Preventing Puppies From Chewing

Crate training is a must for this. Look up crate training on the internet. It is the only way to keep puppy's out of trouble without constantly yelling at them. When they come out, watch them like a hawk, little at a time, and make sure any experience with chewing is met with a canful of coins shaking making a loud noise and a firm no. Let me know how it goes! Racer

I had a puppy who would chew everything in sight, then a friend suggested it might be because the dog was bored or teething and recommended I gave it old cardboard boxes to chew for its boredom and an old metal frying pan to soothe its gums. Both worked and my dog never chewed anything it shouldn't again.

My vet told me that the reason pets chew on carpets, lick the glue off envelopes, and eat plastic bags, etc. is that they are all made from petroleum products & pets like the taste. Apparently it is like candy to them.

I trained my chihuahua from her bad chewing using a little cage. As soon as she was doing something wrong I scolded her and put her in her cage for a while. I also used this method potty training her. I only let her out to eat and go potty, then right back in she would go. Using this method doesnt take them long to learn. ~Janette~

Our guy Ralphie actually chewed a hole in a wall. Ok.. the wall was thin and under the snack bar, but still.

We have three dogs, one mastiff and two mid-sized (65 pounds each.) All three had the habit of chewing the carpet until we invested $2 or $3 for a small, densely-woven rope toy. We try to keep three on hand, but they still argue over one and always try to sneak out to the yard with them, lol! We also use the "voice" when we catch anyone chomping the carpet - or anything else they shouldn't.

One last thing: our Princess, 18 months old now, knows she has to go into the "dog room" whenever both hubby and I go anywhere. She still begs not to go most times, but Mama's firm and she's learning she can't win with me. It keeps her from shredding our stuff out of pique. To make a long story short, pick any solution or combination that works for you. Best to you!

Above all, get that puppy tired out. Wear him out with so much exercise, he will not have any vices and will be a happy healthy doggie. Half of the things they do are just because they are cooped up!

Caging a problem will only frustrate the dog more and worsen the problem. You need to provide enough exercise, training time, playtime and affection to tire the dog out. Tired dogs are happy and they sleep. Bored, frustrated dogs are destructive pests.

Walk as fast as you can comfortably go if you aren't in shape enough to jog. Do the runs in the morning and evening after their meals so they'll also go potty (which you should scoop) along the way and be empty for the night when they will sleep like beautiful babes.

Combine training on your long jaunts and you will ensure the dog will obey your commands under any circumstances. It's a win-win.

Dogs also need ample toys to chew. Again, you have to be interactive here. You can use a Kong type toy to distract the dog a little but they're arent a substitute for playing with you.

Dog parks are great for relaxing AFTER you have exercised your dog thoroughly. Good luck.

Ooops! Forgot something. You don't say what breed your dog is but if it's one created to hunt or chase small animals; the dog could just be following its instincts. You can provide a small sandbox in the yard and hide toys in there for the dog to seek. Make sure it's clean sand and a covered box so it stays clean and wandering cats to use the box for other purposes!

Try sprinkling red pepper on it. It does hurt them but it stings the nose so they stay away from it.

I intended to say does not hurt them.

It looks like you have plenty of suggestions. Here are two ideas. One is to spray apple bitter on the carpet (it tastes so bad they don't want to chew it). The other is to use a watter spray bottle with a direct spray and everytime she chews something she is not supposed to, you spray her and it will startle her. She learns that when she chews the carpet she will get startled. Eventually, she quits. Hope these help.

Hi,
I have a beagle and she did this as a puppy along with chewing up our coffee tables, the bottom of a sitting chair, the venetian blinds, and wooden chair arms to name just a few of the things she destroyed. The bitter apple spray didn't work, she just chewed on the places where I sprayed more. She only chewed carpet holes in a few spots so we ended up having to cover the spots with stuff she couldn't move or block things off. She eventually grew out of that and is now a well behaved dog so hopefully your dog will grow out of it as well. :)

It's only my opinion but it sounds to me like you're being too aggressive with the little guy and especially since you mentions he pees. That means he's scared. He's not peeing because he knows he shouldn't have it but because he knows you're upset and that makes him frightened and upset. Give him some okay things to chew on and praise him for chewing on them and if he chews on something that's not okay just gently say no, no and slowly take it away and put it where he can't get to it.

Don't forget you are much, much larger than that small dog so playing pack leader isn't necessary when it comes to puppies doing what puppies do which is chew and is something they all will outgrow doing. And I hope the only time you are putting him in his crate is for car travel or for very short periods of time when you aren't home for potty training reasons.

We took dog training classes and it was suggested for dogs who were "counter surfing" to set a mousetrap and put it next to the things you don't want them to take and the sound of it is startling and causes them to shy away from the obstacle. Also, they taught to carry a water gun and whenever the dog does something you don't want them to, squirt them repeatedly until the unwanted behavior subsides. We use a spray bottle marked "water" and squirt the dog when she is, for example, taking ornaments off the tree. It didn't take more than 2 times for her to stop going for the tree. I hope this helps.

These are slos called teddy bear puppies and are adorable we saw 2 in Florida. We gave our dogs rawhide chews regularly and plenty of puppy toys.

When my puppy gets something that she shouldn't have but she doesn't know that, I say in the sweetest tone, "Oh, what did you find? Bring it to me." I then go over and in a more firm tone say, "Drop It." Sometimes it is hard for a puppy to drop something because their teeth are small and depending on the object they can't. When that happens, I gently remove the item, praise them for giving it up and always hand them a toy that they are allowed to chew on.

Chewing is how they lose their baby teeth. This is a natural behavior that can be dealt with in a positive way. Please get some dog training books and read the suggestions. Puppy Preschool by John Ross and Barbara McKinney is excellent. The crate should never be used as punishment. Puppies will outgrow some of the behavior you are describing. Be patient in the process. If you shower him with praise, he will want to please you. If he feels afraid of you, he will become more sneaky and defiant. I would stop trying to test him at this point because it is confusing for him.

When you tell him he can't have something and then you put it near you he thinks he can have it. Just calmly put it out of sight. I have a 7 month old puppy so I can understand your frustration. She is doing very well now thanks to me following the guidance in the book. Best of luck to you and your adorable little fellow.

He's adorable. I can see he could easily be spoiled because he's so cute. I'd give him a chewie toy to play with, the kind you put kibble in and the dog will keep busy for hours getting the kibble out. It will keep him from being bored, which is a main reason for dogs getting into trouble in the house.

When my youngest dog was a pup he used to want to chew on everything too, especially when he was teething. I had tried yelling, swatting, putting nasty tasting stuff where he'd chew, nothing worked. Then I decided to try shock treatment! Not electric but shock as in startle. I gathered up a whole bunch of spray bottles that would spray a stream for as far as I could get them to spray. I filled them all up with water and set them everywhere where they'd be handy for me to grab real quick.

I also put a few milk bones and rawhides next to each bottle so they'd be handy too. Every time I'd catch him chewing, I didn't bother yelling or anything. I simply grabbed the bottle and gave him a good squirt! It startled him enough to get him to back off for a second. I took that second to offer him a milk bone or rawhide to chew on. It didn't take long at all before he was asking for his chew treats instead of chewing on the furniture and shoes, etc.

I have a little silky terrier. He is 8 and still chewing. He has spoiled some of my good rugs. I find when I am on the phone, he does it for attention. I have put some fluffy toys and a blanket in his bed. I always bring it to his attention when he chews. He knows when I say "bad dog." He got my sprinkler connection the other day and chewed it. When I told him off he put it back where he got it from. Be firm and persistent, but always show a lot of love.