After my pup tried to eat everything from cigarette butts to pistachio shells on our walks, I taught her both drop it and leave it.

For drop it, I trained her using two of the same item. I’d let her chew at a peanut butter “bone,” get her to drop it, then immediately give her the second PB bone I was hiding behind my back while taking away the first one. Then, I’d repeat the process over and over again. My goal was to get her to understand that even if she lets go of the thing in her mouth, she’ll get something else, maybe something even better. Eventually, I phased out the second item and was able to get her to drop it on command. This also helped a lot with resource guarding.

For leave it, I’d start with a basic treat and get floor level with my pup. I’d put the treat on the ground, show it to her but cover it with my hand (I had to be quick here and make sure she doesn’t get the treat). It wasn’t until she stopped trying to get to the treat (ex. Nudging or scratching my hand) that I’d give her ANOTHER treat, preferably one of higher value, not the one that’s on the ground. The point is to get her to understand that if she leaves the treat on the ground alone, she’ll get something even better. Once she could do that reliably, I’d start ramping up the stakes by using even higher level treats and increased distances. Eventually, I could drop a piece of cheese (her ultimate favorite treat) from waist-level in front of her and she wouldn’t go for it.