How to Stop Your Dog from Chasing the Vacuum Cleaner – Best Tips

If you own dogs then you may have a hard time while you try to vacuum clean the house. The dog will run to the appliance every time you use it, and interrupt the cleaning process, especially when you have a few minutes to get the cleaning done.

But, there are few simple steps you can follow stop your dog from chasing the vacuum cleaner. They are discussed below:

Most of the time dogs chase the vacuum because- they are afraid of it and they try attacking it. On the other hand, a few also dogs chase the vacuum because it invades their territory. The vacuum produces noise which also scares off the dogs. 

So, it is understandable for the dog to believe that the loud noise means – it is an invasion of their territory. The dog will chase the appliance, and will not stop barking so that it gets your attention, and you turn off the vacuum cleaner. 

So, these are the reasons dogs keep chasing the vacuum cleaner, as they are afraid of the noise and crave attention. 

Keep the machine near the dog or in an open room where you will be conducting the training exercise so that the dog will know what will happen. Encourage the dog to sniff around and familiarize with the vacuum as it enjoys the treats by placing a few treats around the cleaner.

let the dog get familiar with how the vacuum cleaner operates. The dog will get used to the movement by start moving the cleaner around when turned off as you would when in action for.

You can turn on the cleaner in another room, as the dog plays with toys, this will allow the dog to be familiarized with the noise from a distance where it feels safe enough to play, and then slowly get the dog in the same room as the loud vacuum cleaner. 

Note the negative actions you should address as you observe the dog’s behaviors around the machine. If it gets aggressive, focus on keeping it one spot without barking. This process will take time, and would require practice, training to achieve the goal you want. 

You should keep repeating the process - until the dog learns not to distract the vacuum when it’s in use. Vacuum the room as you would and give your dog a treat or praise so that the pet does not attack the vacuum cleaner. 

As the dogs believe in making their owners happy, and a reward or praise from their owner signifies joy, therefore, they will focus on not attacking the vacuum to make you happy and get a reward or praise.

As a pet owner, you know how to train your dog. So, as you train the dog to familiarize with the cleaner and stop attacking it- you can use the same commands like "sit" or "stop" you used while training your dog for everything else in the first place.

Commands not only let the dog know what it should do and what you are not happy with- but also keeps its attention centered on you as opposed to the vacuum. 

Don’t forget to reward it for good behaviors. The pet would remember that and will be a good boy for the treats in the future.

Conclusion:

You have to train your dog for a peaceful cleaning session. So, you have no choice but to spend some time with your dog to train it on how to accommodate the cleaner when in use. 

Try not to laugh and remain serious while training, and only smile or clap when the dog acts cool by not chasing the appliance. 

Also, the training offers a good opportunity for you to bond with your dog as well in order to understand its behavior more. Hence, remain patient and focused on achieving the ultimate goal which you would eventually.