Summary
To keep your dog off the couch, establish clear boundaries by covering it with blankets or deterrents. Provide a comfortable dog bed as an appealing alternative, placing it near your usual spot. Use positive reinforcement, rewarding your dog with treats and praise when they choose their bed. Teach a consistent cue word like “off” or “go to your bed.” Temporarily remove cushions to make the couch less inviting. Consistency is key; don’t allow occasional access. Manage their environment by blocking access when unsupervised. Homemade repellents with citrus, vinegar, or cayenne pepper (test first) can also deter. Avoid yelling or physical punishment, and be patient with the training process.
How to Keep a Dog off the Couch? – Why Should Dogs Be Kept Off the Couch?
According to the studies, most dog owners want to avoid keeping their dogs close to their furniture or on the Couch.
This is to protect their furniture from their pets as dogs have a nature to chew the furniture and scratch the beds and sofas. Also, spending more time with dogs can pose a pet dander and cause respiratory symptoms.
Is it Safe to Let Your Dog onto the Couch?
While talking about letting your dog onto the Couch, it depends from person to person. If a dog owner wants to keep their dog on the Couch, he absolutely can.
Sometimes, it can be risky for your dog because dogs have a habit of scratching and chewing the corners of furniture and soft surfaces. While chewing the furniture, if a piece of heavy furniture or something from it accidentally falls on the pet, it can hurt the pet to a large extent.
Similarly, sometimes your dog’s nails get stuck on a soft surface they were scratching, which can cause severe pain. Hence, it is not safe to let your dog onto the Couch.
Why Do Dogs Get Onto the Couch?
When a dog owner doesn’t give a comfortable place for their dog to rest and for all other cooldowns, the dogs prefer to jump and get into the furniture and couches.
The most probable reason your dog gets into the Couch is closeness to their master. Dogs always want to stay close to their owner as much as possible, so they prefer to get into the Couch.
Steps to Follow for Keeping Your Dog off the Couch
If you feel bad while keeping your dog off the Couch, you don’t have to because most dog owners prefer to keep their dog away from the furniture and Couch.
Here are the steps to keep your dog off the Couch.
Create a Boundary
To protect your Couch from your dog, all you have to do is put some clothes on the sofa or cover it with any other material to make your dog realize that it’s something from which he has to stay away.
Provide an Alternative to the Couch
Suppose your dog continuously gets on the Couch after several tries. In that case, you must understand that the pet is seeking a comfortable place. So, if you provide an alternative to your Couch for the pet, they will stay away from it.
Provide Appropriate Training
The unpleasant behavior of your pet of getting into the Couch repeatedly can be due to a lack of training. The owner can also properly train their dog to behave well in the house.
Introduce a Cue Word
If your dog is not listening to your command, introduce a cue word like “get on to your bed “and use it whenever you want your dog off the Couch. It will make your dog understand what you want from them.
Using Aversive
If you’re not succeeding in keeping your dog off the Couch, you can use the aversive. You have to put something in front of your dog that it found scary while he was on the Couch. It will work wonders for you to keep your dog off the Couch.
Eliminating the Pet’s Access to the Room
Suppose you cannot control your dog from getting onto the Couch after putting in all your efforts. In that case, stopping your dog from entering that room will be preferable.
Remove the Cushions
The dogs were getting into the couches for the soft and comfy feeling, all because of the cushions at the top of the couches. So, removing the cushions from the Couch will no longer be smooth and comfortable. Hence, it is the best way to go.
How Can Spray Be Effective to Keep Your Dog Off the Couch?
Spraying a substance that your dog hates is one of the best options for keeping your dog off the Couch. Just like we use mosquito repellents to keep mosquitoes away, we can use some dog repellents, too, to keep our dog away from the Couch.
The repellents should consist of citrus, vinegar, and hot pepper extracts, as these things are the ones most dogs don’t even prefer to smell, so they can be very effective for keeping your dog off the Couch or furniture.
Ingredients That You Can Use to Make Dog Repellents
Homemade dog repellents can help keep your dog off the Couch or for other things you want them to stay away from. However, the ingredients used in the repellents should be carefully chosen as a mistake can harm your dog.
The ingredients that can be used for homemade dog repellents are discussed below.
Citric Acid
All dog species find the smell of citric acid extremely unpleasant, so that you can take a bottle of water and lemon juice and spread it on your couches and furniture. Your dog will not even pass near the Couch and furniture due to the unpleasant smell of citric acid.
Cayenne Pepper
Like the smell of citric acid, the smell of cayenne pepper is also very unpleasant for dogs. But the owner should think before using this as pepper can make your dog’s eyes burn a couple of times but will not harm it in any way.
You can sprinkle a mixture of cayenne pepper on your Couch to keep the pet off the Couch.
Vinegar
The smell of vinegar extract is also one of the substances that the dogs were fond of and strictly used to avoid. If you want to keep your dog away from something, spray some vinegar extract and see the best results.
How to Prevent Your Dog from Getting onto the Couch When You are Not Home?
It’s difficult for a dog owner to protect their couches and furniture from their dog while not at home. In this situation, the only option left is to cover everything you want to save from your dog with aluminum foils or newspapers.
The owner has to collect large amounts of newspapers and aluminum foil from a store to cover all the furniture and needy items. The dog will not get into the covered area even if you are not at home, as the covered things will startle the dog if it jumps into it.
Things to Avoid While You are Trying to Keep Your Dog Off the Couch
We all know that our dog is the one we love to spend time with or the closest to our hearts. All of us would prefer to avoid keeping a distance while trying to keep our dog off the Couch.
Here are what we should avoid while keeping our dogs off the Couch.
Avoid Scaring the Dog
We should always avoid scaring the dog while trying to make them learn manners, as it can make the dog mentally depressed and make them shiver their whole body.
Avoid Using Sticks
Never use sticks to shoo them away from the place by getting frustrated. This can weaken the bond with your dog, as the dog will get scared.
Avoid Scolding the Dog
The owner should strictly avoid scolding the dog while the pet is not listening to the commands. Instead of scolding, always use love and care to make them understand the fact.
The dog owner should strictly avoid the points mentioned above as it can affect the pet’s bond and upset the dog.
