially re safety. After 5 years, Willy recently got hold of some dark chocolate. A 10 PM trip to the ER vet is among our misadventures, now.

Enjoy your puppa!