3 Year Old Lab - Chewing

[killerz298]

I have a lab who is turning 3 at the end of this month. He STILL doesn't know (or doesn't care) what is his and what is not. I assume part of it is because he doesn't get enough exercise but changing that is just not an option right now.

Whenever we leave the house we leave him gated in a decent sized kitchen (where his crate is) because he can't be trusted not to get into trouble and I don't want to pay a $3000 vet bill. We have to put up folding chairs blocking just about every wall, counter, and the table because if we don't he grabs stuff off and shreds it. He has clawed the walls since he was a puppy so I have tape covering the spots so the drywall doesn't crumble any further. If I leave it unblocked, he will usually pull the tape off the wall but won't do any further digging (at least the last 2 times I tried to leave the chairs down.)

As for around the house when we are home he is usually pretty good. He will go weeks without an issue but all of a sudden something always happens. We have a pretty steady routine and I don't know what triggers him. For example, my mother usually leaves first in the morning while I am still getting ready for work. She says goodbye to him, gives him a treat and then leaves. Then he usually stays downstairs until I come down and leave. Most of the time he is fine but sometimes I walk downstairs and find a roll of socks shredded or today he had nibbled on a sandal. They say that dogs don't know or don't remember that they did something wrong but I don't believe that. EVERY TIME he does something bad he acts like it. Before I even see the sock or sandal or shredded paper (so it can't be a reaction to my body language) he sulks his head, acts very submissive, and doesn't get up to follow me (as he ALWAYS does when someone walks past him.)

In any event, is there any way (besides more exercise) that I can curb this behavior? Besides the damage to the house and possessions, I am worried for his safety and potential vet bills.

 

[Zoom]

What is your reaction when you find something shredded or torn up? Dogs don't remember easily that "doing this is wrong" but do know how to associate the behavior of people with certain triggers, such as shredded socks on the floor.

You have a 3 year old Lab. They are smart and very high energy. YOU HAVE TO EXERCISE THEM. If you know that lack of exercise is part of the issue, then you've got your answer right there. Find a way to exercise him more. Mental stimulation is just as tiring, if not more, than physical exercise. Teach him a bunch of obedience and tricks. Learning to "shake" might seem like a worthless trick, but it's still teaching them something.

I still can't stress enough how important a good run is for these dogs. I had a foster Lab for awhile and the amount of damage she caused was directly correlated to the amount of exercise she got that day. Even at 5 years old, she was trouble if she hadn't gotten properly worn out. When I had a couple days of working double shifts at a restaurant and couldn't take her to the park, she learned how to open my fridge.

Hire a dog walker to take him out during the day, enroll him in doggy daycare, something like that if your family can't commit to giving this dog what he NEEDS. Labs are not dogs that do well with being bored, as you've found out.

 

[MicksMom]

Sorry, this is going to be blunt. The solution is simple- crate your dog when no one is home.

 

[4dogs3cats]

Sorry, this is going to be blunt. The solution is simple- crate your dog when no one is home.

I agree with that. if he doesnt know how to behave yet, he doesnt deserve the freedom.

Yeah hes 3, but hes a lab, so he is still young and energetic.

And like Zoom said, if every time you find something he did wrong, you get upset, hes going to associate the ACT with your reaction. he knows you get mad, but he doesnt know WHY

 

[killerz298]

Sorry, this is going to be blunt. The solution is simple- crate your dog when no one is home.

Well I would rather just leave the chairs up over crating him. If the chairs are up there is no way he can cause problems (and he doesn't.) I don't think it would be good mentally or physically for a 3 year old lab to be stuck in the crate a good part of the day.

As for how I react when he did something wrong, I read that instead of getting mad at the dog, get mad at the object he destroyed as to associate that the object is bad. So I scream and yell and smack the object etc...

The kitchen situation I understand as he is bored and needs exercise when we aren't home so he does things to entertain himself. That makes sense. As for the other times when we are home I just don't get it. The sandals this morning for example have been in the same spot on the floor for almost 2 months now. He has not had an issue with it until this morning. This morning wasn't really any different than any other. The same thing happened with a roll of socks a month ago in the morning. My mother left, I was getting ready, and walked down to the socks in the middle of the floor with a small small piece taken out of it (thank god he doesn't get too carried away.)

The exercise, I know I need to work on but I was wondering if there was perhaps some other tips or tricks that might help as well. I am moving out with him soon anyway (and I keep a much tidier house than my parents) so that should be some relief but I would still like to fix the underlying issue.

 

[Zoom]

Start redirecting him to things he CAN have...Nylabones, Kongs stuffed with peanut butter/kibble, things like that. Labs love to chew, as you've seen. So when you find him chewing on something he's not supposed to, trade him for something he can chew on to his hearts content. Same thing when you leave him during the day; give him interactive toys so he can entertain himself.

 

[killerz298]

Start redirecting him to things he CAN have...Nylabones, Kongs stuffed with peanut butter/kibble, things like that. Labs love to chew, as you've seen. So when you find him chewing on something he's not supposed to, trade him for something he can chew on to his hearts content. Same thing when you leave him during the day; give him interactive toys so he can entertain himself.

He goes through the hardest level of nylabone like crazy. He has about 7 or so in his toy box right now. It didn't take him long to figure out how to destroy a red OR black kong for that matter either. I used to give it to him when he was a pup until he figure out how to eat it and he was pooping out kong for about a week. So far I haven't found anything that he can't destroy. He sure is determined!

 

[smkie]

Have no answers for you but i have known some serious distructo labs. HOpefully he will out grow it. If your not home there isn't much you can do. A lab can go through anything. I know one that went through the side of a trialer.

 

[lizzybeth727]

Well I would rather just leave the chairs up over crating him. If the chairs are up there is no way he can cause problems (and he doesn't.) I don't think it would be good mentally or physically for a 3 year old lab to be stuck in the crate a good part of the day.

I understand why you would think this, but for most of the day he's probably sleeping anyway. He is certainly not exercising or really using all of the space that you are giving him, so it's not going to be a whole lot different to him to be in a crate all day. But it will prevent those occasional problems that you have. Since chewing is so self-reinforcing to him, he will not learn not to do it unless he just forgets that it's an option. So if you prevent him from being able to do it while you are gone, and he doesn't do it while you're home, eventually he should forget about it altogether. At this point he has earned the right to be out of the crate during the day.

As for how I react when he did something wrong, I read that instead of getting mad at the dog, get mad at the object he destroyed as to associate that the object is bad. So I scream and yell and smack the object etc...

I would not do this. I have never heard of this method and clearly it is not working for you anyway. Many dogs are so sensitive that they don't want you to be mad at all - whether you're mad at the dog, mad at another family member, or mad at a random object, the dog doesn't care, he just wants you to be happy. So I would guess that yelling at the object is still punishing for your dog. Instead, try to stay completely calm, and trade him the object for another toy or some treats, to teach him that it's good to let you have his "toys."

The exercise, I know I need to work on but I was wondering if there was perhaps some other tips or tricks that might help as well. I am moving out with him soon anyway (and I keep a much tidier house than my parents) so that should be some relief but I would still like to fix the underlying issue.

Yep. Crate him while you're gone to prevent the behaviors from happening; supervise him while you are home to prevent the behaviors from happening; and increase the amount of exercise and mental stimulation he gets every day.

He goes through the hardest level of nylabone like crazy. He has about 7 or so in his toy box right now. It didn't take him long to figure out how to destroy a red OR black kong for that matter either. I used to give it to him when he was a pup until he figure out how to eat it and he was pooping out kong for about a week. So far I haven't found anything that he can't destroy. He sure is determined!

Have you tried raw bones? He'll be able to eat them, but they'll keep him busy for a while and they're perfectly safe to eat.

 

[killerz298]

Have you tried raw bones? He'll be able to eat them, but they'll keep him busy for a while and they're perfectly safe to eat.

Are you talking about REAL animal bones or something else? I thought giving dogs real bones were dangerous as they could splinter?

 

[Lolas Dad]

I would setup some kind of video camera that can record his actions when your gone. This will give you a better idea of when the destruction starts. Also you might want to have a camera setup when your home and make like your leaving but go to a remote monitor that the camera has. Have a baby monitor set up but instead of having the receiver as you normally would have the transmitter and then when he is doing something wrong and you see it then you could re-direct his attention to something else.

Also by getting him on video you will be able to tell if it is SA or just boredom. If it is SA it will start usually within a few minutes of you leaving and will be accompanied by barking or crying.

If you can't do the video than a digital audio recorder would suffice for being able to know if he is barking or crying and you can tell how long it is before he starts barking or crying if he is when you leave. I did the audio with Lola because she had SA and as time went on the barking stopped along with the crying. I started out with her by leaving her for a few seconds, then minutes and then hours and a room at a time until I was able to stand outside the entry door. After that I would leave in my truck, just around the block at first and made that longer periods also.

The first time I left her alone and not in a crate because I did not have one was for a few hours and I came home to a shredded carpet right behind the bedroom door that I had her in with the door closed.

 

[killerz298]

I would setup some kind of video camera that can record his actions when your gone.

I did this when he was a puppy. At that point in time destruction happened the instant I was out of sight. I also figured out why there were little brown marks on the kitchen floor. Turns out someone was crapping in the house and eating it. I was planning on setting it back up to view him now but just never got around to it. I will certainly make this a priority. I am pretty sure there is no barking or crying. I am pretty sure it is boredom.

 

[smkie]

YOU can hide treats..make a game of it. A friend of mine had a gerbil in a tank with a wheel..kept his dog seriously amused. Hamsters not so much, but mice work well too, nice and active. You would have to make sure there is no way the dog could get to it. GEt a neighbor to babysit...i suggest this and almost no one does it but i know alot of seniors that could use some extra grocery money and the company would do them good. When my pointer was young and totally impossible i took him to a field and ran him hard at dawn. An hour of running to start the day makes for a very good dog all afternoon. I could never walk him enough to tire him out but by the time i walked across this field, he had looped around a mile's worth or more.

 

[Doberluv]

That behavior is caused by extreme bordom. Your dog needs much, much more exercise; physical and mental. Obedience training a few short times a day at least and some good, hard exercise. That and some appropriate chew toys which are safe. Being left alone for long stretches can stress a dog out big time and cause destructive behavior as well. If those needs can not be taken care of by your family, then he will not likely "grow" out of it. He's already grown.

 

[Dreeza]

Do you have a backyard at all? I know giving a lab enough exercise is time consuming, but when I'm short of time w/my dog, he gets the ball thrown for him a few times & it poops him out a lot faster than just a walk. I spend prob 3-5 mins in the morning doing that...prob not enough for your dog, BUT, better than nothing. Also, if he has issues w/dropping the ball, than just arm yourself w/like 3 balls & just continuously throw them whenever he comes back (hehe, this is what I do when I'm REALLY short on time & dont have time for the 10 mins it takes for my dog to stop chewing on the ball)

I was in the pet store yesterday & saw antlers...like, deer antlers...I didn't ask about them cause just one little one was like $8, but I would imagine if they cost that much, they are prob pretty tough...just a thought. THey also had those games where you stuff treats inside a toy & its a puzzle to get them out...def occupying.

Also, I saw Victoria Stilwell (from animal planet) use an automatic toy dispenser once...a new toy would come out every few hours...it was pretty cool.

best of luck!

 

[killerz298]

Do you have a backyard at all? I know giving a lab enough exercise is time consuming, but when I'm short of time w/my dog, he gets the ball thrown for him a few times & it poops him out a lot faster than just a walk. I spend prob 3-5 mins in the morning doing that...prob not enough for your dog, BUT, better than nothing. Also, if he has issues w/dropping the ball, than just arm yourself w/like 3 balls & just continuously throw them whenever he comes back (hehe, this is what I do when I'm REALLY short on time & dont have time for the 10 mins it takes for my dog to stop chewing on the ball)

I take him out back and he will bring the ball back about 3-4 times before he gets bored and then he starts roaming around the backyard eating plants (which is why he isn't allowed out there alone.) I used to run with him, about 2 or so miles, and that seemed to help tire him out. I haven't been feeling well so I haven't been out with him for a run in awhile, only walking. Hopefully I will be able to run him again soon for both our sake.

They also had those games where you stuff treats inside a toy & its a puzzle to get them out...def occupying.

Also, I saw Victoria Stilwell (from animal planet) use an automatic toy dispenser once...a new toy would come out every few hours...it was pretty cool.

I tried those treat dispenser toys with him but I wouldn't trust him alone with it. The square cube one he slams around the kitchen like a crazy man. He slams it into cabinets and anything else that gets in his way. Knowing the treats are in there drives him insane! He does the same thing with the round ball one but that one he figured out that he could continuously jam his tooth into the plastic piece that pops out to put the treats in and eventually break it off the toy so all the treats fall out. Stupid he certainly is not! I still let him play with these toys, but only when I am home to "keep it moving."

Do any of you guys have experience with doggy treadmills? I am thinking that if I can get him going on one of those I can certainly tire him house more so than I can do running with him (as I will always tire out before he will.) This is great for rainy days as well as the winter months when I can't take him out running due to ice/snow.

 

[Dizzy]

Sorry, this is going to be blunt. The solution is simple- crate your dog when no one is home.

Sorry this is going to be blunt.

What a crap answer.

The dog is acting out because it isn't exercised enough (we/they presume).

Crating does nothing except stop him being able to chew. It doesn't solve ANYTHING.

If anything the dog gets LESS exercise (even pacing the kitchen), and LESS mental stimulation (sniffing about his room) than before.

That is not a solution, it is a COP OUT. And a lazy and sad occurance that happens ALL too much.

 

[Dizzy]

Oh and on the bones - yes you can give RAW (uncooked) bones.

Get them from your butcher - a knuckle bone is always good.

Though personally I like to supervise because a bone is a bone...