Stop My Dog From Chewing My Stuff - 5 Tips

By Lisa Gold

Most dogs have a natural desire to chew, and that's not a bad thing unless they're chewing on your favorite pair of shoes and leaving teeth marks on the legs of your dining room table. Why do dogs chew? They may be anxious or bored, or both. Here are 5 dog training tips on how to stop your dog from chewing:

1. Dog-proof your home. Your dog can certainly learn not to chew on your stuff but why put temptation in their path, especially while they're still young and in training?



When deciding if your things are safely out of reach, take into account the height of your dog and whether he will jump up on furniture in order to get something.



Dogs love your:

pillows

candles

shoes

garbage

cell phone

remote controls

garbage

socks

books

garbage



2. Don't allow your dog to taste the forbidden fruit. It's better to train him from the start regarding what's chewable and what isn't - before they get attached to the particular taste of your shoes or couch pillow.



3. Don't confuse your dog. Don't let him chew some old household items such as old shoes or old towels, but not others. He won't understand the rules of this game. Hmm... why is this sock okay? Maybe all socks are okay now?



4. Let him chew. Since your dog loves to chew, give him owner-approved chew toys so he'll hopefully leave your things alone. Put a couple of safe choices out for him, and rotate the toys to keep things interesting.



5. Supervise your dog's playtime. It might be tempting to keep your dog penned up and in the "safe zone" until he's old enough to stop chewing everything in sight, but how boring for him. He needs the chance to explore and learn his boundaries and your expectations. He needs to have the chance to learn right and wrong while spending time with you.



It's perfectly natural for your dog to like to chew, especially if he's under 3 years old. Keep that in mind and put your most valuable possessions out of reach until he understands the rules. Be consistent with correcting him when he starts chewing on the wrong thing. Catch him in the act and replace it with an acceptable chew toy. When he's chewing the acceptable toy, heap on the praise to help him understand. With these tips in mind, you should be able to train him on what's appropriate to chew.

Want to stop dog from chewing? Got other dog behavior problems? It's about time you checked out http://dogintraining.info Be sure to sign up for your free ecourse too!