Help, My Puppy Picks Up Everything From The Ground

Many people recognize this immediately. You walk your puppy and within a few minutes, it already has something in its mouth again. A stick, a stone, a piece of plastic, or sometimes even a can. The question that almost always follows is whether you should allow this or step in.

For puppies, this behavior is completely normal. They explore the world with their mouth. They pick things up without thinking and happily walk around with them. It often looks harmless and sometimes even funny.

Puppy picking up trash from the street — A puppy picking up something you would rather not want, such as a stick or trash from the ground.

Is This Behavior Positive Or Not?

You often hear that this behavior is actually positive. That it shows a dog has good drives and that you should not discourage it, especially with working dogs. According to some, this behavior belongs to prey drive.

It is true that puppies who show this behavior often have strong prey drive. I value that in my own dogs and I even select for it. Still, I always choose to discourage this behavior. That is also what I advise anyone who asks me about it.

The behavior may look harmless, but in practice it mainly has disadvantages and hardly any real benefits, except that the dog enjoys it.

The Risks Are Often Underestimated

The behavior can become compulsive and develop into a constant urge to pick everything up.
The dog can injure its mouth on sharp edges or hard objects.
Running with a stick in the mouth is dangerous and can lead to serious injuries or worse.
It can also be dangerous for people when a dog accidentally hits someone with an object.

Dog running with a large stick in its mouth — Running with a stick may seem harmless, but it can involve serious risks.

Why This Also Causes Problems In Training

When a dog learns that everything it encounters is interesting and can be used as a toy, that behavior carries over into training. During training, the environment becomes more important than the exercise.

The dog gets distracted, wants to pick things up, and focuses less on the task and the final reward. Especially with working dogs, you want the exact opposite. Objects in the environment should be meaningless unless you deliberately use them in an exercise.

Clear Rules From Day One

That is why it is important to be clear from the very beginning. You do not want a puppy to pick up everything.

Say “no” the moment the puppy picks something up and calmly but decisively take the object out of its mouth. No anger, no discussion. Just be consistent.

What Your Puppy Is Allowed To Pick Up

It is important that your puppy does have something it is allowed to carry. A tug toy works very well for this in most cases.

Example. Dick walks with a puppy, gives a tug toy, and picks it up again when the puppy drops it.

Do not leave the tug toy in the kennel or in the house. Some dogs chew it apart and swallow pieces, which can cause serious intestinal problems.

Prevention Is Easier Than Curing

If you set clear rules from a young age, you prevent a lot of problems later on. Your puppy quickly learns that it is not allowed to pick everything up from the ground. This is about structural behavior, and it is best handled clearly and simply from the start.

In our online training school, we do not only help you with individual exercises or step by step courses, but also with these kinds of everyday practical questions. From upbringing and socialization to preventing unwanted behavior and building a strong foundation for training. You can always turn to us with your questions, watch real practice examples, and work step by step toward a dog that has clarity, calmness, and focus.

Why Your Puppy Picks Up Everything From The Ground