New to the forum and need advice ASAP :confused: Our little Zoey is about 6 months old and we've had her for about a month and a half now. We dont know her background other than she had been at the pet store for just over a month when we bought her. Its been going on for awhile, but she has been chewing on the corner of walls and doors, we tried the bittering agent, and that seemed to help for awhile. But she is back at it as well as pulling up the carpet.:mad: And since we live in an apartment we cant really have this happening. She's by herself for no more than four hours at a time while I work/go to school. And when we are home she is always getting attention from my husband or I... ANY advice is welcome at this point! |
As a young pup it sounds like she has found chewing on your house and tearing up your carpet a way to entertain herself while you guys are away. I would recommend finding some chew toys that she likes while you are away. Make sure she is always exercised. That way she will want to take naps while you're gone. Perhaps you might want to consider crate training her? Or creating an area of the house with a playpen that you keep her in when you are away. To prevent free roam of the house and potential destruction of things. And try and correct her bad habits the second they occur.... I've only owned one destructive dog before ... and she only did it while she was a puppy (under a year) ... and so I had to crate her while I was away to prevent house destruction. Hope that helps. If even a little. |
at 6 months she should still be confined to an xpen while you guys are out, for her and yours peace of mind and her safety. get an xpen, big enogh for her bed, pee pee pad and her food and water, she should be supervised when she is out until she learns boundries. the more space a puppy have, the more destructive it gets is curiosity, inmagine a 2 year old home alone wondering thru the house. best of luck, let me know if you have any specific questions.. hugs, |
This doesn't necessarily mean something is wrong with her...she's probably just bored..Do u keep her in an enclosed room? Pheraps she is just trying to get out? I ask because we were keeping Sebi in my daughters walk-in closet for the first few months with a baby gate on the door and he did the same thing..He ripped the carpet up from every corner and clawed the wall where the door opening is. We also live in an apartment so it sucks that we will prob end up losing our deposit because of it. Get her some chew toys and crate her. It's the only thing that worked for me. I know it breaks your heart to put them in a cage while your gone but, it doesn't hurt them one bit and it helps a lot with disciplining. |
Yeah, I'd agree with Clyde_Dexter. The first thing I look at when there's destructive behavior is their level of exercise. A tired dog is a good dog. Some claim that Yorkies don't need exercise beyond what they get in the house and the yard, but I've found they certainly benefit from it. And definitely experiment with healthy alternatives for her to chew on. Kongs stuffed with a treat work for some. I recently discovered Himalayan chews. A little pricy, but they last forever and my dogs love them. I understand they're a real hard cheese, but it takes the dogs forever to wear it down so I'm not worried about them eating too much cheese. Mine LOVE bully sticks, and they're relatively safe if you take them away when they get too small to avoid swallowing. But they don't last as long. Good luck. |
Hi and Welcome to YT. I agree with everything above. Also, at 6 months, she's probably still teething somewhat so I would definitely keep her confined to an area that she won't destroy something (IMO, an xpen would be best). And get plenty of safe chew toys...I echo the large bully stick (no small ones..especially without you there to watch) and nylabones are good. Hang in there..it's a puppy..the chewing will ease up as she gets older :) |
Hello and welcome to YT. I basically think that everyone has hit the points. Good luck |
Welcome to YT. I agree with everybody's else |
Thanks for the advice, I greatly appreciate it! While I am out we have a play pen and keep her in our kitchen for easy clean up of any messes. We have several different types of raw hides for her to chew on because she seems to really like them and we rotate them out as far as which ones she gets. As far as exercise, I take her out for walks at least 2 times a day and then the potty trips outside on top of that. She is pretty well kennel trained as far as potty inside though. I will definately try the other recommendations though as far as things to chew on! |
Just a note - rawhide chews aren't really good for them (even my vet says so). They can break off in small pieces and get stuck in their throats. Also, they can stop up their intestines (they don't digest down). Mine like them too but when my vet told me this, I had to put them out of the house. |
[QUOTE=carmen in nj;4077030]at 6 months she should still be confined to an xpen while you guys are out, for her and yours peace of mind and her safety. get an xpen, big enogh for her bed, pee pee pad and her food and water, she should be supervised when she is out until she learns boundries. the more space a puppy have, the more destructive it gets is curiosity, inmagine a 2 year old home alone wondering thru the house. :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup: That was probably her only source of pleasurable entertainment in the cage at the pet store....so while you are not there to entertain her, she manages to do so herself! Like Carmen says, "a 2 year old, home alone"!! She needs an ex-pen set up like explaned above...dont just baby gate her off in a small area....she will chew up your walls/cabinets/furniture/electric cords/couch cushions/window sills/, etc!!! |
Oh not just boredom they also chew up things from anxiety too, I know because I have mastered the art of filling holes in the wall with plaster lol And if yours is wild like mine make sure the xpen is secured or has a way to lock the sides!! Guinness would put his nose in the corner of his push it all over the house while we were gone trying to pull all kind of stuff through the holes in the pen. |
Many vets discourage the use of rawhide chews. They can be a choking hazard and they also cause a lot of blockages in the digestive system. Sometimes they just sit in the stomach undigested and have to be surgically removed. I have heard some dogs love the Himalayan chews. Gracie is a big fan of the Bully Sticks but you need to buy good quality if you use those. I buy her the 12" length from Best Bully. That way I just throw them away when they get to be about 4 inches. She was a destructive chewer until I found out about the bully sticks. I was afraid she was going to hurt herself because she would steal things and go off and chew. |
Sounds like a puppy. I would keep her in a play pen with a bottom and make sure she has lots of things to chew on but none of them rawhide because rawhide will cause blockages. Also in the future please don't but puppy's from pet stores because they come from puppy mills and those are terrible places and buying one of there pups keeps them in business. |
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