My son has a child proof lock on his trash can. It keeps out the dogs along with the toddler.

my trash can is behind a closed door.

We had one dog that could open cupboard doors. (ack.)

Perhaps, empty the trash every night.

My dog sleeps in his bed in my bedroom at night. I do it for the cat's sake -- no middle-of-the-night encounters. Think about creating a "bedroom" for her. Crates are great, but don't work for all dogs. A back porch, a laundry room, a mud room . . . whatever you have available. Or your bedroom if you don't mind. And get a garbage can that fits under the kitchen sink. Dogs will eat anything.

Our dog can open anything (has paws like a raccoon). We never leave trash where he can get to it. It is emptied nightly - the organics, the recyclables and the garbage - they have to be separated where we live. During the day the various receptacles are kept on the counter.

He is also extremely food obsessed. It is a major event to ensure that he does not pick up anything on his walks.

Please confine your dog at night to avoid health and safety issues. As previously stated, it can be a crate, pen, or a room blocked with a baby gate or door.

Hah! Sounds like home! On the nights that I don't empty the waste basket, I put it in the bathroom and close the door. If she figures out how to open the door, and some of them do, put an inexpensive latch on it, the kind people use on screen doors.

First of all, this behavior could result in a serious health issue that you or your dog would not want to experience (think thousands of dollars in an emergency room).

That being said, I seriously doubt that this is the only negative behavior your dog experiences (could be, but I doubt it).

Train your dog not to go in to the kitchen area. It will save you both lots of grief.

Mike

We had to take her to emergency as she was choking on something that was in the recycling bin. Luckily all is good for now.

If the usual barriers don't work are there any automatic trash cans? Are they pet proof? Wonder if these will hold them at night...

The final option is to build a storage with lock and key that will be inconvenient as we have trash in hand and also dog following me then figure our which hand to open the lock with...ah

Derek

What about a baby latch of some kind just fastening the top of the trash can to the bottom, and a trash can with a hinged lid? So you just latch it shut and then in the day you can have it open for easier use.

In addition to that, I'd put something on top of the trash can where if she does knock it off, it will make her unhappy. (It may wake you up also, but hopefully it won't take too many repetitions for her to decide that the contents of the trash aren't worth it.) I don't mean something that will hurt her - just something she doesn't like, such as a can with pennies in it, something that will make some noise and startle her. (My grandmother used to use mousetraps - the old fashioned spring type - but I always worry they'd actually catch the dog's nose and make a cut or something. But that's the sort of thing I mean - startling and unpleasant because of the startle, but not truly hurtful or harmful.)

I've had a couple of food seeking dogs. Trash kept under the kitchen sink with child proof latches or a rubber band around the knobs worked here. Dogs stay in bedroom with closed door at night.

A golden retriever would easily knock a can off the counter. My dogs would be flummoxed by any latched can but would have a good time rolling it around and licking up the juices that would spill out. I would resent having to clean the can of stinky garbage juices daily.

First food seeking dog picked up a heavy ceramic pot out of the kitchen sink. It broke into a million pieces and she licked them all clean except for one that she decided to swallow. The sound did nothing to stop her, she continued to counter surf. Fortunately for my peace of mind I only knew about the shard swallowing after picking up the evidence in the back yard. From then on I put broken dishes back together. Yes there were more broken dishes. We were exceptional slow learners!

Current food seeker hasn't gotten under the sink but if he could I'd simply put it in the garage and lock the door when we are out of the house. He doesn't jump on the kitchen table although he easily jumps on the beds which are just as high. Slippery I guess. He is 12" tall and can somehow claw things off the 36" tall counter if he can see them over the edge.

She's hungry. I have had more than one food motivated dog but they never looked for food at midnight or anytime after 6 pm. Is she getting fed enough or do you need to adjust her feeding times? For example, is she getting fed once or twice during the day? My dogs need to be fed twice a day.

TRAIN YOUR DOGS. YOU CAN DO IT WITHOUT BEING MEAN......IT JUST TAKES TIME THAT PEOPLE DON'T WANT TO USE BECAUSE OF TV OR OTHER STUPID DISTRACTIONS..................

IF YOU DON'T PROPERLY TRAIN YOUR DOG AND IT WINDS UP SEVERELY INJURED OR DEAD IT'S A FORM OF ABUSE.

IF SOMEONE WOULD BEAT YOUR DOG IT WOULD BE IN PAIN AN YOU WOULD SAY IT'S ABUSE. PAIN IS PAIN AND HAS HAS NO BOUNDARIES, IT'S FELT.

Mike

hapypaws, I've been training dogs since 1994. Lots of fun and my dogs have earned many titles in my chosen sport over the years. The best dogs in my sport need just as much managing as the bratty dog I have now. Manage the situation if dog is out of your sight. They are animals, not automatons.

Even if a dog is trained, it's not fair to tempt them to misbehave if it is easy enough to manage things to prevent the temptation. Like a dog with a history of chewing shoes, I wouldn't leave shoes out all over even if he'd finally learned not to chew shoes, because the temptation would be there and we all only have so much self-control. I'd pick up shoes and make sure there were appropriate chews available to make it easy for the dog to be good.

Kathy,

I have been working with dogs and humans for the past twelve years. I have been there with humans, seen and felt the emotion dealing with awful things that happened to their dogs for no other reason than the fact that human simply refuse to discipline their dog or give any type of guidance.

What would be the reaction to trash dog if the poster stated that the dog ate broken glass while being a naughty dog?? What could have happened blessedly did not.

This and most ANY negative behavior (being what does not please you OR should not be happening) is easily corrected, you just have to do it.

Dogs displaying negative behavior have not EARNED your trust for unsupervised freedom. It has been severely breached, through no fault of their own. That fault is one of the dogs human, and only that human, NEVER the dog.

Yes, dogs are animals. Humans are their guardians. They desperately want to please us. They look at their humans for guidance, sadly lots of them do not get it and wind up severely injured or dead.

A well trained dog is a blessing and can have the run of the house and be completely happy and have fun without being destructive. IF dog is experiencing negative behaviors when unsupervised and especially if they are with someone his human simply cannot/should not trust him.

Your statement about automatons is a poor one and only reinforces those who will not discipline their dog, especially in the potty department. Why do people think it's OK to allow dog to pee and poop all over the house?? It's gross and disgusting.

Dogs, even bratty ones, were put on this planet to please humans, not wreck a house. Bratty dogs just need more work to make them a good dog.

Dogs were put on this planet to be dogs. Pleasing humans factors into it for some dogs, but not all of them.

I don't think anyone is saying that the behavior shouldn't be dealt with. But if I had a dog that had established it was happy to routinely go trash diving and eat who knows what, in addition to training the dog that trash diving is undesirable, I would also take steps to make trash diving harder or impossible. Because training doesn't guarantee perfect results, and I'd rather not have to rush my dog to the vet.

Thank you!

How are you training your dogs to stay out of garbage? Get specific here. Vague suggestions to train the dog aren't helpful. I'd love to read your training plan.

Given events, I seriously doubt that this is the only negative behavior this dog is experiencing. The dog has severely breached his ability to be unsupervised and be trusted. He is simply not ready for his freedom. Would you give a teenager keys to a car if you couldn't trust him?? Perhaps, but you might also pay an awful price.

Same with dog, he simply must earn trust to get gradual unsupervised freedom.

Taking the garbage away so dog can't get in to it probably will not work in the long term because it's not fixing the problem. Dog will simply display some other negative behavior. *People who put a muzzle on their dog because of aggression issues while walking are NOT fixing the problem, they are only CONTAINING the problem

The whole training process needs to be started over. The dog needs to be treated like a 2 month old puppy and gradually taught positive behaviors, using positive reinforcement techniques, along with that given gradual unsupervised freedom.

This could take up to 8 or 9 months, or possibly longer, just like a puppy. As long as dog is having negative behaviors, he is simply not ready for unsupervised freedom.

Without this structure of positive reinforcement the negative behaviors will continue to build on themselves, instead of positive behaviors building on positive.

I turn the lidded trash cans so that the side that opens face the wall. my JRT was nosing them open and she can't do that from the side or back.

Dogs in the retriever family are extremely intelligent and easy to train. They’re anxious to please and if handled properly, will do anything to make their owners happy. It’s never too late to sign up for some training so you can learn how to work with the dog and it’s not an expensive endeavor either. You just need to devote some time and effort to teach it some boundries. It’s really in the best interest of the dog that you do. Not only for it’s safety but for it’s quality of life as well. Dogs are much happier when they understand what their boundries are.

Lauraalar, turning the can may have fixed the immediate problem, but it won’t stop your dog from getting into other things that could be dangerous for it. Good training keeps the dog safe. You should be able to leave a plate of food on a coffee table and feel confident that the dog will never touch it.

Kathy, learning the tools you need to train your dog is not hard, it just takes time, patience and commitment. The amount of time it takes the dog to learn can vary but seldom is it ever impossible for a dog to learn if the trainer is consistent. The best way to train is to sign up for 6-8 weeks of training classes so you can learn hands on with a trainer and have someone to answer your questions, especially if your dog has had bad habits for a long time.

Also, a lot of owners don’t understand or realize that for the best outcome, you need to make sure that your dog is amply exercised so it can focus. Some breeds don’t require a lot of activity, but others like Labs, or most hunting breeds do. If they aren’t properly exercised, they will find a way to expend the energy in the confines of where they are, usually by chewing or other destructive behaviors, which isn’t their fault. To have all that energy and no way to burn it is actually painful for them and in essance cruel. It’s also going to be very hard for an unexercised dog to focus on the task when you work with them.

I knew we wouldn’t be able to properly exercise our lab so once she was 4 months old, I started taking her to a doggy daycare. I know it sounds silly, but it’s really paid off. Not only is she calm and happy at home, but she’s never chewed or destroyed anything, not even as a puppy. She’s also socialized really well, so I can bring her around any dog or other animal and trust that she won’t behave poorly. She’s never ever gotten into the trash and she’s never run from us, she doesn’t even wear a collar outside when we’re home and we live on a busy road. I can also leave a plate of food, even HER food on the coffee table, go to work and come home to it still sitting there. She may watch it, but she will never take it. I worked with her every day for the first 2-3 years and even now at 6 we still go out and practice some of the commands on a regular basis. It’s a great way to gain the trust of your dog and bond with it and it can be extremely rewarding.

My dog will dump the garbage only if I leave him alone during the day. Which is infrequently, as he normally goes with me everywhere. And he never really roots through it or eats anything - he just likes to dump it over. Will do the same with a waste basket. And his toy basket. Never when I am home. Just a skosh of separation anxiety acting out going on :-)) I just set the trash container on the counter and it is all good.

Ahhh, well could be separation anxiety or maybe he’s just a little miffed that he didn’t get to go with you.

Dogs are individuals. Some are genetically wired to be food seekers, to be anxious when alone and so on. I've had dogs and been training them seriously since 1993, switched to positive reinforcement training in 1998 when I adopted a dog that returned force with force. Multiplied the force many times over in fact.

They are animals. Treat them as such. Use management to prevent behaviors you don't like. If you implement a training plan fine but manage until dog is trained.

Unless you have reformed a food seeking dog or worked one out of actual separation anxiety you may have simply found and raised the perfect dog for your situation. Ginger's our perfect dog. Then I have Bucky. I'd love to take credit for G's wonderfulness but I know full well it is her nature.