# my puppy goes crazy when I cook!!



## cockapoo (Sep 24, 2007)

my 3 months cockapoo goes crazy (mainly barking out of control) when I start to cook dinner. I always eat meats for dinner so I'm sure it is the smell that is getting to him. I live in a small apartment and it is impossible for me to keep him in a room where he won't be able to smell the food. Is there something I could do? I do feed him twice a day (not an open feed, but scheduled) and I know he isnt under fed.


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## Love's_Sophie (Sep 23, 2007)

Is he allowed in your kitchen, underfoot when you cook? If so, it is time to start teaching him to stay out of the food preparing place...As well as teach him a 'settle' and\or 'quiet' command. It doesn't matter so much that he smells the food as much as he can be there and 'demand' that you feed him; even if you don't give him anything...in his mind, he is hoping you will one day!


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## cockapoo (Sep 24, 2007)

Love's_Sophie said:


> Is he allowed in your kitchen, underfoot when you cook? If so, it is time to start teaching him to stay out of the food preparing place...As well as teach him a 'settle' and\or 'quiet' command. It doesn't matter so much that he smells the food as much as he can be there and 'demand' that you feed him; even if you don't give him anything...in his mind, he is hoping you will one day!


Would it help if I give him HIS food when I cook? I have an open bowl of food by his water right now and I will try to give him scheduled feeding.


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## Ella'sMom (Jul 23, 2007)

Hi....I have a cockapoo about the same age as yours. Question for you....has he ever had a taste of your food? Ella likes to beg - because i have given her tastes of "human" food. She doesn't bark but likes to stand near me when I cook. I guess feeding him while you cook might work. Good luck and keep us posted!


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## ozzy (Sep 29, 2007)

Hi..my puppy did this barking thing while I cooked and while I ate dinner too for the first month or so. I think the worst time for us was from the 3-4 month age. What worked for me was mainly totally ignoring him and never giving him any of my people food while I was cooking or eating. I also spritzed him with a water bottle a few times when he would just bark at me like that over and over. This seemed to really help because now his barking is totally under control.


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## cockapoo (Sep 24, 2007)

Ella'sMom said:


> Hi....I have a cockapoo about the same age as yours. Question for you....has he ever had a taste of your food? Ella likes to beg - because i have given her tastes of "human" food. She doesn't bark but likes to stand near me when I cook. I guess feeding him while you cook might work. Good luck and keep us posted!


yea whenever im in the kitchen he follows me around or just stands next to me. it's cute...but not when he barks like crazy.


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## the-tenth (Jun 29, 2007)

cockapoo said:


> yea whenever im in the kitchen he follows me around or just stands next to me. it's cute...but not when he barks like crazy.


 Well if actually having him in the kitchen isn't a big deal to you, teach him *what to do* while you're in the kitchen. Start without any food being prepped, and go into the kitchen. Send him to a spot and make him sit, then treat him. Keep doing this until he automatically goes to that spot when you walk in the kitchen. Then start doing it as you're cooking. I would shy away from treating him with what you're actually cookin though. I think that may encourage begging. But definately treat him for sitting quitely. It's easier to teach him to sit quitely for a treat while you're cooking, than it is to make him stop barking while you're cooking. And soon he'll learn that if sits quite he gets something (it may not be the roast you''re making), but if he barks he gets nothing.


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## Poly (Sep 19, 2007)

cockapoo said:


> yea whenever im in the kitchen he follows me around or just stands next to me. it's cute...but not when he barks like crazy.


It's fairly easy to teach any puppy or dog to stay quietly just outside of the kitchen - or any other room you are in - at any time you want to impose that restriction. Your puppy can be taught to stay there quietly without needing a gate or any other actual physical barrier until you tell him its OK to come in. It's fairly easy because it simply reinforces your pack leader status.

On the other hand, training your puppy to do what *for him* is a somewhat complex set of behaviors (staying quietly next to you INSIDE the kitchen while you cook) would take a lot of work on your part - and your puppy's part - EVEN if you had a lot of training experience. 

Sure there are plenty of dogs that will just hang out quietly with you on their own and not be too intrusive to your other activities. But that isn't training - that's just their natural behavior. Your dog obviously isn't one of them and the kind of behavior modification you want to do is not easy. 

At the risk of getting you perturbed, I'm going to suggest you enroll in a well-led puppy kindergarden class and see how that goes. Your puppy is certainly old enough for it. These classes usually run about 8-9 weeks and are essentially the same thing as the basic obedience training given to older dogs. I'm assuming he is up to date on his shots - if that isn't the case, get to your vet immediately and don't forget the Bordetella vaccination.

If both of you can get through that OK - and not everybody does - then when he is a little older you should enroll in whatever follow-on obedience class is given by the same trainer or school. Even that class won't really get you ready for any advance behavior training but it will be a start.


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