Tag Archives: counter surfing

Pets Behaving Badly: Food

What’s the most outrageous thing your pet has done? That’s the question I posed to one of my online pet communities. The responses I’ve gotten have been too funny to not share! A lot of the stories dealt with food snatching — those treats that our four-legged friends just can’t resist! Marci from Michigan talked about her dog Bishop’s crazy cravings: My significant other and I have a very large African Cichlid aquarium in our bedroom. Well, one night after we went to bed, Bishop grabbed a large brand new can of fishy flakes off the dresser. He ate the … Continue reading →

Counter Surfing Funnies

Counter surfing isn’t a hip new extreme sport. Counter surfing (or table surfing) is when your dog takes advantage of food left near the edge of the table or counter by standing up on his or her hind legs. Tonight at my mother’s birthday party, my brother’s dog Kuma nearly surfed herself a piece of pizza! She came bounding down the stairs, thrilled to see a house full of family and friends. As she worked her way around the table, greeting everyone, she suddenly popped up on her hind legs and poked her nose into my grandmother’s half-eaten slice of … Continue reading →

Stop Counter Surfing!

Counter surfing is what trainers call a self-rewarding behavior. That means it is something the dog has taught himself or herself that results in a reward — without any action or intervention from humans. Another self-rewarding behavior is foraging in the garbage. You pretty much have two options for stopping counter surfing: Remove the temptation. That means no food near the edge of the counter. No food near the edge of the table. Leave nothing in reach of your dog’s roving paws and mouth. Watch your dog like a hawk when there is food around, and be ready with a … Continue reading →