The EASIEST Way To Muzzle-Train Your Dog

[@kimandmoandnoelly]

While cleaning up poops I discovered my dog has been eating small rocks so this training comes at a perfect time. Her muzzle will need to prevent her from getting rocks in her mouth however spray cheese sprayed inside the muzzle will be helpful. Thank you, this is a Very helpful skill to learn

[@spiritdogtraining]

Yes! Muzzles are great for dogs that are eating things they really shouldn't ... I am glad your pup is okay and the video gives you a good plan for how to condition the muzzle :) Feel free to reach out with any questions that come up when you try out the training!

[@robinrutherfordcost4748]

Learned this from one of the instructors whose class I took and I now tell all my students this. Everyone's dog should be ok wearing a muzzle, especially if you travel with your dog. If anything bad ever happens, the first thing a vet will do is put a muzzle on your dog; so why freak them out twice - once with the muzzle and once with whatever the vet has to do to the dog. I did 3-5 repetitions before each meal for a whole week of them putting their face in the muzzle to lick out the cream cheese, liverwurst, or wet dog food before i ever even attempted to actually buckle it on their face. (i.e. I didn't go towards them with the muzzle). My Dobes never try to remove it. Good things happen when it's on, and I never make them feel bad about wearing one - such handsome dudes! Even my Beagle/JRT mix, who hasn't worn hers in years, wagged her tail when I got it out the other day. My one Dobe really doesn't need one, but it's not fair for the one dog to have it on without the other dog wearing one, so I got him a light blue color of the Hound of the Baskervilles muzzle. They hardly ever wear one now; just nice to know when it's needed, they're ok wearing one. Hope that helps.

[@spiritdogtraining]

Yes, definitely, every dog should feel comfortable wearing a muzzle and be taught the skill of being able to wear one ❤

[@Ethical-dog-care]

Thank you so much!!! You demonstrated this in great detail! I have started muzzle training this way with my dog but didn't know exactly know how to go through the steps. He's only 1.5yrs old but I want to be able to put a muzzle on him in case of medical emergency in his life time so I don't have to worry about wasting valuable time trying to pick him up if he's injured or hurt and risk getting bitten. After all , even the most gentle dog can bite when in pain. Because in. a dogs lifetime, at some point we will all likely have to pick up our dogs if they get injured even in play or due to illness or even eventually in old age when they may not be able move easily due to arthritis. Not to mention, even just for a general veterinarian check up when he needs to be touched in ways that may make any dog react. Again, thank you for demonstrating this so well!!!

[@spiritdogtraining]

You're welcome! I'm glad you enjoyed the video and found it to be helpful! Yes, muzzle training definitely is such an important skill, even for our friendly dogs, as we never know if there may be a situation where they need it :)

[@JoanWright-m4i]

Thanks, this is so good and helpful!

[@spiritdogtraining]

Glad you enjoyed and found it helpful! 🥰

[@shorn2008]

Will starting from step one also help with dogs who do wear muzzles but don't love it, and don't have the best feelings about putting them on?

[@spiritdogtraining]

Hi there! Yes, we can use this method to help our dogs associate more generally positive feelings with their muzzles for sure!

[@SimonMeadows]

So helpful, thanks for this

[@spiritdogtraining]

You're welcome! Glad you found it helpful!

[@denisewilliams971]

Great video… My vet is requiring a muzzle for my dog.

[@spiritdogtraining]

It can add a lot of safety for everyone involved at the vet clinic!

[@denisewilliams971]

Yes and a more relaxed Vet around my nervous German Shepherd. @@spiritdogtraining

[@MeganBartowski]

Thank you so much for this video. You were very clear and concise. Quick question. I am doing this for a foster dog, but I also have 2 German shepherd puppies that will need this as well, but they are still so little-only 10 weeks. In your opinion, when would you start this training?

[@spiritdogtraining]

Hi There, Thanks for reaching out! The dog shown here, Murdock, actually started muzzle training around 9 weeks old! His owner, training team member Paige, actually cut the bottom off a styrofoam coffee cup and taught him to put his face into the cup and feed him treats any time he put his face into the cup, and then switched to the muzzle once he was more grown! :)

[@ratcals1]

What muzzle would you recommend for a Miniature Pinscher? I'm having a hard time finding one that small that fits your three criteria.

[@spiritdogtraining]

While I have not personally used them, I had heard this company makes basket muzzles for very small dogs and may be able to provide one in the size you need! limuzz.com/en/muzzle-for-small-dogs/

[@ratcals1]

@@spiritdogtraining Thanks for the quick reply and recommendations. However, that muzzle looks like one of its main purposes is to prevent the dog from eating.

[@spiritdogtraining]

@@ratcals1 Oh maybe I was looking at the wrong one- the basic one that they showed on a chihuahua on another page looked like maybe it could be fed through 😞

[@ratcals1]

@@spiritdogtraining it looks like the Baskerville size 1 might fit. I have one on order.

[@showmethehoney1475]

Thank you for this!

[@spiritdogtraining]

You're very welcome

[@connorc7183]

My dogs breed has recently been banned where I live and they have to wear a muzzle by law, she will let me put the muzzle on and keep it on for a short time but as soon as I try to walk with her she will keep trying to claw it off until she succeeds. It is very stressful because I do not want her to be taken away but she just doesn’t want to wear it. I am going to follow all steps in this video, any advice?

[@spiritdogtraining]

Hi There, Thanks for reaching out. I'm so sorry to hear that you're going through this right now- I know this has impacted many people. I would definitely follow the steps here, as well with your dog you may find it helpful to try and smear a bit of food or a small amount of dog safe peanut butter on the bars of the muzzle to give her something there to lick at even when you aren't feeding her and keep her distracted from the pawing.

[@andreayancey1228]

Which muzzle are you using here? Baskerville? We got a leather one from the dog trainer but I feel like it's hard to get treats to him and would be hard for him to drink with.

[@spiritdogtraining]

Yes, this is a Baskerville brand muzzle purchased at a local Pet Valu store :)

[@merylelehn9671]

Can a dog who has been trained with the muzzle be inventually allowed with supervision for off leash time in an inclosed area such as yard or a off leash park.

[@spiritdogtraining]

I would not use a muzzle to take dogs to the dog park. It could possibly used to introduce to individual dogs, but it would have to be with the guidance of a trainer. If you had a private area like a sniffspot, when you know your dog won't fuss with the muzzle you certainly can let them off leash with it on.

[@marketingmadesimple8125]

How long would you expect it to take to train a dog to wear a muzzle? And how many minutes/times per day would you sugges working on this?

[@spiritdogtraining]

It really varies on the dog- some dogs are obviously much more sensitive to these types of things, or may not be used to different equipment and gear. Murdock, shown here, was introduced to muzzle training by Paige at a very young age and they did lots of activities getting him used to all sorts of equipment like boots, harnesses, collars, coats, muzzles, haltis, and different handling- so he picked up very fast with just using his lunch every day to train. Versus Paige's rescue dog who had lived isolated in a back yard and was not used to handling or equipment. It took about two months of gradual sessions that were much shorter (only about 5 minutes) before he was comfortable. As they progressed the sessions were able to get longer and he picked up speed on his comfort levels!

[@Emma-Jayne]

Hi, I am trying to muzzle train my dog. He is a year old now and due to a new ban he must wear it for legal reasons. He is very aggressive towards the muzzle and shows his dislike of it the moment it is in his view. We have never forced him but I do think some of the steps where missed in our training. What do you think we should do? Apart from start from scratch of course. Is there another step I could use to desensitise him from hating it first? Thank you

[@spiritdogtraining]

I might suggest getting a second muzzle. If there is one that he HAS to wear because of a breed ban, I would have a cheaper/short term muzzle that you are using in the meantime- since it is unavoidable and clearly your pup feels negatively towards it. Since this sounds like it would be long term, I would then suggest also getting a very good quality muzzle like one from here: www.themuzzlemovement.com/ And starting the training from scratch with this muzzle so that there are only good associations with it! Then once your pup is comfortable wearing it you can switch to using that one!

[@Emma-Jayne]

@@spiritdogtraining omg, thank you so much. I’m sure I don’t help by feeling it’s so unfair to put it on him constantly when he has done nothing wrong. I will try these steps instead. You also changed my mind by stating about emergencies that you don’t plan for etc! I can only say thank you but this advice is truly priceless to me. ♥️🙌🏻

[@spiritdogtraining]

@@Emma-Jayne You're very welcome

[@TonyaLyon-l4g]

gentle leader training pls video

[@spiritdogtraining]

Hi There! We would condition a head halter or gentle leader very similarly to what we've shown here- you'd go through all the same steps! :)