Doggone Etiquette —

Table Manners

By Bardi McLennan

A Word to the Dog:           

Good table manners make the dog. Well, that’s part of it, and it is a “good” part of it as far as your VIPeople are concerned. Hanging about at or under the table, or sitting up and begging while they are eating do not add up to good doggie etiquette. Nor is whining and looking starved. However (and this is a biggie) if you are really good, quiet, and keep your distance while the family eats a meal, the chances are excellent that you will get to share some of the leftovers. Think of it as a little pooch payola for minding your manners.

 A Word to the Dog’s Owner:           

Dogs that are otherwise very well-behaved often lose it when it comes to the food on their family’s dinner table (or breakfast, or lunch). It could go back to the caveman’s domestication of our canine pals, or more likely to the first time you handed Rufus a treat from your plate!

The smell of the foods we prepare and consume must often outweigh the aroma of the dog’s daily dog food, so here are a few things that might help to convince Rufus that he is definitely part of the family – including when it comes to food.            

There are lots of things we eat that may never occur to us to share a bit with the dog, either as an after-dinner treat, a reward, or even occasionally to add to his own dinner. Many people today do feed their dogs home-cooked chicken or chopped beef (no onion or garlic, please) in place of canned dog food, and these also make great treats when left over from our own meals. A spoonful of leftover oatmeal or scrambled egg from a hurried off-to-school breakfast is another good one.                     

Then there are fruits that are fine for dogs, but which their owners may never have considered as fit for Rufus. Of course not all dogs will agree that they are too terrific, but it’s worth a try. Melons are delightfully wet and juicy to the palates of some dogs, while others prefer a crisp slice of apple (remove the seeds) or even a bit of banana. In our house, whatever Rufus likes, Rufus gets in the way of these very small – and only occasional – between-meal snacks.            

Some people foods are what we have long used as rewards when training a dog to do as he’s told. A small bit of cheese is a favorite with a great many dogs. (Skip any that’s flavored with horseradish or pepper jack!) Cottage cheese is a messy hand-out, but it is okay to add some once in a while to the dog’s regular meal. Veggies such as carrots, green beans, and broccoli are eagerly devoured by many dogs.

You may be reading this and thinking, “Not MY dog!” but often a small piece of fruit or vegetable offered by hand (to a dog on a perfect sit-stay, natch) will get him to test it. A crunchy raw baby carrot might go over a lot better than some cooked ones in the dog’s dinner dish.

Once you discover which of these hand-proffered bits of food are considered super by your dog, you can also use them to hide any essential pills you need to administer. Sometimes a morsel of tempting food leftover from your dinner will do the trick. Another easy way to hide a pill is in a dab of peanut butter. But that, of course, depends on whether or not Rufus thinks peanut butter is really special.

All of these food ideas should give you umpteen ways in which to improve the dog’s table manners, and make a patiently polite pooch out of your dog, even if he’s one with a voracious appetite.

Until next time – BE GOOD!

- Bardi

Bardi McLennan bred, trained and showed Welsh Terriers for 30 years, during which time she wrote a monthly column on canine behavior in Dog Fancy Magazine. In addition to contributing to numerous dog publications, she has written 15 books on dogs, the latest being Rescue Me!, which received the ASPCA Humane Issues Award in 2008.