I have a rescue Sheltie who would take my fingers off if I allowed it when giving a treat. What I do is to offer a treat small enough to hold in my fist. I let him smell it and then, if he's not grabbed for my hand, I tell him to be gentle and take it out so he can see it and take it from me. However, if he tries to grab it, it disappears back into my fist. He knows he has to sit before he gets a treat, but it's very difficult for him to contain himself when the treat is in sight.

My big Rhodie oaf, on the other hand, is so very gentle that even a toddler can give him a treat.

I have had some success with this method---

Sit in a chair and have the dog sit in front of you.

Show the dog the treat and make them sit calmly.

Set the treat on your knee and make the dog sit calmly.

Say, "Ok" or "Get it"---or something to let the dog get the treat. If the dog lunges start over and block the treat with your fingers(Fingers spread and vertical so the dog can see the treat).

Make corrections as necessary---"SLOW!" or "EASY!"---said in a firm quiet tone.

Takes several times at a minimum, but usually works in several sessions.

We hold the treat in our hand and ask the dog to come- if he gets excited that is fine but he does not ever get the treat until he is calm submissive. Meaning, he is in a sitting or laying position with little regard for the treat. If we offer the treat and he tries to "grab" it we will pull it back and say "easy" and offer it again until he takes it slowly with his front teeth very gently. We do this EVERY time they get a treat- they are 10 months old and are very gentle about getting their treats- Hope this works for you as well
Julie, Gus, Greta and McKenzie

Hi -

I've heard a suggestion about having the treat on a spoon. Dogs don't like the sensation of the spoon and would take the treat gingerly, rather than snapping it up. Hope that helps.

Sheila

Thanks for the suggestions- we'll be doing a lot of "practice snacking" the next couple days!
-Reba

you can also hide most of the treat in your hand, showing a very tiny it of it. When he goes for it, tell him gentle. he will lick at it and nose it, and use those tiny front teeth to try and get it. when he starts getting aggressive, back off with the treat and say gentle. Start again...good luck

Put the dog in "sit".

Put the treat in your fingers. When your hand approaches the dog, instead of having your fingers and hand straight, curve your hand and the treat towards you so the dog cannot see it. Allow your hand to touch the dogs mouth (not the treat).

This will allow the dog to lick your hand, then, gradually straighten out your fingers and hand with the treat and give the dog the treat. Then use praise for a good deed!

When you approach the dog with extended fingers and hand, it get's excited knowing you have a treat. Nipping is a natural response, when you curve your hand so the dog cannot see it, and gently open your hand so it can be seen, this cures the problem.

You might practice gently touching your dogs mouth so it get's the idea (without a treat).

Your trainer should know better than to shove the treat in the dogs mouth. This is a "negative" done at the worst possible time. It should be a "positive".

SG

I have found jerking the treat away often causes lunging---and compounds the problem. Any method that causes the dog to small/lick/probe instead of bite will create the desired behavior better than other methods.

Consistency, repetition, and lots of praise when they do well, will win the day every time!

Use the same tone of voice, the same command word every time, and lots of positive reinforcement for a job well done.

I know there are some people who won't like this very much, but this is the way my grandfather did it (where, on their farm, non-well-behaved dogs were taken out back and shot-- horrifying, I know), my father did it, and now I do it...

Put a yummy treat-- bit of hot dog, whatever-- on a fork. When dog snatches at the food, quickly angle the fork so that the dog gets poked in the roof of the mouth. (Not so as to cause serious damage, obviously!)

One only needs to do this once or twice before the dog learns to "take it nice"... every single dog we've ever had has learned from puppy age to be able to take food so gently that we can hold a dog treat in our OWN mouths for them to take. My SIL/BIL used this trick on their overly-rambunctious doberman with great results, especially since there are litle kids in their house and a "grabby" dog is out of the question.

Flame me if you will, but this works like a charm...

I've been trying the-set it on knee, say ok and block if she lunges method. Now when I say OK she just looks at me like "yeah right"! She has taken it gently a couple times, I just don't think she's figured out the connection yet so we'll have to keep working at it.