[rayofsunshine]

Our sweet little puppy has gone crazy! After his obedience class Ray was a star pupil. He is now 4-5 mos old and seems to have forgotten everything.
He stands up to surf the counters constantly. Dives for food and snacks.
We have increased his food, but this does not seem to matter.
He is also jumping up on everyone that walks in the door.
We are working with him on training him to get "off" and sit when someone enters the door. He just gets SO EXCITED!!
We know consistency is the only solution and we are trying very hard.
We are hoping this is just a phase that will soon pass. Any tips, reassurance...anything would be greatly appreciated.

 

[mainegirl]

welcome to the teenage time. it seems like it lasts forever, but then one day you realize that that dog on the floor, sleeping, is just doing that... sleeping. keeping a 5 month old tired is one way of helping. run them (with their toys) like there is no tomorrow. also obedience classes, crating, consistency, all that stuff you did in the beginning and they were a star at, now you just have to keep at it. finally they will turn back (or forward) into that golden you love to have around. but enjoy the time now with them, because they grow up all too fast.
beth, moose and angel

 

[mainegirl]

p.s. welcome and ray is such a cutie, i know why your heart melts.
beth, moose and angel

 

[Nicole74]

I just caught Bailey on our kitchen table today and there was no food up there. A few weeks ago when I went to start the grill, Bailey had eaten half of three hamburgers that were up on the counter.LOL I carefully mended the burgers and cooked off the germs.

I just make sure all of the food is put away at all times. I make Bailey sit when visitors come over. She gets very excited too and needs lots of reminders.

 

[CaptCooke]

Patience and Persistence are key. I have to admit I posted your exact question a couple of months ago in frustration. It is starting to get better.

The Most important thing for us is to absolutely Puppy Proof every time you leave the kitchen. Once they get even a crumb they will keep it up.

We also reward the off response when we tell Joy to get paws off the counter.
Hang in there. It will get better.

 

[rayofsunshine]

Thanks everyone. It's nice to know that what is going on in our house is the same as everyone else's. We just need to make sure we didn't have the only maniac Golden ever conceived!

 

[rayofsunshine]

Thanks and she is absolutely beautiful!

 

[AquaClaraCanines]

Yup, once they score one thing, you have effectively trained them to counter surf- you rewarded them for it!

So, the best thing is to NEVER leave anything where a dog can reach it.

 

[Maxs Mom]

I was worried we would have a counter surfer with Teddi, thank heaven she couldn't do that. Here are a couple things we were told (and ready) to try if she pursued.

Mouse traps. Set, set traps along the edge of the counter. If you use standard mouse traps you really can not "hurt" the dog. Sure it will sting and it is not pleasant, but the beauty of traps is that you do not have to be in the room for the correction. The dog learns on it's own. My lab we did this for furniture. She sprung one trap once, and she has NEVER gone near a mouse trap again. We don't even have to set them if we want her to stay away from somewhere.

The other thing I heard was a little more complex. You get aluminum pie tins, you "grease" them with bacon grease or something equally stinky and pleasant to a dog. Then you put some small stones (pea size to large marble size) in the tins and set the tins on the edge of the counter. Again you do not have to be in the room. The dog tips the tins over and the stones come down on your dog. I would think you need to be home for this, because you don't want the dog to eat the stones.

The last thing I heard, and I have NOT investigated so I don't know if it is expensive etc. Apparently their is a something you can buy that omits a electric field. My friend has a cat who will NOT stay off the table or the counter. She bought this, turns it on when she is not in the room, and the cat has never gone near the counter again. She bought it at some pet store. So it is being used for what it was intended to be used for. She says it works like a charm for her cat.

As for jumping on people, consistency is key. They do out grow it if you are consistent. These are the teenage months, and they will test you with everything they have. Good luck just know in the end you will have the bestest dog ever.

 

[Auretrvr]

Scat Mat...

Our guy is an incorrigible jumper too, but we did get the counter surfing stopped. I got a Scat Mat strip and put it on the counter he most went to. It is not painful...used it on myself first. It emits a static snap that is unpleasant, though. I think I had it up a few weeks, then I disconnected it and left it there. Then I took it away. (BTW, I didn't mess with batteries...figured they would go bad and then set my guy up for the occasional free surf. He still looks up at the counter if there is a goodie there, but doesn't jump. Of course, I would not leave the room with a package of bacon open to shoppers, but he probably would think about it first.

Let me know if you get the jumping licked. We have tried most of the recommendations and are now hoping for maturity to reign. H is 2!