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#1
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Chewing in Crate
Hi! Newbie delurking to ask some advice. :-)
We adopted a puppy from a shelter about 8 months ago (at 16 weeks). She's such a fabulous dog, and so smart! There's only one issue, and it happened again last night, so I thought I'd see if anyone had any ideas. We crate our dogs at night (we have 3) for various reasons. We don't use the crates for punishment or anything, and the dogs like to have their own "space" to get away from everyone at times during the day. When we first got the puppy, we had a pad in the bottom of her crate, which she chewed up in the first week. We got another one a few weeks later, which was destroyed within a day. We DO put chews and toys in there, in case it was boredom. She's now a little over a year old, and hubby put another pad in there last night. At about 4:AM, I woke to the sounds of gnawing (I was dreaming about mice chewing a big block of cheese!). I got up, and she had totally destroyed it. So, we're just wondering...maybe the wrong type of pads (the first was folded beach towels, the second was one of those dog bean bag mattresses, the third a folded comforter)? Maybe she just hates pads? Arrghh. Any ideas would be appreciated. Best regards, Ana http://*******ette.blogspot.com/ |
#2
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Some dogs just prefer the smooth, coldness of the crate's pan. IMO, you should just "Go with the flow." Works for me. -- Handsome Jack Morrison *gently remove the detonator before sending me e-mail. Or...KA-BOOM! Can Universities Be Fixed? http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles...e.asp?ID=17406 Thanks for your response. I've been suspecting that myself, but hubby feels guilty about it. She's a medium-large dog and has a very thick coat. She seems to prefer to nap on the tile instead of the carpet. Best regards, Ana http://*******ette.blogspot.com/ |
#3
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Handsome Jack Morrison wrote: On 31 Mar 2005 12:49:06 -0800, wrote: We crate our dogs at night (we have 3) for various reasons. For example? -- Handsome Jack Morrison *gently remove the detonator before sending me e-mail. Or...KA-BOOM! Can Universities Be Fixed? http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles...e.asp?ID=17406 Long story short...LOL... One of our dogs (13-lb yorkie mix) started to become incontinent around the age of 5 when she sleeps. We've gone through all the testing, and she's on hormone therapy (vet determined that she was spayed too early and that it had something to do with the sphincter tone). She's completely oblivous to it when it's happening, and acts terribly embarrassed after. We've been crating her at night for about 3 years, and when she wants to nap, she goes in there herself. She even closes the door by herself. :-) It's a lot easier to throw the pads in the wash when needed then having to run around the house with the Natures Miracle treating pee stains. Especially if the other dogs beat me to it and leave their little trademark with it. We also have a 3-lb dog who can be an incredible pest. When we got her 6 years ago, we also had a chow-akita mix, who passed away last year. The chow (who was not crated at night) was very gentle and good-tempered, but she was getting older, and we thought it would be best to keep the little one out of her way at night. One bite and the little dog would be history. Hopefully soon, the new puppy will be trained well enough so that we will be able to let her roam the house at night, which we feel is ideal. It's something we're working towards. I know that some people don't agree with crating their dogs, and I completely respect that. As I said in my previous post, for various reasons, it has worked for us. :-) Thanks again for your input. Best regards, Ana http://*******ette.blogspot.com/ |
#4
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So, we're just wondering...maybe the wrong type of pads (the first was folded beach towels, the second was one of those dog bean bag mattresses, the third a folded comforter)? Maybe she just hates pads? Arrghh. Any ideas would be appreciated. Best regards, Ana Also delurking to offer input... Hi Ana, We have a 3 + year old ESS. We have one of those store bought pads that fits into the bottom of the kennel pretty tightly, covered with a home-made pillow case. *Our* dog leaves this alone... though nothing else. If we put down an old quilt, she will chew the corners and remove the stuffing. A cotton rug will get half of its yarn strands pulled out... but since puppy-hood, when I got the tight fitting pad, she has left that alone. I have no clue why, and no clue if your pup would leave it alone.... but it's alomost as though since it is a tight fit with no extra pieces to easily grab, she leaves it alone. And as for leaving you pup run around at night... don't feel bad if that doesn't happen for a long time... Just two nights ago, I decided to try to let Abby have the run of the house during the night.... after all, she hasn't chewed anything up lately..... bad idea. As soon as the lights were out, I heard her run down the basement. It is pitch black down there... "what could she possibly do?" I figured. She chewed up/shredded the magazines I had on the computer desk and a bunch of computer paper, and pulled the blankets off the couch and chewed on them. And yes she has kongs, rawhides and an entire toybox full of toys for chewing, but obviously prefers magazines. I guess she'll be a kennel dog when we're in bed for awhile longer... : ) I should say that she *knows* not to do any of this destructive behavior when we are around.... I haven't seen her try to chew on things in front of me for a couple of years. Good luck. I'd like to say "this too shall pass" but it hasn't for me after three+ years. Shelly http://*******ette.blogspot.com/ |
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