Put An End to Your Dogs Furniture Chewing Habits

By Venice Marriott

If your dog is tearing holes in the settee, chewing up the carpet or leaving ugly teeth marks in the table and chairs, you'll already know that its far too costly a problem to pay no attention to!

Unfortunately, chewing is ordinary dog behavior and it's impractical to expect them to stop chewing completely. For a start, chewing is vital to a puppy's development, helping to relieve teething pain and enable their teeth to come in to place. And, while a dog's drive to chew decreases with age, it might not go away, so the absolute best you can shoot for is to keep the dog chewing away from your furniture and focussed on other items, like their own chew toys!

A Two-Step Approach to Stop Your Dog Chewing the Furniture

Your first step is to take instant action to restrict any farther damage, while you come to grips with the second step, that may take a little longer. Step 2 involves observing your dog carefully to identify the reasons why your dog is chewing the furniture, so that you can take the right actions to stop the chewing issues and permit you to trust your dog again.

Limit the Damage Due to Dog Chewing

Start by taking some of these easy steps to restrict the damage caused by your dog's chewing.

- Don't let your dog have unmonitored access to furniture they can chew. This means don't allow them to be in a room without anyone there to keep an eye on them.
- When you go out, limit their access to a room which has nothing in it they can damage, or utilise a dog crate or dog house run.
- Use baby gates to stop your dog accessing areas where you can not trust them, eg the dining room.
- You can try spraying furniture with chewing deterrents like Bitter Apple spray, which must be re-applied continually. Feedback indicates this does not work for all dogs as some don't appear to be worried by the taste. Remember also that it will not actually teach your dog not to chew furniture, just not that bit of furniture!
- Supply your dog with items that are hard enough and safe to chew. Many toys are all to easily gnawed to pieces and can be dangerous if they chew bits off and swallow them, so be careful what you give them.

Get to the Roots of the Dogs Chewing Problem

Your dog's chewing issues can be driven by numerous different factors, so observe your dog carefully and try and work out what lies behind your dogs chewing, before deciding how you're going to stop it.

Separation Anxiety in Dogs

If your dog is only chewing things when you are out, it is possible that your dog is suffering with separation anxiety. The process of chewing will help the dog produce natural endorphins that eases their tension down, (a bit like someone chewing on their nails when nervous).

Dog separation anxiety training is the most often recommended way to get rid of this problem and can be especially effective when coupled with teaching your dog that you are the pack leader. With extremely worried dogs you may need to consider using some dog separation anxiety medication, but you should always discuss this with your vet first.

Dog Teething Problems

Puppy teething lasts till around 7 months and a puppy's chewing will helps ease pain, remove and loosen young dog teeth and help adult teeth erupt, so if your dog is at this stage, provide lots of suitable chewing toys and give them one of those each time you see them approaching furniture or catch them in the act of gnawing at your furniture. Praise them for chewing their own toys.

Chewing for teething reasons can last up to 1 year, with adolescent dogs attempting to ease the discomfort in their gums or jaw till all adult teeth have arrived.

Attention Seeking in Dogs

Some dogs use chewing as a method to get their owner's to pay them attention. For example, if he starts chewing on a chair leg and you react by shouting or maybe chasing him, he's worked out how it's possible to get your attention each time he needs it, and if you chase him he has also got a good game!

To stop this habit, don't pay your dog any attention for this behavior. You could try leaving the room he is in and getting out of his sight line, to show him that not only will he not get your attention but loses you altogether.

If your dog is trying to get your attention, then at about that time, he is highly likely to stop chewing and come after you. Equally, you can take your dog by the collar and without chatting to, or looking your dog in the eye, put them on their own for a short while in a crate, or room alone. This also shows them that they could lose the pack for this behavior which is something your dog won't want to occur and so it should be a strong incentive.

Selecting the Correct Approach to Dog Chewing Problems

Once you've worked out the root cause of your dog's chewing problem, it is time to get in to action. Decide what strategy you need and commit some time to it, and be commited to be patient and be determined with your dog.

Don't use punishments as most dog trainers agree that this approach can be useless, making a dog fear you instead of teaching them what they should do. As an alternative by taking a positive approach to training and using heaps of positive reinforcement with praise and treats, you ought to be able to stop your dog chewing the furniture.

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