# help with dog eating garbage on walks



## goldgirldoggie (Apr 25, 2021)

so right now I'm following this video and teaching my dog to leave garbage alone 






but in the meantime, when I walk my dog, she will pretty much always find garbage that is covered by snow or leaves and some of the things she picks up has a potential to be dangerous. She knows the "give it" command - in my training sessions, ill give her a toy and ill tell her to give it and she'll give it (so let go of it and drop it on the ground) and I'll reward her with her food. But when I'm out in the real world when I'm walking her, I'll tell her to give it and she won't (things like pork or chicken bones, tissues, etc.) How do I get her to drop ANYTHING that is in her mouth? It's not possible for me to always have something that is higher value than what she could possibly pick up. My treats can't compete with dead animals, tissues, pork bones. etc. What can I do? It is very frustrating. 

Thanks


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## pawsnpaca (Nov 11, 2014)

Sometimes you just have to resort to a muzzle until your training become more reliable. This muzzle comes highly recommended, and since its so colorful, people are less likely to assume your dog is muzzled because he is aggressive. Just be aware that you ideally need to acclimate your dog to the muzzle - don't just slap it on and head out the door. There should be lots of articles on line on how to acclimate a dog to a muzzle.


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## goldielynn (Sep 5, 2020)

goldgirldoggie said:


> so right now I'm following this video and teaching my dog to leave garbage alone


How old is your dog?


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## JulieCAinMA (Jun 19, 2020)

I fought this for a very long time. Archie hoovers absolutely everything…everything! If it was just sticks and leaves no big deal, but everything was getting to be a big deal. Let me say it again…EVERYTHING!!!! We were nonstop telling him to “leave it” to the point that the leave it command was just background noise to his walk. David and I dreaded walks and Archie probably did too. After the 2nd time to the vet, she suggested this one because it is soft, pliable, he can drink through it and I can give him pieces of kibble during training walks. I can only speak for MYSELF, this muzzle was a game changer not only for us, but for Archie as well. We go on walks and he can enjoy them like a “normal” dog. Sniffing and investigating without eating everything!! We are all more relaxed. It is funny, because owners of teensy dogs give us wide berth, because they see a killer golden coming their way and not the dingbat hoover that he really is. Again this won’t be the solution for everyone, but it sure was for Archie, Julie and David!


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## Aeacus (Sep 1, 2021)

Another thing to do: when out in the walks, scan the ground/grass with your eyes before your dog reaches there. This has saved us from loads of junk our dog almost got hold of.

When we 1st got our pup (2 months old), he also picked up all kinds of junk, especially plastic waste. But we were quick and firm about it, by stopping dead on tracks, putting our fingers into his mouth, prying the jaws open and firmly pulling the trash out. While this experience wasn't pleasant for our pup, that was the lesson of it. Meaning that when he picks up trash or other forbidden items, he will get bad experience out of it (we take it from his mouth). This has taught our pup not to pick up trash anymore.
At 3 months old, he freely walks past or even steps on plastic waste, without picking it up. He may sniff it a bit but that's all he now does with trash on the ground.
And now, at 6 months old, he still disregards all trash that isn't edible or doesn't smell good.

However, with the junk that smells good and/or seems edible, if given chance, he will sniff it out and try to eat it. That is, IF, i give him chance to do it. I've learned that for his sake, it's better not to let him sniff too long in one spot. Also, when he gets a great smell into his nose, he paces around fast, trying to locate the item. This is a sign for me, to keep moving and away of the "suspicious" area, rather than letting him to sniff out, and eat, whatever he picked up with his nose.

I've also talked with dog trainer about it and she said, that she has trained her dog so, whereby when the item takes a bit of chewing to get down, she can make dog to drop it on command. So, there is hope that same can be teach to all dogs. However, she also said that when the item is small and dog can swallow it whole, in one go, then she can't make the dog to drop it.

Overall, i think that owners need to be more vigilant during walks, keeping eye open to dog's reactions. Also, it would help if dog is taught that they can only eat things that are given to them, where they can not eat things off the ground and/or what they find on their own.


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## goldy1 (Aug 5, 2012)

I also bought and used the Crazy Felix muzzle for my little hoover after his surgery and the vet told me it was "critical" to not allow anything to be ingested. It was winter and night and early morning walks were the worst. The Crazy Felix muzzle definitely worked. I ended up using this one instead - the Outfox Foxgard link below - because it was simpler to put on and I thought slightly more comfortable. He was able to pick up sticks and walk with them - which he likes to do - but no worries about anything being swallowed. This was only needed for a couple of months at most while he was learning Leave It and Drop It. But during those months, it was nice to be able to walk at night and not worry.








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