The Dog Behavior Answer Book - Arden Moore [39]
A I thought I had the only dishwasher-hating dog. My corgi Jazz had nothing but disdain for my dishwasher. Any attention paid to that appliance would cause him to bark, lunge, growl, and physically try to wrestle the handle (which looked pretty silly). My dishwasher had teeth marks on the door handle and scratches all over the front. Like Sally, Jazz was a herding dog. Herding breeds can be stubborn and determined; after all, they must dodge kicking cows and sheep while moving them from one place to the next. Herding dogs are also highly intelligent and energetic. These dogs need jobs, because boredom brings out their worst behaviors.
You need to give the dishwasher a new identity — one that is either boring or appealing to Sally, not annoying. One way to circumvent a quirky problem like this and prevent it from escalating into physical harm or a wider hatred of other noise-producing appliances is to limit exposure to the dishwasher. You mentioned that she is kept in your kitchen during the day. Perhaps you could put her in a different safe place in your home while you’re away.
Everyone in your household needs to play by the same rules when it comes to the dishwasher. Since your kitchen is gated, put Sally on the other side of the gate when you load and unload the dishes. Perhaps someone in your house can distract her in another room or even play a game of fetch with her in the backyard while another person deals with the dishes. Or put her in her crate in a bedroom with music on to muffle the sound of the dishes. The idea is to limit her exposure to this “menacing” machine. While you are working on this problem, try to run the dishwasher only at night when she is safe inside your bedroom or her crate or at other times when Sally won’t be in the kitchen. This may be impractical in the long run, however, so you might want to take the opposite approach and convince her that the dishwasher is not dangerous. The idea is to build a history of fun times associated with the appliance. A dog cannot be happy and angry at the same time. No one can.
If she is ball- or treat-motivated, start by having her sit and wait for the ball or treat in a room near the kitchen. Gradually, bring her closer and closer until she is sitting next to the dishwasher. Have her sit and stay while you touch the dishwasher. (Don’t open it yet!) If she stays quiet, reward her with a treat or a minute of ball tossing. You may need to keep her on a leash at first so you can step on the leash to stop her if she attempts to attack the dishwasher. Slowly work your way up to opening the door a few inches at a time while rewarding her for sitting still.
When Sally consistently ignores the dishwasher and will sit or play fetch near it, increase the exposure a bit by placing premium treats on the opened lid of the dishwasher. Again, have Sally perform a trick before she is allowed to take these treats. Once she’s comfortable with the silent dishwasher, try turning it on for a second or two, shutting it off, and rewarding her for behaving calmly. Add a few seconds at a time while continuing to reward proper behavior.
Remember, the biggest mistake people make is to try to go too quickly, which usually makes the problem worse. It may take days, weeks, or even months, but eventually Sally will build up enough memorable experiences involving treats and toys near the dishwasher that she will gain a new appreciation for this appliance.
Toy Tactics
Q When she’s playing, my puppy crouches down, wiggles her body, and then leaps up in the air as if she has springs in her legs, landing on her favorite toys. She grabs them and shakes them back and forth, growling. It’s comical to watch, but what is she doing?
A Your puppy is doing what comes naturally: She is practicing the age-old art of hunting and “killing” her prey. Okay, so the prey in this case happens to be a stuffed plush hamburger from the local pet