Dolly's Destructiveness

[Wendbert]

Dolly has been here since July after being a brood bitch before she was given over to rescue. Most of the time she is well behaved - she's great with other dogs, is almost clean in the house when I'm out, is affectionate and seems happy.

 

When I go out, I leave her with a stuffed Kong and if I'm working, she has a Kong when I leave and then my neighbour gives her another after she's walked the dogs. However, once she's finished the Kong, she is then eating random things - the stairs, shoes, CD's etc.

 

There are loads of toys but she's not that interested in them indoors although is obsessed with a tennis ball when we're out.

 

I'm getting really fed up with the random chewing. I know its my own fault if I leave things out, but there's just no telling what she will decide to eat.

 

Any idea's how I can deal with this?

[Peachy]

I had a behaviourist make several recommendations when Alfie dog went through a very bad patch of separation anxiety. He chewed the sofa (well, removed the fabric and ate the foam really), shredded the curtains, ripped the blinds down, ate goodness knows how many candles, tore the carpet from the bottom of the stairs and munched through a couple of door frames. I had to slowly replace everything.

 

I was firstly told to set up a video recorder to watch what happened when I was out, to discover any patterns or hot spots. It was interesting (and now amusing) viewing!

 

Do you think Dolly is bored and restless or is having a problem with you being out and not being there for her? Either way, hopefully some of these might help.

 

I was asked to remove all toys when I got home, as I was the source of entertainment for the dogs, then replace 'me' with fun toys when I went out. Before this, Alfie could get any toy any time so nothing was new or exciting when I left him.

 

Kongs, absolutely. I was told to stuff them with tinned cat or dog food and put them in the freezer the night before. Frozen food has to be slowly and patiently licked so it takes more time for them to eat.

 

Could you try the bitter lemon spray that they have in pet shops? It might be worth spraying some on the things you don't want Dolly to pick up.

 

Also, what about one of those plastic balls that have a whole in them so you can put treats in? She'll have to nudge it around the room to get titbits. Should stimulate her for a while. They come in varying sizes, from bowling ball to tennis ball size, so you could maybe have a couple out to keep her interest.

 

Hopefully one of these might be a new idea to experiment with

[K9Fran]

I've not got much to add - you are best off getting an idea of *why* she's doing it to solve it most effectively. Bored- easy, food that lasts longer, so freezing, Dog Pyramid, Buster Cube or Squirrel Dude for hard food. I'd avoid the cheaper balls, as I've had several where the 'adjusting ring' has broken when bitten, leaving sharp pieces of plastic Seperation anxiety - training to teach her to be more secure, security blankets/things that smell of you (which may be chewed - but hey!)

You might also want to get her health checked - teeth problems and other discomfort can cause chewing as it releases endorphones which help the animal deal with pain.....

[melissa]

A very tough one, so frustrating too! especially as it isn't one particular thing she goes for .Has she got any doggie company? The treat balls mentioned earlier are good to keep them amused but they do bang around the house with them! one of my fosters learnt to lob it down the stairs so the treats all fell out on the bumps on the way down Good Luck with her, hope you work it out.

[akitas]

Does she like bones? Mine usually chew them for quite a long time, roasted knuckle bones for example.

[dirtychicken]

Wend - it never occurred to me whilst we were chatting about this yesterday, but I have a Buster Cube here that is going spare. Only Bailey ever used to play with it - Bear is too lazy to make that much effort for a bit of kibble and Flora just tries to munch her way right through it You are more than welcome to it if you think it might be of any help. I know you want to be careful about having too much food stuffs around, but do you think it might be worth trying?

[Wendbert]

Thank you for the replies

 

Dolly does have company, in the form of Bumpy, but he just tends to settle down and sleep when I'm not here. Because of him being blind, he has a much greater sense of smell and although he will leave Dolly and her Kong alone, I have to be careful about leaving other food toys/treats as I don't want them to argue over them.

 

I will try freezing her Kong's to see if they last longer. I don't have a video recorder but will setup the webcam and try and watch from work. The only problem with that is that the camera doesn't cover the whole room and if Dolly goes upstairs, I won't be able to see what she's up to.

 

Health-wise, Dolly seems absolutely fine. She had a thorough check the other month and in every other way, seems to be a normal, happy dog. I know she has become very attached to me and as such, since she has been here I've tried not to make a fuss of going out and coming home again etc.

 

Because the things she chews are completely random, I never know what she's going to decide to eat next. I will shut the bedroom doors so there is only the landing available, but part of me doesn't want to restrict her too much in case she starts on the sofa etc.

[Kaos]

I'm getting really fed up with the random chewing. I know its my own fault if I leave things out, but there's just no telling what she will decide to eat.

 

If the chewing is really random, then maybe it's time to think about a crate, or some other kind of restriction?

 

I appreciate this isn't always a very popular option but, it does work, and you may need to start thinking 'safety' as well?

 

One of mine went through stages of eating cables, which wasn't a huge deal when it was just phone, broadband, etc , but when she decided plaster was good too, and found 'cable treasure' if you managed to find the right spot, something had to be done (for everyone's safety).

 

A certain amount of restriction can also create a feeling of security, and allows the dog to focus on 'safe' things (e.g special blankets, toys, etc.....all with your smell on), and also removes the possibilty of any 'tiffs' with other dogs over food items.

Kongs are far more effective when frozen, and can be filled with allsorts (pulped veggies are good if weight needs watching).

 

Knowing that she is safe, and not being destructive will also reduce your anxiety levels.

[khanu]

Sorry, a bit late to be adding my opinion but never mind. I'd agree with Kaos about restricting where she can go. Although for our 4 upstairs is off limits all the time, when they are left alone they are restricted to only two rooms - the conservatory and kitchen. This means I can make sure that the "stuff" in there is ok to be destroyed - admittedly there is a lot in the kitchen I wouldn't want destroyed, but none of them chew the cabinets at the moment so I'm not too worried.

If you wanted to leave Dolly some more things to do when you are out without chancing fights can you leave her in another room seperated by a baby gate? That way you can leave her with boxes full of newspaper with treats in, extra kongs etc without fear of a bust up.

 

Although not the same, when we first got Breckin he was left in the utility room alone away from the others with lots of things to do until i was sure he could be left with the others. Didn't seem to worry him at all and he was kept occupied by making a mess with scrunched up newpaper and cardboard boxes