The first step to saving your house from your companion's destructive tendencies is to prevent it from happening in the first place!
- Crate train your dog. Put him in a crate whenever you are unable to watch him. This way, he will not have access to anything outside the crate to destroy.
- If you don't want to put him in a crate, or if you are going to be gone for very long periods, consider sending your dog to doggie daycare.
- If your pet has shown specific appetite for a particular item (such as shoes) or a particular area (such as the doorway), restrict his access to the item or area. Pick up your shoes, keep your pet away from the doorway unless you are escorting him, don't let him get to the object and he won't be able to destroy it.
- Carefully observe your pet's behavior and surroundings to determine triggers for destructive behavior. Maybe your dog chews on the couch when a certain person comes to visit, when the kids have been home for school for a few days, when the garbage collector comes or when they test the tornado siren once a month. Keeping a journal of what goes on in your household and your dog's behavior will help with this. Once you've determined your dog's triggers, you will be further empowered to take preventive measures.
Animals (including humans!) repeat behaviors that are rewarded, even if they aren't rewarded every time. Does the behavior make your dog feel good, help relieve stress, pain from teething, boredom? Keep in mind that the reward doesn't have to be "real". Your dog could make a correlation between one action and another that doesn't exist, for example "If I dig at this door long enough, someone will eventually come through it to keep me company."
Remove the reward
Your goal is to make the behavior unattractive to your pet. Here are some ideas.
- If the dog is digging at the front door in hopes of eliciting your return, come in through the back door instead.
- Coat things your dog enjoys chewing on (those things you can't hide) with something that tastes or smells bad to your dog. Vinegar, citrus, Listerine, Altoids (try different flavors, crush them into a powder to apply) or black or cayenne pepper may be what you're looking for, but individual dogs have different tastes, so you may have to experiment.
- Make sure you aren't inadvertently rewarding your dog with attention in response to this behavior. Keep corrections low key and don't follow them up with a rowdy game of tag.
- Set up booby traps; Try putting mouse traps in and around your shoes (the plastic snap kind is safer for your dog than the wire type.) the noise may deter your dog from sticking his nose in their again. Put some bells on the trap to make it extra noisy. Double-sided tape, like carpet tape, may deter your dog from digging around baseboards, windows and doors, but be advised that it may also lift up paint and wallpaper. Motion sensor devices can also be set up in areas to produce loud noises.
Provide an Alternative
Many dogs destroy things because they are bored or lonely, or need to relieve tension or just the desire to chew. If you simply remove their ability to destroy one item, they will find something else to destroy unless you provide them with an appropriate alternative.
- Make sure your dog has something appropriate to chew on. Try a bully stick, a smoked knuckle bone, a stuffed marrow bone or the Nylabone Double Action Combo Bone. These are relatively safe and long-lasting, will help relieve nervous tension and boredom and will help with teething if that's the issue.
- Present your dog with puzzles to solve while your away. Hide treats, chew toys or stuffed Kongs around his play area (or even hang them from a string from the ceiling just within reach). Freezing treats inside a yogurt container or putting your Kong in the freezer will make them last longer and is especially fun on a hot day (but messy!).
- If it seems your dog is destroying your personal items out of love, give her something that smells like you for her very own. Keep in mind that it won't smell like you anymore after a day or two and will need to be refreshed. Try this: Buy 3 similar toys. Put them all in your laundry, give her one the next day, then after three days, put that one in the wash and give her a new one from the laundry, three days later, put that one in the wash, the clean one in the laundry and give the one in the laundry to her. Continue this rotation.
Make Sure Your Dog Gets Plenty of Exercise!
This cannot be stressed enough. A tired dog is a good dog. Most dogs were bred for a physical job and most house dogs aren't performing that job. This can cause them to be restless and stressed out. Help your dog out by making sure he gets lots of physical and mental stimulation.
- Walk him at least once, preferably twice a day.
- If he is not dog aggressive, take him to the dog park, play dates, or doggie daycare once or twice a week.
- Play fetch, hide and seek, tug of war, or chase daily.
- Practice obedience and tricks every day. (Check out The Everything Dog Training and Tricks Book by Gerilyn Bielakiewicz)
- Take your dog somewhere exciting, like the pet store, the park, or grandma's house once a week.
- Get your dog a kiddie pool to play in during the summer. If you've got a big pool, invite him in for a swim!
- Consider getting involved in a sport, like dock diving, disc dog, agility or fly ball. It'll be fun for you too!
