Save the couch, chew toy training your dog
Guest Contributor - Candi Moon
WWW.FURBABIESTRAINING.CO.ZA
Candi runs Furbabies one of our Recommended Puppy Schools in the Auckland Park / Melville areas. CLICK HERE to find out more about them
PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN CURE!
One of the most common problems owners have with their dogs is chewing items that they would really prefer they didn't, like the irrigation system, your patio furniture, your slippers, cell phone or even the bumper off the car (yes, I had a client whose dog did that!).
Dogs have a need to chew, so providing them with lots of interesting toys as alternative to your precious possessions is a great way to start. So the toys don't become boring to your dog divide them up and rotate the toys available to your dog every few days.
Giving your dog plenty of physical and mental exercise will help to prevent boredom that leads to destructive chewing. Walks, doing training with your dog or playing games of tug or fetch will all help.
My favourite way to teach a dog to prefer chewing on their own toys is to offer food stuffed chew toys.
If your dog is a really heavy chewer you may want to consider limiting her access within the house or garden for a few weeks while you work on chew toy training her. Whenever you go out, instead of giving your dog access to the entire house or garden, confine her to just one or two rooms, or a smaller area of the garden if she is an outside dog.
The area where you leave your dog should have a comfortable bed, fresh water and a toilet available, and his stuffed chew toys. Thoroughly 'puppy proof' this area to ensure that there is nothing you don't want your dog to chew available for him to get at. The kitchen and/or bathroom are often good choices for this.
Keep back some of your dog's breakfast pellets and stuff a few chew toys with them, sealing off the ends with peanut butter. These toys will be highly appealing to your dog as they are stuffed with her food, which will encourage her to chew on them. I really like the Kong toys (available at most pet shops) for this. Although they are pricey they last really well. For industrial strength chewers its best to buy the black ones.
Other things you can use are other hollow rubber dog toys, hollow sterilised bones or cow hooves. Whatever you choose for your dog ensure that the toys are large enough that he cannot swallow them and also tough enough that he can't pull pieces of the toy off and swallow those. A general rule of thumb is that if the toy is small enough to pass through the centre of a toilet roll it is also small enough to be swallowed, unless you have a smaller dog.
Once your dog has developed the habit of preferring to chew on her chew toys you can again give her access to the whole house or garden when you are out. The process should take a few weeks. If your dog has an accident then limit her access again for a few days.
I always like to leave food stuffed chew toys for my dogs when I go out. They also come in handy when you are at home but unable to supervise your dog to keep them out of mischief or when the weather is bad and your dog is bored. Give a chew toy to your dog before guests arrive to help keep him calm or give your dog his dinner stuffed into chew toys to help him settle down before you go to bed.
Dogs have a need to chew, so providing them with lots of interesting toys as alternative to your precious possessions is a great way to start. So the toys don't become boring to your dog divide them up and rotate the toys available to your dog every few days.
Giving your dog plenty of physical and mental exercise will help to prevent boredom that leads to destructive chewing. Walks, doing training with your dog or playing games of tug or fetch will all help.
My favourite way to teach a dog to prefer chewing on their own toys is to offer food stuffed chew toys.
If your dog is a really heavy chewer you may want to consider limiting her access within the house or garden for a few weeks while you work on chew toy training her. Whenever you go out, instead of giving your dog access to the entire house or garden, confine her to just one or two rooms, or a smaller area of the garden if she is an outside dog.
The area where you leave your dog should have a comfortable bed, fresh water and a toilet available, and his stuffed chew toys. Thoroughly 'puppy proof' this area to ensure that there is nothing you don't want your dog to chew available for him to get at. The kitchen and/or bathroom are often good choices for this.
Keep back some of your dog's breakfast pellets and stuff a few chew toys with them, sealing off the ends with peanut butter. These toys will be highly appealing to your dog as they are stuffed with her food, which will encourage her to chew on them. I really like the Kong toys (available at most pet shops) for this. Although they are pricey they last really well. For industrial strength chewers its best to buy the black ones.
Other things you can use are other hollow rubber dog toys, hollow sterilised bones or cow hooves. Whatever you choose for your dog ensure that the toys are large enough that he cannot swallow them and also tough enough that he can't pull pieces of the toy off and swallow those. A general rule of thumb is that if the toy is small enough to pass through the centre of a toilet roll it is also small enough to be swallowed, unless you have a smaller dog.
Once your dog has developed the habit of preferring to chew on her chew toys you can again give her access to the whole house or garden when you are out. The process should take a few weeks. If your dog has an accident then limit her access again for a few days.
I always like to leave food stuffed chew toys for my dogs when I go out. They also come in handy when you are at home but unable to supervise your dog to keep them out of mischief or when the weather is bad and your dog is bored. Give a chew toy to your dog before guests arrive to help keep him calm or give your dog his dinner stuffed into chew toys to help him settle down before you go to bed.
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