Dog Owner Accidentally Pavloved Her Dog To Start His Day The Moment He Smells Coffee Being Made

It's unthinkable to start your day without a cup of coffee... even Ollie the dog agrees

Chelsi

• Published in Animal Stories
• September 22, 2022

We would like to think that we are in charge of our pets as their owners. We pose ourselves as their masters in control of every aspect of their life.

Every dog trainer that gets popular advises dog owners to be the alphas in their homes. They say that this is a surefire way to make your pets listen to you and follow your commands.

Making your dog believe that you are in charge actually does help when you train them. I speak from experience when I say that dogs do respond to authority.

Training becomes easier when they trust in your command 100%. However, there are times when I swear that my dog is just humoring me when he follows my cues.

There are also things that dogs learn without us having to train them. They associate things rather quickly and it's amusing to realize which habits of ours excite them because they somehow benefit from it.

Take this dog owner and her dog. OP didn't exactly train her dog to start his day from the smell of coffee being made but that's exactly what happened.

OP wakes up at 5 AM every day, brushes her teeth, drinks her coffee, and takes Ollie out to answer nature's call. This was their daily routine for the seven years of Ollie's life.

Well, one morning, OP woke up earlier than usual and decided she won't be able to go back to sleep

Ollie was peacefully asleep in the living room while OP was going back and forth between the kitchen and her bedroom

As soon as the smell of coffee wafted around the kitchen, the dog stood up and walked to the door while staring at OP with bleary eyes

And that's how OP accidentally conditioned her dog into eliminating his bladder as soon as he smells coffee

Here's a photo of Ollie provided by OP

He hits a deep stretch as soon as the smell of caffeine hits

This is probably how he looked at OP during that earlier-than-usual day

If you wake up that early, Ollie highly recommends sneaking in a nap when possible

A majority of the commenters said they don't see how OP messed up aside from owning a Keurig that, is

That's how you can tell that the coffee is good

It looks like OP is not the only dog owner who has accidentally conditioned their dog to wake to the smell of coffee

Dogs have been picking up on things humans do for thousands of years... they have been our most loyal companions since

Dogs notice the teeniest details and associate them to our habits. That's how amazing they are!

See? Even cats do it!

So can guinea pigs, apparently

A commenter opposed those who said that OP didn't eff up because a habit this learned can become disruptive

If you miss a minute from your dog's usual time to go potty, you will be cleaning your floors (or carpet!) first thing in the morning and nobody wants that

Reading OP's title made me think that she was having a cup of joe with her dog every morning. While it makes for an adorable mental picture, you shouldn't ever give your dog even a taste of your coffee.

I wonder if Ollie could tell the different flavors of coffee OP tried during their early mornings. OP shouldn't feel bad about this, at least she and Ollie had a few extra hours to spend with each other ahead of their busy days.

Chelsi