Q: I have a one-year old male who chews
everything in sight. I have a brand new home and he has made holes
in the wall, chewed every corner in my house, and torn and eaten my
carpet. The list goes on and on. Any suggestions?
A:
Most More information is needed in order
to formulate a step-by-step behavior modification program for your
puppy. Here are a few of the many possibilities:
Boredom. If your puppy is bored, he might be
self-employed to keep himself busy;
Physical problem. He might have a physical problem
contributing to this issue;
Stress. His environment might be stressful in some
way. This could relate to other animals in the family, whether or
not he is neutered, other dogs in the neighborhood, new
construction, new home, the list is endless.
A professional, positive trainer can help evaluate the situation and
design an appropriate behavior modification program. Go to
www.APDT.com
and/or www.NADOI.com for trainers
in your area. Most of these trainers use positive methods so
interview him or her before hiring. He or she will address the cause
rather than the symptom and help you resolve the problem. Your vet
can examine him to rule out any physiological problems.
That being said, the first thing I suggest is to set up your
environment so it is impossible for him to do his self-employed
“home decorator” routine, that is, chewing everything up. Make sure
that only appropriate chew items are accessible to him and teach him
to really value those items. A trainer can show you how.
More exercise is definitely called for. A tired dog has less energy
to spend demolishing a house. A strong, but positive leadership
program must be initiated. Positive training is rooted in teaching a
dog what to do instead of trying to teach him to stop doing
something. What would you like him to do instead? If you don't know,
he won't be able to figure it out either.
Also, there are some excellent books and DVDs available to help.
Those include of course, my new book, The Puppy
Whisperer, and DVD, The Dog Whisperer .
Basically, your dog has too much freedom, not enough structured
exercise, and doesn't have a clue as to what you would like him TO
DO. To sum it all up …he's a puppy.
Very best wishes!
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