Do you crate your dog?

Becles

Does anyone else look after the dog at any time?

Just wondering if she is being allowed to get away with chewing elsewhere and thinks it's ok to do it at home. EG: When my dogs stay at my parents when I'm on holiday, my Dad always takes them for a walk about 11pm at night. When we come back, I get pestered for a walk late at night for a few days until they realise I'm not going to give in!

I've crated mine since being puppies. It's not cruel as long as the crate is big enough for the dog to stand up and move around in. They door is left open when I'm home, but I shut them away at night and if there is nobody in the house. Sometimes they go in there to sleep, and they are happy to go in on a night so they do like them. If the dog is chewing badly, it will also be safer in case she chews something that can harm her like an electric cable or something that splinters in her mouth.

Also provide plenty things to chew for her to chew on as it's natural to chew.. You can buy hundereds of different chew toys in pet shops. Bob loves the sterlised bones you can buy. These are safer than normal bones, don't go smelly and they last for ages. They also keep his teeth nice and clean too.

Eels100

Melissa22_Mum wrote:

In my experience it depends on what you let doggy get away with in the daytime hours aswell. Disipline needs to be ingrained in a dog and old habits die hard.

I can see that this is going to immediately turn into an argument, so all I will say is that dogs do not eat linoleum out of spite.

Melissa22_Mum

Eels100 wrote:

I can see that this is going to immediately turn into an argument, so all I will say is that dogs do not eat linoleum out of spite.

I don't know what you mean. I never posted a reply to start an argument. I simply stated something, my opinion. We have a dog and I've had several as family pets. Ours is two and used to do the same thing there were two of them at the time. My MIL (ish) has the other dog now, and gets away with a lot, hence shes chews, whines and barks when left alone. Ours isn't perfect but does as it's told most of the time. Plus, I don't remember saying anything about dogs eating lino out of spite, so there really is no need for sarcasm!

Sorry but you've lost me on the argument thing

Toomuchdebt

I use a crate for my puppy and have found that it doesn't bother him at all.he goes in it by himself in the day if he wants to get away.I haven't tried leaving the door open yet at night as he's still under 6 months...will wait a bit longer for that-he loves chewing electric cables.

arnie&caseysma!

Hiya! Our Arnie started life out in a crate - or cage as we call it (not quite so nice!) and we took it away when he was 12 months old. He will be 3 in December and has been no probs since.

We got Casey in May when she was 5 months old. I wasnt there when OH picked her up and apparently the breeders left her cage open all night and when they got down in the morning she would usually be sleeping in it. OH could smell urine etc in the house and when we got home we would the major problem of her not being 'toilet'/house trained at 5 months old!! The only good thing was that she wouldnt dirty her cage so we had to start shutting her in when we were out the house and in bed.

Now she has started to chew but I think this is to do with her coming into her first season (the female mess is also contained on her blankets in cage which can easily be washed, and not on carpet - another plus point). She does bark in the night but usually to get let out to the toilet. She is 8 months old now and we will be trying to leave the door open again shortly - moving everything chewable!!

Our cage has been worth its weight in gold as far as we are concerned although you will probably need to heed the advice of other posters re the whining etc.

WeirdoMagnet

I think I'm right in saying that dogs start to get their adult teeth at about 5 months old, and the whole teething period can last for a few months, so some of the dogs mentioned above (not sure how old your dog is BS) may be teething! If that's the case, it's a phase they'll probably grow out of, they're just trying to get some relief by chewing. Best to redirect any chewing/mouthing onto things they can chew (but that doesn't solve your problem BS as it's only at night!).

Melissa22_Mum wrote:

In my experience it depends on what you let doggy get away with in the daytime hours aswell. Disipline needs to be ingrained in a dog and old habits die hard.

I have to disagree! The dominance theories (where people think that a dog can be 'dominant' and plans to take over the world if it can and that to prevent that you need to be 'alpha' dog and pack leader) are now widely believed to be flawed. It's more about teaching your dog/s what the boundaries are (ie what is/isn't allowed), and being consistent. If 'old habits die hard' how do you explain that dogs who have been mistreated/abused etc and end up in a rescue centre can be rehabilitated and rehomed? You can teach an old dog new tricks!

Kimberley

Black Saturn i can also give you a name of a website that will be able to help you.

black-saturn

Kimberley wrote:

Black Saturn i can also give you a name of a website that will be able to help you.

Thanks I got that PM.

black-saturn

My dog is 11 months old and is a cross between a Yorkshire Terrier and a Patterdale Terrier and is the smallest dog you have ever seen in your life. During the day she is really well behaved. The only time I have trouble with her is when someone visits she barks all the while. I have a bottle of stones which I shake when she's being naughty and that usually shuts her up. She goes out for a walk almost every day and is playing in the yard most of the rest of the time. This morning I woke up to find that she had ripped up a load of polystyrene and I don't know where the heck she got it from, and it was like snow all over the place.

I'm going to go out and buy a crate today and get her used to it slowly.

WeirdoMagnet

black-saturn wrote:

My dog is 11 months old and is a cross between a Yorkshire Terrier and a Patterdale Terrier and is the smallest dog you have ever seen in your life. During the day she is really well behaved. The only time I have trouble with her is when someone visits she barks all the while. I have a bottle of stones which I shake when she's being naughty and that usually shuts her up. She goes out for a walk almost every day and is playing in the yard most of the rest of the time. This morning I woke up to find that she had ripped up a load of polystyrene and I don't know where the heck she got it from, and it was like snow all over the place.

I'm going to go out and buy a crate today and get her used to it slowly.

Has she always chewed stuff or is it more recent? Although it's impossible for me to say, I reckon she's teething.

If she barks when someone visits, you might be better off rewarding her when she's quiet (even if just for a second), rather than shaking the bottle of stones. By barking she's just telling you/the visitor that she's not happy with the situation. Shaking the stones may stop the barking, but it's not stopping what she's feeling - scared/worried/protective. Better off teaching her that visitors are a good thing, by them dropping treats for her and building up to strokes etc when she's more relaxed.

Kimberley - can you post the name of the website, or is it secret?! :shhh: