# Counter surfing



## Melly808 (May 6, 2013)

Charlie does the same thing. He can't be left alone in the house without getting into something. 


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

Sophy was too small to counter surf as a puppy, so she learned to jump and climb instead... I found good management (put EVERYTHING desirable away or completely out of reach, especially anything edible or chewable, and plenty of good chew toys helped. She will still take food if it is left unattended, but that is dog etiquette - if you walk away from it, it means you no longer want it and it is up for grabs!


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## cookieface (Jul 5, 2011)

I think management is key. Don't leave things out for her to get (I know - easier said than done) or keep her confined to rooms where she can't get things. The thing is, every time she gets something, she's reinforced for her behavior. And if she only gets things sometimes, it's even worse (a variable ratio reinforcement schedule creates behaviors that are most resistant to extinction). You need to completely break the habit of being reinforced for her undesirable behavior. 

Here are a few resources:
How to Put an End to Counter-Surfing


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

This is a very challenging problem. If not nipped in the bud it is a very hard behavior to extinguish because it is often self rewarding. The best thing is to take away all things that the dog will find rewarding and hope that they stop once they realize there is nothing fun to find. Lily still looks sometimes, but not nearly so often since we are religious about taking away the stuff she wants.


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## NYNIC715 (Oct 15, 2012)

Try a little butter apple spray on the edge of the kitchen counter to see if that helps... I am not sure about the dresser - but perhaps first see if the bitter apple does help in the kitchen...


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## P2alix (Jul 4, 2013)

I saw a training vid on you tube where on training your dog not to counter surf 

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=xZCIeEUm_n8&desktop_uri=/watch?v=xZCIeEUm_n8
Anyway instead of punishing your dog for counter surfing you reward not doing it. I hope this helps 


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## cavon (Aug 10, 2010)

Although he is not perfect, Finnegan is much better than he was when he was younger. 

When he would stand up at the counter, I would take him by the collar and say "NO", then walk him over to his dog bed and wait until he settled and praise the heck out of the settle with a treat always at first and then mix between a toy, treat, or verbal praise. The thing is to offer an optional activity when you tell them no.


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## Joelly (May 8, 2012)

Charlie, my toypoo mix (see signature for picture) 12-14lbs. He likes to counter surf too and even put himself on the counter to then surf. The most effective way for me to stop him from doing this is every time he jump up on the counter and/or put his two paws to surf the counter, I would calmly lift him up and guide him calmly to his crate. 2 minutes in there then I release him. I do this repeatedly every time he tries to counter surf and he eventually get it that counter surf is a big no-no for mommy.

Unfortunately, I can't say firm No! to Charlie as he gets startled quickly and will resulted in him fearful of me which means that he doesn't understand what's wrong. So if I see him doing anything I don't like, in the crate he goes. It gets to the point where I only need to click my tongue to my teeth that he knows he is doing something wrong and he will walk himself to the crate then I'll go over and close the door and 2 minutes later I will release him. Not always though, he is a stubborn one.

Lately, he would lift his both front paws but won't lean on the counter and he just surf like peaking onto the counter. Well, this prevent me from getting him into the crate because technically there is nothing wrong with that. If he caught me looking, he would start waving his both front paw in a begging command. What do I do? I have the most stubborn one ever.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

I don't understand how a dog as small as yours get himself onto the counter. I would think as long as you don't have things he can climb up near the counter you shouldn't have an issue. Lily is tall enough to reach things that are as far away from the edge as they can possibly be. So, enlighten me about how Charlie ever had the opportunity for counter surfing.

To answer your question I have found this very hard behavior to extinguish so I just make sure there is no self rewarding opportunity. She still looks, just not so often. That is our compromise.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

The most effective way to handle this is to never leave anything out on the counter. And I speak from experience! (cough:Millie:cough)


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## Joelly (May 8, 2012)

lily cd re said:


> I don't understand how a dog as small as yours get himself onto the counter. I would think as long as you don't have things he can climb up near the counter you shouldn't have an issue. Lily is tall enough to reach things that are as far away from the edge as they can possibly be. So, enlighten me about how Charlie ever had the opportunity for counter surfing.
> 
> To answer your question I have found this very hard behavior to extinguish so I just make sure there is no self rewarding opportunity. She still looks, just not so often. That is our compromise.


Trust me! It is surprising me and the trainer as well. He is very springy (quote the trainer) and about 12 inch tall. I'm so glad that Charlie and Edison are both toy poodle, otherwise, their energy alone can cause a whole new chaos in my already chaotic apartment. 

He uses the stepper in the kitchen if he wants to take a peek or climb onto the kitchen counter but this one is rare because there are lots of appliances that Charlie is scare to death of. In addition, there is that trash can that try to eat him when he was a baby and he is still scare to death of now. So that's good because he won't get to the trash. At least I get one thing going. 

The counter that he mostly would serve is the one attached to the kitchen counter, it serves like a bar that has stool to sit on for breakfast and/or dinner. He uses the stepper to get to that counter. We have dining table which Charlie loves to surf because my husband's stuff is often on it. He loves to use our dining room to work every now and then. Charlie uses the dining chair to step onto the dining table. OR he will use the lap of whoever sit in that dining chair to get onto the dining table.

Also, there is a table in the living room which we put our keys and his leash is on the row on top of that table. I also put the training pouch there on top of that table. He couldn't climb up on this table but he will put both his paws to try to get to his leash but he can only go as far as getting the treat pouch to give to me when he wants me to walk him. I don't train him any of this, FYI. I walk him based on schedule not whether or not he wants to pee, he usually waits accordingly but lately he has been more pushy than ever about getting us to walk him.

He goes in the crate if I caught him counter surf while I'm at home. If nobody home, we usually will place the chair upside down and lock the stepper in the pantry room.

Sounds like a lot of work now that I'm typing these down.

P.S. Why do I have a stepper in my kitchen you may ask. It's because I'm short and my husband was planning to marry someone taller thus he designed the kitchen accordingly but his luck ran out and get me instead.


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## PoodlePowerBC (Feb 25, 2011)

CharismaticMillie said:


> The most effective way to handle this is to never leave anything out on the counter. And I speak from experience! (cough:Millie:cough)


This was the only method that worked with Roscoe. The reward was just too great


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

I have cats. If it is edible and accessible it gets licked, chewed or completely eaten, and anything that is not shut in the fridge or cupboard, or in a screw top jar, counts as accessible. Eventually I learned. (Well, most of the time, anyway!)


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## Chagall's mom (Jan 9, 2010)

I am trying to think back to how I trained my TALL mpoo not to snatch things off the kitchen counters, bathroom vanities, night stands and coffee tables. I remember spending days on end putting temptation in his path, then hiding off scene and when he leapt up calling out "off!" ( a command he already knew) and tossing him treats (chicken, cheese or liver) as soon as he complied. (He's a natural jumper so early on I taught him "on" and "off" to get that *somewhat* under control. Perfection ain't my thing, nor his!) I don't know that any trainer would sanction my method, but it worked with Chagall. We are a two adult household, tidy by nature, but when the grandkids are here (a.k.a., "the invaders"), every surface is a veritable smorgasbord. Still, Chagall is mostly and largely reliable. He can even restrain himself from going after a peanut butter and jelly sandwich carelessly left on snack tray in front of the TV by one very adorable 9 year old girl. Of course the fool proof method is to always clear the decks!


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## ItzaClip (Dec 1, 2010)

Expen works great to prevent access. Dogs are natural scroungers, once they learn the habit they don't forget, they just learn when it's safe to do so (when your not looking). Prevent them from figuring out they can get yummy stuff up top. Do lots of play games, have stuffed bone/toy for them to focus on.

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## Indiana (Sep 11, 2011)

Maddy jumps onto the table casually from a standing position; she hasn't yet learned that she can jump on the counters and I hope she never does. Yes counter surfing is most definitely a self-rewarding endeavour but the thing I've always found difficult is when you have a lot of kids (and their friends who are always coming and going), it's extremely difficult to keep everything put away. Because it's not just food that is so attractive to Maddy; a pencil, a peanut butter knife in the sink, or any kid's backpack, a library book, or their homework is fascinating to her. She's naturally curious and just LOVES to solve a puzzle, like how to unzip backpacks and chew up their contents, or how to make the lazy susan in the corner cupboard spin around until she can find something fun (one time she ate the handle off a frying pan). Some dogs, like Indy, just aren't that motivated. Indy doesn't counter surf, unless of course there is something delicious on there which no dog could resist.


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