Hello, First, as you probably know Retrievers are genetically prone to wanting something in their mouth. I would have lots of toys she can carry around available and practice the Take It command, teaching her to pick up and carry her own toys. Second, when she isn't as excited and mouthy, work on teaching her the Drop It command using a second toy or treat if food motivated when not as excited. Check out the sections on "Take It and How to Teach Take It" and "Drop It and How to Teach Drop It" from the article I have linked below. https://www.petful.com/behaviors/how-to-teach-a-dog-to-fetch/ With that proactive training in place, also check out the Step Towards method from the article I have lined below for the Jumping: https://wagwalking.com/training/train-australian-shepherds-to-not-jump As well as the Leave It method for the Biting: https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-shih-tzu-puppy-to-not-bite Expect these things to take a bit of time to teach, especially with a dog who is naturally prone to wanting things in their mouth and excited. Arm yourself with patience and calm persistence as you train, knowing that this is a normal challenge to be overcome for this breed, so you don't get discouraged and you continue working. Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden

Nov. 30, 2023

First, work on the Leave It command from the article linked below for surfing that happens when you are present. Leave It method- the first part of that method that involves food. Gradually work up to pup leaving harder foods alone - like kibble - treats - chicken - hotdogs - until pup can leave food on the floor alone when told that command while you are there to enforce it and prevent pup from grabbing it. https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-shih-tzu-puppy-to-not-bite For surfing that is happening while you are out of the room, I recommend creating an aversion to jumping on the counter itself. There are a few ways to do this. You can place something like a scat mat on the counter and put a food temptation further back on the counter just out of reach - when pup jumps up the mat gives a static shock - nothing harsh but its uncomfortable and surprising. You can also set up Snap Traps covered lightly with unfolded napkins. When pup touches them on the edge of the counter, they will jump up and make a snapping sound - startling pup. These are designed for this type of purpose so won't actually close on pup like real mouse traps would - don't use real mouse traps because of the risk of injury. You can also stack metal pot lids and pans precariously on the counter. Tie a strong string like twine through all of them and back tie the whole contraption to something secure so that when they fall they can't fall all the way to the floor and hit pup, then tie another string to the lid or pan that's supporting the precarious set up and tie the other end of that string to a safe food booby trap, like a whole bagel sitting on the counter. The idea is that when pup jumps up and grabs the food, they will pull the objects over because of the string attached to the bagel when they grab it and create a loud crashing noise that will surprise them. Because of the back tie string the objects should not fall on pup though. With all of these setups, you will need to set up a camera to spy on pup from the other room and be ready to run in and remove any food left on the counter or floor, so that pup doesn't return to the scene of the crime once things are calm and eat the food anyway - otherwise they may decide that its still worth it to jump up. You will need to practice this setup often with pup on different parts of the counter and with different foods. Don't use any food that could harm pup if they were to swallow it - like chicken bones, grapes, chocolate, xylitol, nuts, garlic, or onion. When not practicing the trap, keep counters clean and pup confined away from the area or tethered to you with a hands free leash until pup has thoroughly learned the lesson - jumping up and not being surprised and potentially grabbing food, will negate your training efforts - you want pup to think that the counter is always suspicious now so they give up on jumping up. Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden

Aug. 25, 2023

Hello, I would set up a camera to spy on her (such as a phone or ipad on video call with another device, with pup's end on mute so she won't hear you). I would remote all temptations except the ones used for training, then booby trap the training temptation. To booby tap you can try using something like a scat mat, which uses static electricity to generate the low level type of shock you get from touching a door handle or something static charged sometimes. It's simply an uncomfortable sensation but not considered at all dangerous. You can also purchase something like Snappy Trainer, which is a fake paddle type mouse trap that will close and make a loud snap sound while moving, to mimic the surprise of a mouse trap popping but without the ability to close onto pup's paws of face to cause injury. Often these can be placed on the counter with something light like an unfolded paper napkin covering them to hide them and the off-limits object set right behind the area, so that when pup jumps up, the trap pops and startles pup. It's important to watch from the camera so that you can come in and remove the temptation right after and reset the trap, so pup doesn't go back to investigate, try again and avoid the correction, and simply learn to ignore the correction. You want pup to be surprised by the correction each time and to associate it with jumping on the counter to steal and not with anything else, like your presence in the room or something visible like a bright red trap. Keep the home table clean whenever you are not training, and proactively set the booby trap when you are home for a couple of weeks, until pup is convinced that jumping up there isn't worth the risk. Additionally, I would work on the leave it command using positive reinforcement as well. Use treats or rewards to reward pup for leaving something they are told to alone. Always reward with a separate treat or toy, and not the one pup is being told to leave, so they learn to disengage from whatever they are supposed to be leaving alone and not simply wait to get it. You can start this training by having them leave one treat, rewarding with a different treat when they do. As they progress, practice with things like paper, holding and later dropping the paper onto the ground while commanding leave it, and rewarding when they disengage from the object, blocking them from getting to the leave it item on the floor if they try to grab it, rewarding when they back off of it. Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden

May 23, 2023