Puppies and strangers

Puppies and strangers:In this day and age the threat of your puppy being poisoned by some ill intentioned person is very real and so it is very important that you teach your puppy not to accept food from strangers while out. Along with this it is a very good idea to train your puppy not to eat food either from off of the street or out of the garbage as if you puppy eats rotten food they could become deathly sick, get an infection and/or catch many different diseases.
Training your puppy to only eat in one place and to be fed only by one person is the best way to avoid the previously mentioned problems.
To teach your puppy not to accept food from strangers have a friend (a person that is unknown to the puppy) offer food to the puppy while you are out walking and when the puppy tries to take the food gently but firmly pull back on the leash and tell it a resounding "No". Be careful not to yell at your puppy as that could cause it to become fearful of you.
Reward your puppy with a treat and lots of praise for not taking the food from the "stranger". Repeat this as often as necessary till your puppy refuses to accept the food offered to it.
Try a variation of this by having someone place a yummy treat strategically on the ground so that while you are walking your puppy you pass close by it. When the puppy tries to get the food you should again pull back on the leash and tell it strongly but with an even voice "No". Make sure to heartily reward it for being obedient. Repeat this as often as necessary until the puppy's response is to ignore the food. These training sessions will be difficult and teaching your puppy this very important lesson will take time but the results are very much worth it.