Both Jake and Truly are muzzle trained, and I refresh their training every so often.
The ability for a dog to be comfortable wearing a muzzle is a good safety plan, especially in cases of emergency trips to the vet. A hurt or injured dog, even your own, may bite. It’s also useful if your dog has developed an unwanted habit of hoovering up food near bins etc.
Type of muzzle
Jake and Truly are most comfortable (and I prefer) a basket muzzle. This type of muzzle enables dogs to freely pant, drink, and take treats.
If you can, it’s best to get your muzzle fitted so you know its comfortable and the correct size.
Training
I start with a small empty yogurt pot, and some treats. Pop a treat in the pot and hold out the pot for your dog to take the treat by putting their nose into the pot. Keep hold of the pot.
Gradually increase the size of the pot so that your dog has to put their nose further into it. This familiarises your dog with the concept of putting their nose into something, and gets them ready for the first stage of training the muzzle.
Introducing the muzzle
It’s really important to take things slowly. Let your dog sniff the muzzle, and introduce with lots of tasty treats. I use treats I can pass through the end of the muzzle, but I know some people swear by squirty cheese.
For a great guide to the next steps, I’m going to hand over to Dogs Trust’s website.
Until next time
Jen
