I know, not everyone wants their dog to sit on a chair like the rest of the family and start dining with them. But for those of you who don’t mind this gesture, this dog trick is worth all the process for creating that special bond with your furry child.
Why Should You Teach Your Dog to Learn this Trick—dining with you?
These days’ dog owners don’t regard their furry children as The Dog, who should be eating their meals at one pathetic corner of the kitchen floor, many regard them as an ESA pet. And for these owners to see their cute little fellow with those droopy eyes all watered up with tears because he couldn’t join in at the dinner table, just make it more miserable. Well, this is one surefire way to solve his yearning and your misery in one place.
Who Shouldn’t Teach this Trick to Their Dog?
There are a few reasons why this trick is not suitable for some dogs and owners. Some concerns are…
- Dogs who have CFSD – Compulsive Food Stealing Disorder. OK, I made this medical term up but you can’t deny that there are dogs with a high scavenging instinct in them no matter how well-fed they are. By teaching your dog this trick will only create an additional opportunity for him to steal more food when he isn’t supervised.
- Young puppies, small dogs with short legs, and senior dogs should not be trained to do this trick. Young puppies are still developing their bone structures. It’s very impossible for those really small dogs to jump onto that height unless your dog is dining at your children’s dinner table. Senior dogs tend to suffer critically if they fall, plus their bones are fragile.
- Pet parents who can’t stand sharing the same table with messy eaters. Not all dogs are messy eaters but generally most are. Yes, I’ve met many dogs who have meticulous table manners, for example my dogs. There are ways to train your dog to have proper eating manners but I won’t cover this topic here for now.
- Pet parents who haven’t established themselves as an Alpha Dog. When your dog has that many opportunities to be on the same eye level with you, he will quickly resume the role of an Alpha dog over you. Keep in mind, a dog can be an Alpha dog among his canine peers yet can still be subordinate to you and your family members.
Teach Your Dog How to Dine with You in 3 Easy Steps
- The first thing you need to do is be conscious of safety, as with all dog tricks. The main safety factor that you need to adhere to is to ensure that the dining chair which is to be used for your dog to jump onto has solid traction. You do not want your dog to hop on a chair that has a slippery wooden surface which will cause him to slide off and break a bone. Place a thick towel over the seat and fasten it so that your dog won’t slide off together with the towel. Or simply place a seat cushion on it and fasten.
- Now here is the easy part. While your dog is in the kitchen, smell those luscious aromas of your cooking, enthusiastically pat the top of the chair while beckoning him to come. Say the command “Dinner!” in a higher pitch voice. For a dog that is hungry this is all you need to do to get him to hop on the chair.
- Now use the “Stay” command so that your dog remains seated while you push the chair in. Dogs love to be elevated so it shouldn’t be too hard to keep them there. Be sure to make this dog trick worth it for him by having his meal waiting for him at the dinner table!
After a few attempts, your dog will catch on this trick without much prompting. The minute he hears that his bowl is filled with food, he’ll be the one barking at you to pull out the chair so that he’d hop on!
About the author: Rebecca Carter is one of the dissertation writers at dissertation writing services. Besides, she is fond of traveling. In this case, she has visited a lot of countries all around the world. It should be noted that photography is her other passion. Some years ago she was providing some bloggers with wonderful pictures.