Swapping

[Loreley]

My daughter's Koolie x Whippet was a rescue who came to us around 5 months of age. She is an extremely bright dog who learns very quickily. My daughter took her to a 'teenagers puppy training course' (the teenage is referring to the dog age not the daughter age).

Dizzy came out of this 10 week course very well trained with one exception.

The trainer explained that to get a dog to stop stealing items which Dizzy was starting to do, do not punish, but 'swap' for another article this apparently gives the dog something of higher value that way you can retrieve the nicked item. Only one problem, Dizzy now swaps on her own. She is very ball motivated so there is nothing more highly prized than her ball. Trouble is I walk into the bathroom for instance and there is a ball in the middle of the floor - so that means that Dizzy has found something she likes and traded one of her balls for it. It was kind of cute to start with but has become somewhat of a worry, you never know what she has taken (particularly if there is something that may cause injury) and despite everything that I can think of I cannot work out how to stop this behaviour.

If she thinks she can get away with not leaving a ball in its place she will also try this, I have seen her sneak out on tip toe with an empty chip packet gingerly clutched in her teeth from my daughters waste basket in her bedroom. I know this is a game to her which she obviously enjoys but would love to curb it somewhat. My other daughter now has resorted to close her bedroom door because she is sick of losing makeup etc and finding balls in their place.

She is actively played with, taught tricks, exercised regularly.

Any advice would be oh so much appreciated.

[minimax]

I was taught to swap for stolen items too, so my pup would steal something and stand in front of the treat cupboard. in essence I'd taught her to steal something when she wanted a treat!

I got her out of it by not paying attention to her when she stole something, not even attempting to get the item back and she would get bored and drop it.

However, seems your pup isn't bringing items to you to swap which makes it a bit harder!

Not giving her access to things to steal is a good step, and I'd be restricting her access further so she isn't left in a position to steal something. So you can catch her and correct the behaviour on the spot, catch her "in the act" so to speak.

[murve]

this is known as a game trail, Minnimax is on the right trail, Ignore the dog when they do nick something, yes it is hard at 1st but the dog will get the message you are not going to play that game.

We did that with one of of pups, it does work, You just have to be strong & resistant to the game :D

[Loreley]

See thats the problem alot of the time we don't even know stuff is missing and only realise when it has been gone for a day or 2. So in essence she is being ignored lol. This now has progressed to her not always leaving balls in their place like she use to so often we have no idea that something has been taken.....

[minimax]

See thats the problem alot of the time we don't even know stuff is missing and only realise when it has been gone for a day or 2. So in essence she is being ignored lol. This now has progressed to her not always leaving balls in their place like she use to so often we have no idea that something has been taken.....

So That's where you need to keep a close eye on her and interrupt her when she's stealing something to correct the behavior as it's happening.

[Loreley]

thanks will keep at it, looks like we're doing it the correct way :)

[JulesP]

Leaving the balls is kind of cute :laugh: Clever pup. What does she do with the stuff she steals? One of my border collies used to put treasures in a pile unharmed.

I wouldn't let her have free run of the house and the problem is solved. When I have pups I am careful not to leave things on the ground (shoes etc).

You could also put her toys in a box for her to steal. Make sure her toys are obviously dog toys though, no old shoes etc.

[MarieEvans]

Not giving her access to things to steal is a good step, and I'd be restricting her access further so she isn't left in a position to steal something. So you can catch her and correct the behaviour on the spot, catch her "in the act" so to speak.

I have to say that swapping on her own is kind of cute but it really doesn't stop her from stealing, does it? So I guess, yes, it's important that you keep your eye on her so you could interfere when she's about to steal something and drop her favorite ball in its place.