How To Stop Dog Chewing Behavior

Is your puppy or dog engaging in destructive chewing? It's healthy for a puppy or dog to chew on its own chews and toys. You only need to stop your dog chewing when he is being destructive to anything of yours whether household items or your slippers! Some dogs like to chew more than others. Let me give you a recommendation before I continue: This is the best and most comprehensive dog training guide I have seen and it will help you to stop all problem dog behaviors: Secrets To Dog Training. Identify The Cause As with all problem dog behaviors, you need to identify the cause. It could just be pure enjoyment with some dogs which needs to be redirected to his own chews and toys. Another reason could be sheer boredom. It could be that your puppy or dog is nervous or lonely and chewing provides a way of expressing his emotions - it's like the dog's equivalent of comfort food! Satisfy Your Dog's Need For Exercise As one of the basic measures of addressing problems behaviors, you need to make sure that your dog is getting enough exercise. If not, your dog will have an excess of nervous energy and chewing is one way that he can burn it up.

How can you address the specific problem and stop your dog chewing?

Dog Proofing Your Home

The first point is to dog proof your home. Just as you need to make sure your home is baby proof before you bring a baby into it, so you can put everything out of the reach of the dog that you don't want it to chew on. Take into account how high your dog can jump or climb.

For example, you can make sure all food is put away and make sure all small items are away in cupboards, drawers or out of reach. It's far easier to prevent your dog chewing unacceptable things, than to stop him once he starts. For a new puppy you should keep him in a confined dog-proof area until you are sure he knows the house rules.

Be Very Clear About What Is Yours And What Is Your Dog's

Don't under any circumstances allow him to chew on anything of yours. If you don't have very clear boundaries, you are just making it more difficult to train your dog. For example, don't ever let your dog chew on an old cast-off shoe or an old towel.

Providing Chews and Toys

If you provide your dog with lots of tasty chews and toys so that there is no need for him to find alternatives. Puppies and dogs up to three years especially have a need to chew on things. Give him a variety of chews and toys, not the same ones every day. In this way, he won't get bored.

For a puppy, when you let him out of his confined dog-proof area, you need to be actively supervising. If he starts to chew on something inappropriate, make a loud noise to interrupt him such as clapping. Then immediately give him a chew or toy of some kind. As soon as he starts to chew on the toy, give praise and affection immediately.

Be Realistic

Be sure to have realistic expectations - you would be very fortunate to have a dog and not have some cherished item chewed upon at some point, especially in the early stages of training!

For more detailed information on stopping your dog chewing and about dog training techniques and guidelines for dealing with other problem behaviors, I recommend you check out Secrets To Dog Training by Daniel Stevens.