Why is she like this?

[Justanotherusername27]

More of a moan really. Love my dog to bits. Lab X. 2 years old. Generally well behaved BUT she’s a bugger for stealing food. She and her buddy sleep in the kitchen so naturally no food is left out. Bins are taken out of the room. Anyway, these are things shes eaten in the last month

• carton of baby milk
• sweetner powder
• empty baby bottle
• a plant bulb?

and today she’s had my candle making wax. (Rang vets on all occasions it’s becoming a running joke what she will get next)

She is out for hours a day, goes most places with us where she can and spends many hours running about in the fields. Has many toys, played with constantly and she’s tired out most days. Gets fed very well.

In the mornings my partner lets them out for a wee at about 6.20, I let them out at 7 for a little while but bring them in the kitchen till about 8.30 whilst I sort the baby. It’s usually in this time she makes her move or if we go out for more than 10 mins.

i don’t think she will cope well in a cage and the rest of the house is carpeted and whilst generally housetrained she wees when she gets excited…. And a lot of things excite her 😂. Love her dearly but I don’t understand how she can find food in things that absolutely should not be food to her!

She’s taken out so much. I know it’s probably something to do with separation but I’m on maternity leave and we are rarely apart so I don’t actually know how to fix this?

Thieving is so rewarding and really the only way to stop it is management.

Our pup never stole anything as we completely dog proofed our downstairs. If they don’t develop the habit they don’t tend to do it.

It’s also classic SA symptoms. What have you done to prepare her to be alone as dogs need to be taught this skill alongside everything else.

Prevention is key. Don’t leave things where she can reach them. A camera would help you check if she’s anxious

When I got my Pup a friend told me that if he ate anything he shouldn't I should roll up a newspaper and hit myself on the nose with it for leaving it out.
Prevention is key, I appreciate that with a baby and everything else its tough but dog proof your house.

My dog will steal anything edible as soon as your back’s turned. No shame at all.

The only way to manage it is to keep things out of the way, it’s a dog management problem, not a dog problem. Dogs don’t think like we do.

When I got my Pup a friend told me that if he ate anything he shouldn't I should roll up a newspaper and hit myself on the nose with it for leaving it out.

^love that 🤣🤣

I am defo hitting myself with a newspaper! I definitely get what you’re saying. I tell her to leave it she would NEVER take anything when she’s around people it’s when she’s not got anyone with her. Also completely get what you’re saying about dog proofing but in my defence I thought we did😂 who’d of thought candle wax would be so tempting? Or a plant bulb wrapped in a pot (on the windowsill!) I do get what you’re saying though. Everything will just have to be very bare.

What about edible toys? Like bones, antlers etc. Maybe you can hide them and let her sniff them out. Or give her her food in a puzzle feeder.

I am wondering if she is getting a reward from sniffing out "food" so maybe if you can put something in place for her to do that safely she will stop thieving as much.

That is a really good idea but when we’ve done that in the past her and other dog tend to resource guard and they have had fights (my other dogs ear was torn 6cm!).

I am thinking of maybe getting a room divider to put between them so they can see/sit with each other but they can’t get to each other for when I go back to work. X

In a room stripped of anything more interesting to chew, mine ate the lever arm off my work chair.

You have my sympathy!

Separating your dogs does sound a good plan, so that you can leave stuffed kongs etc out for innocent chewing.

(Edited to avoid inadvertent anti monarchy suggestion)

One of mine is like this. He’s a very insecure boy (rescue). I try a Prevention tactic and never leave anything out (as far as possible!), but it’s amazing what he will attempt to wreck and/or eat if he can. If anyone has an answer please post it here!

How long are they left for?

Surely it's just the Lab greedy gene? Isn't it proven?

I would just say it is the lab being a lab. No need for "issues" labs eat anything.

Had a lab that found a chip under a bush on a walk and for the next 14 years of their life they looked under the same bush to find a chip - never did.

One time learning experience - you will have to just put everything out of their reach. Getting in practice for when your baby starts to walk

Baby gates are your friend

Yeah, lab 'I'm constantly hungry' gene. Cockers have it too. My parents called my dog The Thief of Baghdad. Highlights included:
A bag of onions. A complete bag of frozen bolognaise, so well stolen I thought I'd not put it out to defrost and a small child's sandwich on the beach (very gently removed from the child's hand). He didn't even know the child.

We had him 16 years almost and it only improved when he lost the mobility to steal. Even then he'd mug you for popcorn or a chip.

No wise words of advice, just empathy 😊

Apparently labs are genetically prone to feeling starving all the time so this must be very unpleasant for them I suppose

All you can do is be vigilant I suppose which you are

Some labradors have a "defect" where they genuinely don't recognise feeling full, so they will literally eat themselves to death if left to their own devices.

If she's genuinely out for hours everyday have you thought that she might be a bit overstimulated and struggling to settle? Have you ever taught her to settle and be calm?

She goes out in a morning after fed baby for between 1 -2 hours, same again in afternoon and my other half takes her out when he gets home from work for a run (this will be different after mat will be one big walk in a morning but it’s good for now!).

They left in kitchen overnight and when we go out for short periods, if over a lot I tend to drop them off at my sisters house as she WFH.

She settles after her morning walk but she’s wild first thing as you can imagine!

So she has four hours of walks plus a run every single day?

That's a lot. What do you do in terms of mental stimulation?

She has a kong with frozen peanut butter in an afternoon (most days not every day) snuffle mat, do bits of training throughout the day. My son does training with her when he’s home from school. She tends to sleep in her basket for an hour or so after her exercise but she has a very full life!

She does sound very busy, which suits some dogs but can put others into a bit of a state of constant arousal where they're unable to settle or relax properly.

I just wonder if she's anxious and struggling to just "be" and then goes looking for something to do.

I don’t really think her routine has made her eat these things if I’m honest, I think she had a bit of anxiety and she’s found something slightly edible

That's kind of what I'm trying to say.

She's so busy all the time and gets so much stimulation that when she's alone, she's anxious and confused and looking for anything to relax her - and chewing is incredibly relaxing.

I think you are right - she's a bit anxious and finds something smelly and its rewarding to scavenge it out. Its called contrafreeloading - the idea that food is more rewarding if it takes effort to retrieve than if its just popped in a bowl. Though since she's a Lab X she'll probably eat the food in the bowl AND then scavenge too.

Since the scavenging is such a strong reinforcer beyond really locking up the food there is not much you can do to stop it. As you say, she's busy and active, she's still young so she'll want to get up to mischief even when you have given her plenty of exercise.

My BC was the same and scavenged constantly as a youngster. She doesn't now she's older and a bit calmer. But she still will if a) anything is going on like visitors and she's a bit fretful or b) if I left something really good on the side - like the plate of cookies I left out earlier.

Like you she had a nickname at the vets due to having to go in to puke so often. But she hasn;t done that for a couple of years. She'll mature and you will get better at hiding stuff and all will be well.

My lab scavenges the bin also. It’s a daily battle.

@Springwatch123 so you move the bin or prevent access to it? Why wouldn’t you??

We’ve tried, and put stuff on it. He just knocks it off and opens It.