So you walk in or visitors come over and your dog immediately runs to get the nearest object and then comes and present it to you, holding it in their month wagging their tail and looking at you.
Or you are on a walk and your dog picks up a stick, plastic bottle or holds a ball in their month, trotting along head held high looking very pleased with themselves.
Lots of dog guardians find this very cute, see it as a gift and then look at the dog, give them a big fuss or go and try and get the object from them and they start a game with it and make eye contact and laugh at them.
However what’s the real reason behind this behaviour?
When dogs pick up objects such as toys, socks, sticks, balls, slippers anything - the dog doesn’t know the difference, to them it’s an object that when picked up has some value to them. ‘I’ve got something you don’t’ they see this object as a trophy. A tool to increase their status and get attention on their terms and ask you a few questions.
So far this trophy has worked, so they continue to use it, each time questioning you on where they stand. If you give them the attention then you are putting them on a pedestal and because they think they are important they must therefore be responsible in other areas too.
All behaviours feed into one another and it’s only by looking at your relationship with your dog as a whole and communicating with them in every situation that you are the one that has the responsibility, that you can get a chilled out happy dog.
Does your dog use trophies to get your attention, if so let me how do they do it, they are super clever at getting our attention!
Here is Teddy using a stick as a trophy - click the image to watch video on Instagram, give me a follow too :)
Kate x
PS - if you did want to know more about my courses and how to learn the whole approach then check out my website - www.katesk9solutions.com you can also book in a FREE 1:1 call with me to discuss your dog further.