08/22/2025
Working on teaching 4 month old Lucy the “Out” command, which means drop it/leave it. Lucy’s owner told me that he was previously nipped by her when his hand got too close to the bowl while she was eating. This is a relatively common behavior, even in young dogs, so it’s important to teach dogs to leave/drop items when asked. We are making a positive association with telling Lucy “out” by giving her a high value reward. At the same time, we want her to know that leaving the food when told is not optional, and any nasty behavior will certainly be corrected. So far no corrections have been needed. By teaching this command and showing them it is non-negotiable, it helps remove some of the tension that a dog can often times feel around resources.
