hurihusky Posted December 19, 2014 Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 Hi all, So Mayka has this horrible habit of eating anything that's on the ground when we go outside. At home if I accidentally drop food, she'll leave it but outside everything is up for grabs: leaves, food, trash, everything. I once took a ball of someone else's hair out of her mouth. I think that's the grossest experience I've had with her. I don't know how to make her stop. I'm always vigilant but she's always too quick for me. Is it a puppy thing? Any tips on how to make it stop? Today, she ate a piece of bee hive that had 3 or 4 bees in it. I was able to take a bee out of her mouth but she definitely swallowed the rest. Do you think she'll be ok? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mydiamond Posted December 19, 2014 Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 Somebody called it 'the puppy hoover stage'. Yes, it's normal. The hive shouldn't be too much of a problem if you managed to remove ALL the bees, but if you're worried you can always call the vet. They don't charge you for phone calls so why not x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hurihusky Posted December 19, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 Thanks for the response! I panicked and gave the vet a call a second ago. He told me she'd be ok but to be on the lookout just in case. So she'll outgrow this 'puppy hoover stage'? I just have to let it be and keep her from swallowing anything harmful? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mydiamond Posted December 19, 2014 Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 Hypothetically, yes! But then again I've never had a puppy. I just hear stories from people walking in and out the forum. With my older dog, I give out correction tugs whenever he got interested in that leftover chicken bone he found on somebody's trash can (eww). Not sure if that's doable with a younger dog though. How old is Mayka again? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hurihusky Posted December 19, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 Oh sorry, that's something I've probably should have added in my original post. MaybeI should get one of those PitaPata banners. She's 4.5 months. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mydiamond Posted December 19, 2014 Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 I'd start training her to drop it and/or ignore then. This dog I used to walk every afternoon was 4 months old when I started training him to do so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hurihusky Posted December 19, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 How would you go about training her to ignore everything that's on the ground? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robke Posted December 19, 2014 Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 Hiya the hoover stage can go on for a long time..with mine it is as soon as they go for something it is " leave" as a command and a slight pull on the lead...as with a lot of training pratise practise and patience is needed...oh and a bag full of persistence is also needed (Not available at loacal stores)... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mydiamond Posted December 19, 2014 Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 Correction tugs (as said above)! What's she walking on? I trained mine on a choker chain but I understand that some people don't feel comfortable with that. A half-check would do, too. Just give a single, quick, sharp tug whenever she starts steering away towards the dumpster and keep walking. You can add a verbal command here if you want but mostly the tug alone communicates that you disapprove of whatever it is she's trying to pick up. Harnesses don't communicate correction tugs well, which is why I asked what's she walking on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hurihusky Posted December 19, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 I normally walk her with a regular collar. I ordered a harness but it's taking its sweet time getting here. I started using a choker chain but I felt that her behavior didn't change so I stopped since I felt I was hurting her for no reason. I'm going to try correction tugs with a command next time I walk her. I'm just a bit frustrated because I can't take 3 steps in a row without her having found something to eat. There's always something, from grass to pebbles, just everything. Thank you both. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robke Posted December 19, 2014 Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 I still have that at times and mine are even older...they will get it trust me...but with a pup everything can be nice and tasty...only way to know is to try... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty Posted December 19, 2014 Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 Your not alone! Neros 10 months now and sometimes he will leave everything and others he still tries to eat ( especially dropped tissues for some reason!) We use a little tug and leave it also, works most of the time now but not always Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOBELHOWLUC49 Posted December 19, 2014 Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 (edited) All you can hear at about six in the mornings round our way is me. Leave it, drop it, dirty, really, you want to eat that. I think people have stopped setting their alarm clocks they just wait for me to walk past. Ahhhhh my sweet little Dysons. It does end but not completely the lure of a chicken bone is sometimes to much even for the grown ups Bells and Noah. I hope Mayka will be fine. Tis a worry when there at this stage. Edited December 19, 2014 by NOBELHOWLUC49 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robke Posted December 19, 2014 Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 Tissues indeed are the favourite esp used ones...maybe they secretly work for the city cleaning dept.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOBELHOWLUC49 Posted December 19, 2014 Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 Definitely tissues, horrible but they get so excited, makes me cringe. Tis nil by mouth until I have scrubbed and nail brushed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rachael_Astro Posted December 19, 2014 Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 Astro is 19 months now and is still a hoover! Tissues and paper are definite favourites, I've lost count how many times I've had to fish around his mouth to retrieve things! The dog trainer did teach me about correction tugs, that does seem to work with him [emoji4] for training I put a slip lead on him with it as far up his head as possible, just behind the ears Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hurihusky Posted December 19, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 Mayka isn't actually that crazy for tissues and paper lol. She'll still grab them, but her favorite things are definitely flowers and these little balls that grow on trees around here. During the fall they're all over the ground. It's nice to know that I'm not the only person out there constantly sticking their hand in their dogs' mouth to retrieve something lol Some other dog owners made me feel like I had a specially disobedient and rebellious dog, when Mayka is actually quite tame for a husky pup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Posted December 19, 2014 Report Share Posted December 19, 2014 (edited) I had to pull a dried, flattened toad from the road out of Loki's mouth once. That was great. I haven't really been doing much on the "leave it" thing, as I've been really concentrating on getting his loose lead walking perfected. If it's just a tissue or something on the side of the path he'll look at it, but won't really go for it unless it's close enough. He's more interested in things that move, so any bugs are fair game. But I just react the same way as if he started pulling on the lead, but take a step to the side or tighten the lead so he's just out of reach. Seems to work well enough I have tried the choke collars in the past but Loki ended up becoming scared of putting his lead on. I realized after that, it takes a bit of extra work, but they're not really needed Edited December 19, 2014 by Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nava's Mommy Posted December 20, 2014 Report Share Posted December 20, 2014 you are definitely not alone , my pup has been eating everything in her way since I got her, she doesn't seem to care for corrections, or anything.... lol my naughty girl, it has gotten better though so hopefully its just a stage! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hurihusky Posted December 20, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 20, 2014 Tissues indeed are the favourite esp used ones...maybe they secretly work for the city cleaning dept.... As I was walking Mayka this morning I was thinking about this thread and you gave me an idea I'm going I start bringing a bag and gloves to pick up everything that Mayka puts in her mouth to throw it in the garbage. Maybe eventually I'll find less and less lol Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loudlucky Posted February 22, 2015 Report Share Posted February 22, 2015 Smokey likes tissues and wet wipes, but not really that much of a problem with her from the start, my BC pup is another story...he'll hoover anything & everything!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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