What A Night AND A Day!

[savvy_sniper]

Hubby and I went out for a few hours yesterday evening and when we got home the two youngest dogs (Zeus & Betsy) had broken a window. The dogs were not hurt and there was no blood. Just lots of glass to clean up and a window to tape up.

This morning Zeus, the canine garbage disposal threw up all over the comforter I had just washed and dried, the living room rug, our bed, the bed skirt, the carpet, on the dog crate, and in the dog crate. I have spent the majority of the day washing and drying all the bed clothes and shampooing the carpet.

The vet was already closed when this started. He is feeling okay and drank some water and kept it down. He has been sleeping and will get rice and chicken broth for dinner.

His breakfast was undigested and there were pieces of a chip clip, rubber and fuzz from a tennis ball, a little bit of grass and God knows what else. I call him the canine garbage disposal.

Last weekend he jumped up on a chair and pulled my Harley cap off a shelf and demolished it. He also chewed up a neoprene sunglasses case with my BRAND NEW ONLY WORN ONCE prescription motorcycle riding goggles. Luckily I was able to order new frames and the prescription lenses snap in and out under the tinted lenses.

He is two years old! He had been adopted from the SPCA and returned for chewing prior to me adopting him. I have had him over a year and he is getting worse instead of better. He will be going back in the crate when we leave the house.

This was NOT the way I planned to spend my day!

[Contrary Housewife]

Chewing and destructive behavior can be a sign of anxiety in dogs. Here's some tips from "the dog whisperer" website. (I am copying them because google thinks it is an infected virus-spreading site and it is a pain to navigate with security pop ups)

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5 Tips for Separation Anxiety

You come home from a long day at work to a spinning, jumping whirlwind of energy. Your dog follows you into your living room, where you find that he has chewed on your favorite pair of shoes. Your neighbor comes by to tell you that, once again, your dog has been driving the neighborhood crazy by howling and barking while you were away. Is this scenario familiar? Your dog may be suffering from separation anxiety.

In nature, dogs are almost never away from their pack. It is our job to help make this unnatural situation less stressful!

Before you leave, go for a walk. Start the day by providing vigorous exercise. Then reward your dog's calm-submissive energy with food and water. Some dogs may need to rest before eating, but all dogs can benefit from hydration. The idea is to leave your dog in quiet, resting mode while you are away.

No touch, no talk, no eye contact. Don't make a big deal when you leave for the day or when you return. This way, you are communicating to your dog that the time apart is no big deal. It's just business as usual! Depending on the severity of the case, you may need to practice the rule for five minutes or up to an hour before you leave and when you get back.

Say goodbye long before you leave. Having trouble practicing "no touch, no talk, no eye contact"? Take a moment to share affection and tell your dog that you will miss him way before you actually leave. Keep in mind that this display is for you - not your dog! Your dog won't have his feelings hurt if you didn't say goodbye.

Stay calm and assertive! When you are ready to go to work, leave those guilty, nervous, and concerned feelings behind. Instead, let your dog know that everything is going to be okay by projecting the confident energy of a pack leader.

Start out small. Leave your dog alone for five minutes. Then, extend the time to twenty minutes; then an hour. Continue to increase the time you spend away until you can leave for a full eight hours with no problem!
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[madhen]

Ah, flashbacks of Riley's terrible two's are coming at me left and right. I think his age is interesting, because Riley was a chewing terror until a little after two years old, so there may be hope for you. Riley had a penchant for chewing electronics, but basically anything left where he could get to it was fair game. He even dug up my underground sprinkler system and chewed through the PVC pipe. I came home to a geyser in my yard. He chewed through the trunks of three mature grape vines I was training to go up over my back porch trellis. He ate my handheld radio, my t.v. remote, my cell phone...you name it. Many a time there was that I looked him square in those soft brown eyes and said, "Now I know why you ended up at the pound!!"

I'll second the "go for a walk" advice. Even if you can't go very far, due to time or circumstance, it will really help them to burn up energy. When I lived in a suburban area, I took Riley for an off-leash walk every day, and tried to take him on-leash around the neighborhood as well. Someone once told me that dog walks are the dogs way of "reading the paper," or finding out what was going on around them through smells. It exercises them physically AND mentally. Riley is a major leash-puller, so I bought a Halti, and it was magical. Walks were suddenly fun! (Well, for me.)

I also recently found that giving Crash (lab pup) a Buster Cube keeps him busy for a LONG time. He has to roll it around to get it to release kibble. You can just see his little dog brain working it out. Of course, I have to listen to a rigid plastic cube being abused on a hardwood floor for half an hour or so.

As for the vomiting, I found that if you brew up a little peppermint tea, and let it cool, then give it to them via oral syringe, it really helps their stomachs to calm down.

[frugalwarrior2]

He sounds "bored" so he's definately finding ways to entertain himself. All the time I was reading I was thinking "crate", Crate him but he really sounds like he needs more attention too.
My shepard is very tall and can reach things off bar. She steals packages of buns. She is not a good liar though because she hides on the stairs w/ a guilty look before I even know whats happened.LOL

[MTS04]

Do you have all of his toys out? If so, try cycling them. believe it or not, they get bored with toys if they are all out. Cycle them week after week. Frozen stuffed Kongs, jumbo nylabones, bully sticks, these all make good chew toys.

If you visit Veterinary Partner.com, they have helpful articles to read. You can click the behavior tab, and type in Chewing, the first article is destructive chewing.

Now, onto the vomiting. If your dog vomits again or has diarheah, but is really straining to go, he could have a blockage. If that's the case, run, don't walk to your vet.

[frugalfranny]

He will be going back in the crate when we leave the house.

The crate training is the best thing I did with my dogs. They both go in their own crates whenever I leave the house. They get a 'treat' with it but that is it.

[savvy_sniper]

Zeus kept down his rice and chicken broth last night and kept looking for more food. So I gave him a little bit of dried food. He kept that down also.

This morning he didn't want to go outside to do his business he WANTED to eat! So he got his normal portion of dry food and kept that down. He is back to normal.

He is a hyper dog. He get TWO walks a day, toys are cycled in and out, etc. He is a smart dog and has learned to do all sorts of tricks and commands. He is an aggressive chewer.

We try to keep things put up and out of his reach. He will torn up several rubber backed rugs, but doesn't both the two sided chenille rugs. He ate hubby's brand new cell phone (hubby left it on the coffee table and was outside for less than 15 minutes).

We started out leaving him for short periods of time and working up. You just never know when he will "spaz out". He even does it when we are around. You can see it in his eyes!

We love him, we are dealing, and I know it will get better.

[madhen]

He sounds a lot like Riley. One thing I've learned about since (but didn't have/think of when Riley was in his "Destructor" phase) was putting him on a treadmill. I have a friend who has purebred AmStaffs, and she doesn't like walking them out in the neighborhood, because a LOT of people let their dogs run loose, and she knows that even if the other dog attacks hers, everyone is going to blame the "pitbull" for the problem. So she walks her dogs on a treadmill in the backyard to wear them out and give them their exercise. Most dogs take to it pretty readily.

Recently, I heard an interesting training tip that I am trying with the new pup in my household. It is not feeding the dog his meals from a bowl. All meals are delivered via an interactive toy (in my case, a Buster Cube). This works out the dog's energy in a positive way, and wears him out physically AND mentally.

It sounds like you are doing a lot already, and I sympathize - TRUST ME, I SYMPATHIZE!! If it makes you feel any more optimistic, Riley still tears apart any boxes or packages I accidentally leave within his reach, but he hasn't eaten a cell phone in years. Another friend of mine who pet-sits for a living says that two years old is when most dogs start to go from being "children" to adults.

[frugalfranny]

Recently, I heard an interesting training tip that I am trying with the new pup in my household. It is not feeding the dog his meals from a bowl. All meals are delivered via an interactive toy (in my case, a Buster Cube). This works out the dog's energy in a positive way, and wears him out physically AND mentally.

Interesting concept MH.........how is it going? I might try that with my little black girl.......give her something to do. She isn't destructive (and THANK GOD didn't stay in that mode very long).......she just gets BORED! But is a chow hound!

Does petco/petsmart carry this item?

Gees........savvy......I admire you! Such patience you have!

[madhen]

Other than the annoying sound of a rigid plastic toy being knocked around the hardwood floor for 40 minutes or so, it is going great. I started him with a much easier toy, a round ball that was easier to roll. The Buster Cube is actually cube-shaped, and the kibble falls into a "maze" inside of it, so sometimes the dog has to roll it around a bit before the kibble falls out the hole. It took a few rolls to teach Crash, but they can smell the food in there, so they are motivated to learn. Now he just knocks that thing around like mad - sometimes looks like a crazed soccer player as he shoves it around.

I got my Buster Cube from Petsmart. I think you can get them on-line. Another REALLY cool dog site is www.fetchdog.com. Just type "interactive" in their search engine, and about a dozen such toys will come up.

I suspect, after looking at some of the toys available and how/why they work, you could make your own interactive toys. Anything that makes the dog have to work for his food helps. I've read about mixing kibble with canned pumpkin and freezing it in a Kong, and I take used marrow bones and fill them with pb and freeze them, so basically, you can go very low-budget. With Crash and his puppy chewing, I take ripped up stuffed animals and stuff kibble rolled up in a washcloth inside the "carcass." That way, as he pulls the washcloth out, he gets a piece of kibble, as well.

(If you do the Kong or marrow bone thing, I don't recommend it on carpet - eww.)

Just be sure that you factor the extra kibble into his daily calorie count. Just like with people, treats aren't calorie-free!!

[thefrug]

sounds like someone needs to have his butt whooped on when he does this sort of thing. His momma would've nipped him good to teach him and since we, their human parents can't nip them, we need to whoop on their butts. One good one on the rear, and with a STERN,loud commanding voice saying NO!, and he'll learn.
Listen, I wuv my puppy wuppies as much as anyone can, but when they were little, and they did wrong, they got their butts smacked once and informed of their wrong-doing. Now, all I have to ask them is if they want their azzes smacked. LOL They stop what they're doing and move away from it.
Sounds like that poor pup wasn't raised right to begin with and you need to do the job. Lots of love and hugs and play and also lots of discipline with consistency. It works. I may be strict about what I will and will not put up with ( pertains to humans too), but my pups are always happy to see me and they are well taken care of. You can look at them to see that.

[madhen]

I prefer the old dog trainer's adage that if your puppy chews up something you didn't want him to chew, or piddles on the floor, or otherwise does something he shouldn't, you should get a newspaper, roll it up tight, and then give yourself a whack for not giving him an environment in which he can succeed.

In other words, I am a strong advocate of positive reinforcement. I won't say I have never yelled at my dog, but I don't hit him.