Are you worried that your pup can cause wear and tear to your couch? Perhaps you’re afraid they can bring dirt, fecal matter, or parasites onto your furniture.
If so, it’s time you learn how to keep dogs off furniture.
Training your pup to stay away from your furniture isn’t a walk in the park. Many canine friends love cuddling up with their owners and snuggling on the couch. Also, if the training isn’t correctly done, they might view it as a form of punishment.
Here are the five tips on keeping dogs off furniture.
1. Start on the Right Paw
The best way to keep dogs off furniture is to provide consistent training. If possible, start the training when they’re young to make instilling boundaries much easier.
Make keeping your pup away from the furniture one of your home policies. Ensure no one invites the dog on any furniture, even when you’re not around. If you let them have these part-time privileges, you’ll confuse them and make reinforcing the rule very difficult.
2. Give Them a Place of Their Own
Most pups want to relax on the couch or bed to be comfortable. If you offer them a homey bed, rest assured they’ll be less interested resting on your furniture. In short, your bed or couch will appear like a downgrade.
When choosing a bed for your pup, avoid dog beds with a flat-pad style. Go for luxury or donut-styled ones with bolsters that provide your pet with a place to rest their head.
Keep the dog bed in a place that’s close to humans to make them feel they’re still part of the family. Place a nice blanket on the bed to make it a more comfortable, safe, and rewarding place for the dog. If possible, add some interactive dog toys to encourage them to stay there.
3. Teach Commands
The key commands that you should teach your dog when training them to keep off the furniture is off and go to your bed. Once your canine friend learns these cues, it’ll be easier to reinforce the good behavior.
During training, reward your pup for ensuring they don’t view it as a punishment. If possible, reward them with treats every time they obey the commands.
4. Block the Access to furniture
When training your dog that the couch is off-limits, it’s worthwhile making the furniture inaccessible. Besides shutting your rooms’ doors, there are other techniques you can use to block access to your furniture.
They include using;
• baby gates to block entrance to the rooms
• training mats with pointy nubs that are uncomfortable to sit on
• couch defenders
If you discover your pet climbs up on the furniture to look through the windows, block them. You can keep their couch or bed close to a window. Also, you can learn how to instill the behavior from this service.
5. Avoid Aversives
When training your dog to stay away from your furniture, avoid using scat-mats, shock collars, or other aversives. They might cause discomfort, fear, anxiety, and stress to your canine friend.
If you want your pup to learn new behavior quickly, use positive reinforcement in the form of treats. Like humans, dogs learn best when you reward them for achieving good habits and not punishing them for misbehaving.
Keeping your dog away from your furniture can be challenging, especially if you’re a new dog parent. However, you can lessen the task by learning the tips for training pets to stay away from the furniture.
