How can I stop my dog from tearing everything up?

Question

My one year old golden retriever tears up everything. He just killed a small tree. I’ve tried to put bitter spray on the things I don’t want him to tear up, but he seems to like it. I sprayed a hibiscus the other day and caught him liking the leaves that I sprayed! I’ve heard we can put chile powder on the plants, but he likes spicy food! He sneaks food from the kitchen, and it’s always covered in chile! He received an obedience diploma from PETSMART but he only listens when we have treats. My old dog, a pit mix, never had this problem. What should I do?

I know he doesn’t have separation anxiety; there is always some one home with him. Maybe I don’t give him enough exercise for his breed. It seems by what I’m reading that he might be bored.

Answer 1

Sounds like he's bored. Goldie's need a lot of playtime. My friend had one, and he even ate one of our friends wallets while we were playing cards. And one night he ate someones shoes. ha ha. When she started giving him more attention and play time he started behaving better. Good luck

Answer 2

He's either bored or has separation anxiety.

If he's bored, he needs two things: more exercise and more appropriate toys.

He probably needs an hour or two of exercise every day. Does he know how to play fetch yet? Can you take him jogging? For days when you don't have much time for exercise, try having him jog along as you bicycle using a "Walky Dog". It's a great product that keeps your dog a short distance from the bicycle so you don't have to worry about him getting caught up in the wheels. You should also get him some toys that he's allowed to be rough with - try an Indestructaball, a Cuz ball, or fill a Kong with peanut butter to keep him busy.

If you suspect he has separation anxiety, you should read the book "I'll Be Home Soon" by Patricia McConnell.

Answer 3

How old is the dog.... the age is important. If the dog is less than a year and a half it might still be teething. When a dogs is teething they will chew on EVERYTHING and need to simply be crated when your not going to be home to supervise them (or left with nothing in the backyard as your doing now). My shelty housebroke in 2 weeks so I let him roam the house when I was at work. he was fine until right at 6 months I came home and the carpet was chewed up. I began crating him when I was away and at a year I tried letting him in the house finally and he had stopped. If your dog is teething then it might go away after he gets older at about a year to a year and a half depending on the breed. If your dog isnt young and is over 2 years, I would have him checked out by a vet. He might be uncomfortable from something physically and letting his frustration out or he might be relieving some pain in his mouth also. If your dog is over 2 years old then look at his teeth, what condition are they in? Dogs teeth have more nerves up towards their nose, brain and so their teeth affect them a lot more then a humans, yet many owners dont brush their dogs teeth. If you know your dog has bad teeth, this might also be his cause for chewing to relieve the pain in his mouth. You might need to take him to the vet for a thourough teeth cleaning (If the teeth are dark brown or black near the roots). If they are only a little yellow you dont need to go to the vet, but do begin to brush his teeth (to stop it from getting worse) 2-3 times a week not with human toothpaste (which will make him sick) but with doggy toothpaste you can get at your local pet store. A wonderful toy to buy to distract him from chewing is a treat ball. These dispense treats as they roll and it will entertain him as long as the treats last. Also Kong toys have a spot in the bottom where you can stick treats, but they dont release mutliple treats or distract the dog as long as a treat ball probably would. Ropes are another good toy for chewers. This is because they last considerably long, and they massage the gums which encourage the dogs to chew them, and floss the teeth so they are good dental wise as well. I would stay away from the "stuffed" toys because trust me, they get destroyed quick. If you do want something fluffy and cute get lamb skin toys, they last a lot longer than the velvet or other material. Definately do not stop walking and exercising him, especially shortly before you intend to leave him alone. This will reduce the amount of chewing he will plan to do later by lowering his energy level and walking is always a suggestion every dog trainer gives to owners with chewing or digging dogs. Hope he gets better!

Answer 4

He is bored. Retreivers are the blondes of the dog world, quite quirky and almost strange sometimes. Your dog has an interesting sense of taste. lolz. Try some new toys. These dogs need at least a half hour of good hard running daily. Throw a tennis ball in the backyard ten or so times. They are EXTREMELY high energy dogs, even if they seem to be calm. The hyperness is just hiding. Go to petsmart. Buy him some new toys. I recommend Kongs. the one's with ropes are GREAT for throwing and retreiving, which these dogs were bred for. NYLABONES are awesome inside toys. Gives the dog something to chew on. I have three lying around the house for my dog. They even come flavored but original is Tevin's favorite. There is also a new toy called Invicible rings. Three rubber rings in a chain. Tevin will just walk around the house with them in his mouth, he's such a goof!!!! You could also try steralized bones, easy to clean, dishwasher safe. Good luck!!!

Answer 5

This is why I'm totally completely against that Petsmart (or any training program that uses treats for training). Now you have a dog breed famous for being food crazy who is trained to treats. Every time I go to Petsmart to buy my dog food I feel like pushing the trainer out of the way and taking over the course, sets my teeth on edge and my hair on end. And bag the treats; think of it, the dog eats and gets praise from you, so it steals food and now you're not pleased. Jeez, no wonder the dog's confused.
Yes, the dog has to do something you command him to in order to get a treat, but the basics should be because you are the alpha dog. (the benevolent alpha, but still alpha).

Sorry to rant.

To answer your question, first and foremost thing is if you don't see the dog be 'bad' you can't really do a d*** thing; thus, you MUST must crate dog when out of house, get a crate bigger than the dog needs for it's size; position it so the dog can either see out and/or have a view of a entry (a positive chi type place with his back to a corner or wall). Next, when you do see the dog do 'bad' (or catch him right after with the evidence on it's snout so to speak) you just quietly and calmly take it's collar and put in crate for a time out. REMEMBER ALL CORRECTIONS ARE NEUTRAL. Pay zero attention to the dog when in the crate; when you release him greet it calmly, and don't over do it . Sometimes having the dog drag a short lead around the house is helpful so you can easily haul it to the crate when being 'bad.' TRY TO CATCH THE DOG BEING GOOD; if it's sitting around being nice and quiet, go over and give hugs and attention, good dog, then return to what you're doing (so it doesn't have to be 'bad' to get attention). Did the dog see food and NOT eat it? Then PRAISE THE DOG FOR MAKING THE RIGHT CHOICE. Always try to catch the dog being good whenever possible & the 'bad' behavior may be extinguished.
Does this dog have something to chew on that will last a long time? Nylabone, Cheweez, Kong, lots of potential products, need experiment with one the dog will take to but not destroy so quickly that it needs constant supervision. Those toys you put peanut butter in might be good for your canine food-a-holic.
Have you seen a vet, may have anxiety disorder & could respond to medication therapy.
Are you & any other household members being 100% consistent with reinforcements & not giving any mixed messages?
Dog may be jealous in some way of older dog he's obviously lower in pack order with.
May well need dog behavoralist. But you definately need a real dog trainer, individual one-on-one (and whole family needs be consistent) to undo that nonsense treat-only training and learn a real program that works.

Answer 6

Depends on your "method."

Either check out the dog whisper book (Ceaser) or
train your dog not to do this using negative reinforcement like a shock collar. I have had enourmous success with the shock collar BUT it requires some study. You have to understand that if your dog bites a tree and while he is biting you shock him (do it on low) that he might associate this with something else such as being in that area of the yard. So if you choose this method I would get some info before using.

Also always keep lots of chew toys around. Long lasting ones include Kong and real bones. Your dog sounds like his is bored. Maybe he needs more exercise and/or toys.

Answer 7

Give him lots of exercise, they need it. Sounds like he is bored. He is a high energy dog, pits are a durability dog. At one year old, he hasn't even stopped growing yet. Find a way to give him lots of exercise. Long walks - about 45 minutes should do it. Other than that, he would have to be confined so he does not have access to the plants.

Answer 8

That's a retriever for you. It isn't hunger that makes him tear things up, it's usually boredom. He might need more play-time with you, more walks, maybe a TV left on when no one is home. He should also have a lot of toys and bones to chew on, because they need to chew. Keep him away from your shoes and other things you don't want to lose, and try crate training.

Answer 9

I have a lab like that. I am reading "Cesar's way" and it helps a lot. You should read it, it will tell you about energy levels that dogs have, they are all different. Mine and yours I imagine have very high energy. Lots of exercise helps. Good luck!

Answer 10

Go on line, & type in behavior problems, in Dogs & Remedies, that can give you alot of help.