What to do if your dog steals something?

If your dog steals something, you must break the habit. First, puppy-proof your house to limit your dog’s opportunities to steal. Second, teach your dog a “drop it” cue so they learn that giving things up means getting something even better in return. You can also teach your dog to trade items with you. For example, offer them a piece of chicken in exchange for a toy. Then, once they’ve eaten the chicken, give the toy back. Returning the toy will teach your dog that it’s no big deal to give things to you. If your dog does steal something, never chase them. Instead, approach them calmly with something more valuable in your hand or lure them to you with a particularly delectable treat. Don’t panic, but instead keep a cool head. Act like the item doesn’t matter because, for some dogs, the more you seem to want the item, the more they want to keep it. Once you have your dog’s attention, use your “drop it” cue or swap with your dog for the item in your hand. Then, praise heavily when your dog makes the trade. You could also try throwing or dropping treats or kibble nearby so you have time to retrieve the object.

If your dog steals things, then don’t play, the idea is for your puppy to learn that taking your things is completely pointless because it doesn’t result in anything fun happening to them as a result. Provide physical and mental exercise, your dog might be stealing things because they are looking for something to do or for some interaction with you. Dogs need both physical and mental stimulation to prevent boredom. Make sure the stealing behaviour is not rewarded, dogs will repeat anything that works out well for them, so if your dog enjoys gaining your attention by stealing things, the best thing to do when they steal is to ignore them, as long as it is safe to do so. Simply wait until they lose interest and drop the item, then encourage them to do something else instead, such as play with a toy or enjoy a chew. If possible, try to avoid picking up the item straight away as you don’t want your dog to think it’s valuable because you appear to be desperate to have it. Be prepared for things to get worse at first, when you start to ignore your dog for stealing things, you might find that they appear confused, especially if this behaviour would have previously resulted in you jumping up and chasing them in order to get the item back. A dog might try even harder to get the response they are expecting, so you might initially see your dog stealing more items. Always reward good behaviour, make sure you give your dog lots of praise and attention for good behaviours instead, like playing with their own toys or relaxing by themselves. Teach your dog to swap things, it can be useful to get your dog comfortable with swapping something they have for something they consider to be of equal or greater value. When your dog takes something that’s valuable or that could harm them – for example, a packet of tablets – then try making a distraction that does not involve talking, touching or looking at them, you could walk out of the room to see if they follow you or make a noise by opening a door. Once your dog has dropped the item and moved away from it, get them involved in something else, scattering a handful of treats for them to sniff out in a different room will keep them pleasantly occupied so you can pop back and move the stolen item to a place of safety.

It’s a tough question, with multiple answers, depending on the contraband. First, it’s important to teach your dog a couple of important commands – “leave it” and “drop it”. Your dog may find some things irresistible and this may take more finesse from you. Your dog is way faster than you are, so trying to catch them after they steal is not a good idea. Although it’s counterintuitive, ignoring your canine robber is your best option, assuming the contraband is not dangerous, expensive, or in danger of being ingested. You shouldn’t ever yell at your dog, because if she’s stealing items to get your attention, she wins. It’s best to casually walk toward your dog and say something like “what do you have there?” and start dropping high value treats in a line, starting near your pup and moving feet away, so that your dog will drop the item and move away from it. Some dogs may continue to steal dangerous, expensive or swallowable items. Your options are to better manage your household and keep these things out of range, to keep improving your dog’s “leave it” and “drop it” skills, or continue to do the trade game.

If your dog steals something, the first and best step is prevention. Prevention recognizes this reality and looks to non-training solutions for immediate relief. Save yourself the frustration of a dog who won’t Drop It and make sure he can’t even Steal It in the first place. If he never Steals It, his ability to Drop It is irrelevant. Shut the bedroom doors, put the shoes in a box with a lid, hang kitchen towels on upper cabinets, put the trash can under the sink. Even the best Prevention fails on occasion. If your dog does Steal It, always, always, always trade using food. I calmly approach the dog and slowly toss some treats 2-3 feet away from him. When he leaves the illegal item to go eat the treats, I remove the illegal item. Taking your dog’s treasure should be free of conflict.

Start teaching this new 8-week-old baby in the gentlest way possible - no need for any NOs or Ah-ahs or anything else that expresses your displeasure. Simply saying Thank you, and accepting the object in exchange for a tasty treat is actually teaching the beginnings of your retrieve as well. If your pup makes a mistake and you toss a treat away for him to fetch, you are not rewarding bad choices, you are rewarding the action of leaving the undesired thing. Formal Leave It training can start once your pup is a week or two older, thereby ensuring that not only your possessions, but also foul stuff on the street, dropped pills, and the like, are out of bounds. You can learn about the Brilliant Family Dog Academy, which has a full Impulse Control system within, teaching self-control around food and objects, of course, but also instilling a thoughtfulness into your dog so he can make the right decisions in the future. You can also pick up Leave It, a book that provides a step-by-step method to turn your thieving pooch into a model citizen. Knowing what to give your pup to chew that is safe and effective is not as easy as you might think, but a little guidance will help you. People often actually teach their dogs to steal, chase, and chew, by reacting to what the pup does in such a way that guarantees repetition. Offering a treat is a perfectly acceptable way of teaching how to make these choices.