It’s time to prepare a meal! And like every day, your dog demands your attention at this time, even worse prevents you from cooking in many ways! It begs and it does not give up! It’s painful, especially since you end up in conflict with him! A moment that is far from pleasant for everyone! So what to do?
Why does your dog have this behavior?
Even though we love our dogs more than anything, we must know that they are opportunistic in nature! This is what made them good collaborators with the human being. The dog will therefore always do what is pleasing to him if he has the choice. Your dog can therefore annoy you when you cook for two main reasons:
he expects you to feed him. This is often the main reason. One day, to make him happy, you gave him a little something. Or you give it regularly. Regardless, the result is the same: it’s a random reinforcement. He’s begging, because he knows that at some point you’re going to break down.
he annoys you because he wants your attention and can’t deal with his frustration. This is an emotional problem, which the dog resents as much as you do. Your dog expects you to take care of it right away. He doesn’t give you any delay because you haven’t taught him to be patient.
In everyday life, therefore, there are all the behaviors of humans, which seem harmless, but which cause the dog to respond with a behavior that is natural for him. You will have understood that your dog adapts his behavior to yours.
Teach your dog not to beg
To help your dog to avoid begging when you are at the table or just cooking, you just need to teach him that leaving you alone is a win. But, you are going to have to stay consistent.
The first thing to do is to make sure that your dog is not sick, has no nutritional deficiencies and that he is really eating his fill. It’s something delicate, even a taboo subject at times, but most dogs in France are malnourished. They do not have food adapted to their needs (which are unique to each).
Food is an important physiological and psychological need for your dog’s body, as it obtains the proteins and energy necessary for his daily balance. We talk about nutritional deficiency when the body has not received the sufficient amount of nutrients it needs. This can cause for example:
Undernutrition / malnutrition in your dog which can be fatal
He can also develop more or less serious diseases or behavioral disorders
A malnourished dog may then not feel full and eat whatever food it finds.
He may lose weight or gain weight abnormally
May have digestive problems making him more susceptible, cranky or even aggressive
Have hypoglycemia or hyperglycemia (which can lead to more or less aggressive behavior)
To help your dog not to come and ask you to eat, it is therefore essential to check that everything is going well with his health. A veterinary check-up is necessary to know exactly if your dog is doing well.
But, very often your dog claims, because you have taught him, without knowing it, to come begging. Your dog has therefore adapted and offers you this behavior because he was a winning day with you or with someone else (wink to all my friends who give food to my dogs at table!). This is of course not a big deal either. It suffices to teach him to be patient wisely.
Help my dog deal with its frustration when it sees me cooking
So that your dog does not get into the habit of begging when you are cooking, your best bet is to teach him that he does not have access to the kitchen. Indeed, it can become a prohibited zone. To help you, you can put a child barrier in place and teach them in a positive way that it is better to wait outside of this area.
You must also remember to ignore these solicitations. If your dog gets into frustration quickly, there is a lot of work to be done and you will find all the steps to take in this article: Frustration in dogs.
You can also :
- Give him his bowl at the same time you cook.
- Give him an occupation toy to distract him while you are simmering the food.
- Teach him to be patient in his basket when you prepare food. If you don’t know how to teach your dog this click here: Teach your dog to go to the basket. There is nothing more simple.
- Do not feed him while you prepare meals. This will encourage him to start over. Also, it is not necessarily good for his health. However, you can save enough to give him a reward, if he leaves the kitchen, goes to his basket, or just stays calm.
- Respect these needs, take him for a walk before going about your business. Make sure his energy isn’t overwhelming.
Again, respecting your dog’s needs will make him happy, keep him balanced, and be easier for you if you want to educate him. A dog whose energy is not endlessly boiling, will show more calm and these peaceful moments can be rewarded. Encouraging your dog to stay calm is the best way to achieve a peaceful and patient pet.
In short, a dog learns to cry because of the human. Indeed, he remains opportunistic and will always go towards what brings him pleasure. But that’s also why your dog can learn to stay calm when you cook and even when you eat. The key is to show him kindly what is expected of him, encourage him and reward him for it.