A guest written blog from two of our Mostly Mutts experts!
Chewing is a perfectly acceptable and
natural behavior for dogs. The problem arises when they chew on inappropriate,
dangerous or expensive items.
Just like babies putting everything in
their mouth, puppies and young adults will chew on anything. Your job is
to teach them what is appropriate to chew on and what is not. This is an
important job for you to curb your frustrations, the safety of the dog and to
prevent a dog from losing their home
Reasons dogs chew: Boredom and frustration, Teething, Attention, Anticipation
(some dogs chew just before their owner is due to arrive home), Separation anxiety (occurs
if you work long hours)
Make Prevention the
Priority:
Temptation: Puppy proof your home. Pick up the remote controls, your
shoes, and hide rechargers and computer wires.
Toy box: Fill a toy box with a variety of toys such as a stuffed
animal, a tennis ball, a squeaky toy, a Nylabone, etc. When you purchase
a new toy, instead of giving it directly to the dog, place it in the toy box
first.
Chew toys: Replace an inappropriate item with a dog toy.
Provide your dog with a few tasty chew toys. Make it perfectly clear to your
dog that if he/she needs to chew, it must be on the chew toys. It's a good idea
to toss a dog toy stuffed with
some tasty treats as you leave for work each morning.
Keep your dog in a safe and confined
area while you are away from home. This could be a dog crate, kennel run or any secure room in your house. Of
course you should provide a few chew toys in this area and ensure that there
are no dangerous objects present.
Increase exercise: For aggressive chewers, increase the
amount of exercise (physical and mental), especially prior to your leaving.
Deterents: Use a foul tasting substance (non toxic) such as
bitter apple, cayenne
pepper or Tabasco
Put some tasty treats in the area, the chewing behavior will
hopefully shift straight over to these.
Corrections: When you catch your dog in the act of chewing, give a
firm "No!" and replace the inappropriate chewing
object with a tasty chew toy. Give your dog praise when he starts chewing the
toy. Never ever reprimand your
dog if you don't actually
catch him in the act of chewing.
TWO SECOND RULE: You wouldn't
reward a dog a minute after he/she did something good, so don't correct your
dog if you missed your opportunity. In dog training, you have two seconds
to reward or correct a dog. Supervise the dog better if you keep missing
his/her bad behaviors. Leash a dog to you indoors if they 'sneak off to chew'.
Emily Shervin, CPDT
The Gratefull Dog
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