Help.......Demolition Doggie

[cherrygirl]

Hi Guys I really need some advice.

Choccie is my first dog so I'm a bit clueless. She is 1 year old large breed.


She is destrying our house and DH has had enough (so have i ). She has ruined all of the externall doors to our house. She has eaten my clothes line - all of the usual indoor destruction - shoes, rubbish bin - a bit of a fascination with knickers (TMI).

The most annoying thing is that she knows she's in trouble because she cowers before we have even seen what shes done.

I'm really upset - DH and i had a huge argument over it all last night but really he's right we just can't afford to keep fixing all of these things.

OK now somebody please post a brilliant idea that will change her behaviour overnight:p

Seriously, any help would be appreciated.

[Mum2Tyla]

Hi,
what breed is she, does she get exercised regularly, is she sterilised, has she had any training, do you catch her chewing things, if so tell her off and give her something appropriate to chew, the undie thing is because it has a strong scent of you on it, they usually grow out of this. The main thing is to catch her doing the behavior so you can disipline her, she sounds bored so give her things to keep her busy,kongs, bones etc, and she will grow out of alot of this behaviour if you disipline her right
Good luck
Kelly:ecomcity:

[Pinkbug]

We had similar problem with our two dogs they're mini foxies... they would just about destroy anything.. not doors though

I was SOO up to here with them!!! as I had no idea who was doing it both or one another!! SO mad... with the washing I had to resort to doing it inside on the clothes horse they got the message straight away and when I felt ready to put it on line I would put one towel on the line and whenever I see the one of them jump up for it I would scream out NO or whatever and they got better at it after a few days...

and for things like shoes etc... when u see her doing it say the command NO or whatever u do.... and make sure she knows shoes or whatever is not acceptable and give her TOY for herself to replace the shoe or whatever it is...

it takes time and patience just like toilet training ur child!!!! :thumbsup: don't be angry or whatever towards dogs they have the nature to destroy things just be FIRM and CLEAR speaking

My dogs are getting there.. their new fascination is digging we have put balloons in the holes and its working well :D

GOOD LUCK!!! :thumbsup:

[RoarsomeMum]

We have always had rotti's for teh most part, they have been well trained gentle giants.. but Jay... well, he sounds alot like yours.. he ate our TV and Vacume cords, he ate our electric balnket, my battery shaver. He scratched up all the doors. He always had bustacubes and Kongs, but seemed to like our stuff better.:confused: :rolleyes:

We started training him more specifically (for agility) through a local dog club.. He seems far more worn out after a session there, then he did after a normal walk.
Also, we haev invested in Hard grade sandpaper, that we haev tacked onto the doors, its amazing teh difference that made, not only does it stop him digging into the doors, it helps grind down his nails. He only scratches on the doors with that in them now.

I suggest you get the book "leader of the pack" by Nancy Baer & Steve Duno (http://www.dogwise.com/SearchResults.cfm?Search=Nancy Baer & Steve Duno&SubSearch=author) its great, and so very VERy helpful!!:yes:

[Lizzie0808]

The sandpaper is a great idea - our girls are generally very good, but they do scratch at the door betweent he kitchen and up to the garage when they get excited about a walk . . . and they hate getting their toenails clipped!

We have found our girls are more settled if they get a walk in the morning - it wears them out and they seem less inclined to get into mischief.

Also, try and mentally stimulate your dogs - there are some great toys you can get that will challenge them and help stop them being so destructive.

[cherrygirl]

Thanks all. I will show these ideas to DH when he gets home and we will see what we can implement.
I will let you all know how we go.

[Chickadee]

What I've always been told is that larger breeds keep their puppy behaviour for longer. Certainly they take longer to reach their full size. So you do need to be patient, and also consistent.

Our two (1 deerhound X and 1 pointer) are definitely better behaved when they are walked in the morning. Actually they usually get an off leash run and/or ball session. When they miss their run you can literally see the energy and boredom coiled up in them.

I agree 100% with the other suggestions given. Definitely get into some formal obedience training if you haven't already. If nothing else it will give you a consistent method for addressing behaviour and also help to assert dominance. Be sure that whoever does the training sessions teaches the other person too.

For the doors - our pointer scratches at doors when she wants them open or to go out. Which made house training easy but can be really tough on screens and on painted doors. If you're having the same problem with screens there are a few options - install the more expensive metal screening. It doesn't tear as easily as the cheap nylon mesh. See if you can put a cheap plexiglass insert in the bottom half where most of the scratching damage occurs. If you need to lock her in a room when you go out (and I actually would recommend setting one room as 'hers' and make it relatively dog-proof) then try using a baby gate rather than shutting the door. Our dogs sleep in our spare room/office at night with the baby gate closed, because they were scratching the door so badly.

[Shelleyt]

Excercise and lots of it!! :smiliedance:

I have a large breed dog (retriever x border collie) and you can also tell the days that he has not had his walk/run. Is the dog ok to be let off the lead at a park etc? If you can find a nearby park that you can take him to (and get one of those ball thrower things) and get him to let off some of his energy, you will notice a vast improvement. You need to look at it from the dogs perspective and how you'd feel being locked in a confined space 24/7. They need to get out and stretch their legs. Also if you can get some big marrow bones from your butcher, these are great for boredom.

All the best :thumbsup:

[cherrygirl]

Hi All,

we have a backyard thats like a mountain - do dogs run around all day or do they only exercise when they are taken out?
Also don't get mad because i haven't done it - but - can you chain them to a run wire? I have to return to work in the new year and I'm really concerned about what she will do alone for that long?

[Lizzie0808]

I can't comment on the run wire, but I do know that while most dogs will run around and play in the yrd, taking them out wears them out so much more because of all the new smells, sights and sounds which send their minds into a complete frenzy - it really does tire them out so much more. If there is an off-leash park near you you could try that so they can run free or just a regular walk will make a huge difference.

[Mum2Tyla]

okay the best way to look at it is how would you feel if you never got to leave the house, see anyone all day you would get bored too, they need to be taken for a walk see new smells etc, dogs are pack animals and in a pack they spend the day hunting, interacting with other dogs and then we put them in a backyard all by themselves of course they can become bored and destructive, if you never take your dog out and don't spend alot of time doing things with them then they will become destructive, some breeds are also worse than others, does the dog get to come inside at all, do you spend time with him in the yard eg throwing balls etc
Kelly:ecomcity:

[Chickadee]

Hi All,

we have a backyard thats like a mountain - do dogs run around all day or do they only exercise when they are taken out?
Also don't get mad because i haven't done it - but - can you chain them to a run wire? I have to return to work in the new year and I'm really concerned about what she will do alone for that long?
Our dogs mostly sleep all day unless we're physically outside with them. They do play together a bit, but not enough to really call it exercise.

I would be hesitant to chain an animal to a run wire unless someone was around to check them regularly. It's easy for a dog to get wrapped around things and wind up unable to access shade or fresh water. That said, I do know people who have done this.

[mythreelittlemonkeys]

My dogs are getting there.. their new fascination is digging we have put balloons in the holes and its working well :D



ha ha I tried this with our digger mate the beagle he jumped then started digging again!! he worse the more attention he gets!! When he being walked reguarly etc he actually comes home and digs more holes than when the day gets to busy for me and I cant take him out...I am resigned to a crater like yard for the time being!! Think we may get him a friend though that may mean just more holes!!

[cherrygirl]

Hi Kelly - see thats my thing - choccie gets heaps of attention. DD1 is 4.5 so she spends a lot of time running around with her and DH devotes the first 20 mins of being home everyday to the dog because she is a submissive wee'er so he takes her out side and plays with her.

We have always had her inside and have slowly being introducing outside. She has always gone outside when we are out because she destroys the house if i leave her in even for 10 mins.

I'm a stay at home mum so she really doesn't spend much time alone.
Oh and she sleeps under our bed.

She isn't stupid at all. She won't eat the food put in front of her until she gets her verbal command to eat. She will sit when told. She understands "out" and "off" - thats what gets to me the most she knows what she is doing is naughty but she does it anyway. Hmmm - sounds just like my girls trying to get attention......

[cherrygirl]

Our dogs mostly sleep all day unless we're physically outside with them.

I didn't know that Martha! but it makes sense.

About the chain - thats why i was asking. A friends dog was killed last year because of its chain - not going to go into any detail.

[LisaJade]

We have a 4 year old dane/mastiff/wolfhound that didn't grow out of the chewing stage until she was nearly 2. We tried everything from pepper to the stuff you get from the pet shop, I think it is called 'Keep off' but nothing worked better than keeping everything out of her reach. We now have a 4 month old puppy that is out of her and other large dog and im not looking forward to the training, although we are moving out onto a property so plenty of room for them to run around.
We know they have been up to something before we even see the damage as the pair of them take off as soon as you walk outside.
Can you keep your dog outside at all so that it doesn't destroy the inside of your house?

[LisaJade]

A hint with digging that I have found works perfectly is to place their droppings in the hole then fill it up with dirt and wet it down. They don't seem to dig there again. We have been doing this as I have been trying to get the lawn all nice for when it goes on the market at the end of January and its the only thing that has worked so far