Need something like a muzzle

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Kit

1156023

Barked: Mon Nov 1, '10 9:12am PST


	Kit, "she who tries to swallow you name it when on her walks" almost did it with 1/2 of Brazil nut a couple weeks ago, and then Thursday/Friday she gave all the indications she had swallowed something, as in throwing up 80% of her food 4 hours later, no bowl movement for 24 hours etc. $500 later, xrays etc. nothing found. phew ... anyway ... The behavior is from her being an abused run away living on the streets until she was found. So what I'm looking for, until she can be broken of the habit, is a muzzle that is lets here open her mouth and such, just does not let her vacuum stuff down. It is only for when we are on our walks, specially at 5 AM when it is so dark I can't see all that well. So far the only muzzles I've seen are for aggressive dogs, etc. Ideas ? Places ? Other Groups to ask in ? Thanks -pete & Kit

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Lilly

1143957

Barked: Mon Nov 1, '10 4:25pm PST


	I would teach her a leave it command instead and maybe you can use a head collar on her instead

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Rexy

I dig in mud- puddles!

Barked: Mon Nov 1, '10 5:09pm PST


	Can you not find a small basket muzzle? Sure, they are meant for aggressive dogs, but that doesn't mean that you can't use one until she has a solid "leave it". For me, it would be worth the piece of mind (not to mention the potential to decrease the vet bills substantially) to have her wear the basket muzzle on walks. Even with head collar, the dog can still swoop dog and grab something off the ground before you can do anything. Rexy scooped up a dead mouse while wearing her GL, she did it so fast that DH had no time to react before it was down the hatch....plus, Rexy is much further off the ground than your pup!

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Nicky

it's my party &- i'll cry if i- want to

Barked: Mon Nov 1, '10 5:48pm PST


	A basket muzzle would be what you're looking for. Like others have said you need to work on 'leave it.' Nicky kept picking chicken bones up and swallowing them during walks. I started preventing him from wandering off the sidewalk and gave him a correction if he put his nose down. Needed a collar on that fits just under the chin for that though because the point is to just pop the head back up. I didn't need to use much force on him for that. He gets to nose around at the park all he wants though. Edited by author Mon Nov 1, '10 5:50pm PST

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Kit

1156023

Barked: Tue Nov 2, '10 10:28am PST


	I'm working on the leave it command, along with the others. But for now her instinct of 'if I don't eat it I will starve to death' is still only 2 months old. But for now keeping her from having another $500 vet bill and maybe worse comes first. When found in September she was down to almost 6 lbs so this one is probably going to be the toughest to learn. -pete

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Rexy

I dig in mud- puddles!

Barked: Tue Nov 2, '10 4:48pm PST


	Hopefully as the training progresses and she settles into your home, this need to grab anything even remotely food-like off the ground will ease off.

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Lucky, NTD

Novice trick- dog!

Barked: Thu Nov 11, '10 3:01pm PST


	Yes, work on LEAVE IT. In the meantime, you can try a small basket muzzle, but you may also want to look into a head halter, such as the Gentle Leader (http://www.buygentleleader.com). With a head halter, you can have control of Kit's head. With control of her head, it will be easier to prevent her from putting her head to the ground and gobbling up the "food" that isn't actually edible! When you put the halter on for the first time, Kit will probably try to get it off by pawing at it. The best thing you can do is get her moving – start walking and keep her walking to divert her attention from the foreign object on her head. Praise her and offer small treats to distract her from pawing and rubbing. Good luck!

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Morgana

THROW THE BALL- THROW THE BALL

Barked: Fri Nov 19, '10 7:45am PST


	I know everyone is suggesting a basket muzzle but I thought I would tell you my JRT can still eat things when she has her basket muzzle on. It really depends on how smart your dog is. but if the object she wants to eat is smaller then the weave on the basket she can get it

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Lucille

I am the Sock- Bandit!!!

Barked: Fri Nov 19, '10 7:57am PST


	A head collar like a gentle leader or halti will also be helpful until you get a solid leave it. As you said, that will take some work and be a ways off because the poor baby was starving on the streets. Thank you for rescuing this little pup! A basket muzzle will help for larger items, but she still may be able to get a smaller item through it. If you walk her using a head collar, you can hold the lead with enough length and no more so that she cannot reach the ground. You can practice the heel walk this way while treating off your left leg (often! keep her busy) so that she is eating yummy treats from your hand and not scooping yucky stuff from the ground. You're basically going to be walking her with a handful of treats all the time for awhile. She's super food motivated right now it sounds like, so it should be easy to get her to concentrate on what smells so good in your hand...bits of chicken, dried liver, tiny pieces of hotdog. Good luck, she is such a cutie!

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SassySue

The devil made- me do it!

Barked: Fri Nov 19, '10 2:22pm PST


	Kit looks like she may be part bichon. They definitely are ground scroungers! I had a few scares with my girl. Early on I had to remove a dead mouse, acorns, chicken bones, plastic, etc. from Sassy's mouth. So, I knew "drop it" was going to be our most important command. I used a harness for walks as it gave me the ability to stop her without damaging her trachea. I got a soft, cloth muzzle from my vet's office to use until I was comfortable with her training. Anyway, I played lots of trading games with her in the house. Traded treats for toys. Traded better (high value) treats for lesser treats, etc. Now she will drop anything knowing she will get a reward. I ALWAYS carry treats on walks and constantly reinforce the "leave it" or "drop it" when needed. Here is a link so you can see the muzzle that I used. http://www.dogmuzzle.com/kwikklipnyld.html

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