Will he ever quit chewing?

Question

I have a 4 month old chihuahua. He chews EVERY THING (including our hands and fingers until they bleed!). We have spanked him on the butt, slapped his nose, scolded him, spanked him with a fly swatter. Bought him all kinds of chew toys and toys but nothing will make him stop chewing things up...... what can i do?

Answer 1

Try some hot sauce on the things that he is chewing. you can also try giving him somethign else to chew on like a carrot stick.

Answer 2

Physically "correcting" a dog that does inappropriate behavior can back fire on you. It can cause the dog more anxiety and be quicker to develop and use aggression against you.

Chewing: Anytime you live with a dog - environmental management is a most. Meaning that you need to be deligent about putting things away so that they don't get access to chewing things that you don't want them to chew. Excessive chewing can be an indication to a possible anxiety issue. It's sometimes a symptom of separation anxiety.

Bite inhibition is a critical thing to teach any dog of any size. Usually best before the dog turns 4 mos of age. Dr. Ian Dunbar has a great book out on "Before and After You Get Your Puppy" on the topic.

You can use babygates, xpens and taste aversion to manage and deter chewing. Supervision, interrupt and redirect is critical.

Think about shaping more appropriate behavior by reinforcing good stuff. Dogs don't "learn" what we want by physically punishing them - the will only learn if you show them, teach them and reinforce them for good behavior.

You might need a private session with a qualified dog trainer to help you on the right path.

Answer 3

Well right now he, like a baby, is teething and he's gonna do that and I have a chihuahua that did the same thing but what we did was when she chewed on something we either muzzled her or rubbed it in her face so she knows what she did and spanked her on the butt then confined hr to a small area such as a box eventually she learned not to do that especilly when we covered our window sill with metal and she went to go get a good bite into it!

Answer 4

If he contiues to chew after six months than No probably not but right now hes teathing i remember when i got my last dog he Chewed everything inclluding my 70$ DVS shoes i was so pissed but after i saw him with is head literaly in my chewed up shoe i couldn't stay mad but ne go to a Marcs if there is one by where you live if not look at a pet store or something but find pig ears Yes they are exactly what they sound like Fried Pigs Ears but most dogs i LLLLOOOOOOVVVVVVEEEEE them get a bag they only last about 5 min with my Lab but a chihuahua it should last

Answer 5

thank you, k9partner! Your answer makes the most sense, is the most humane, and follows what everyone has told ME thus far.

My 3-month-old Husky mix puppy chews and nips/bites EVERYTHING. There's chewing, and there's biting. She chews on her toys, which is good. But she bites our hands pretty much every time we try to pet her. We've been told numerous advice, including yelping and retreating when she bites us (which doesn't seem to work) and spraying "bitters" in her mouth when she bites (which we haven't yet tried, because we're concerned that will make her not want to come to us and be petted).

I don't have the answers yet, but I truly believe that physically trying to punish a dog is not only inhumane, but it simply won't work because they learn through positive reinforcement, not negative.

Answer 6

It's his teeth that are coming in. They always chew, unfortunately. Take him to the vet, and tell him what is going on.
You do need alot of patience with puppy's. Try the vet, it might work. Good luck, they will grow out of it, eventually.

Answer 7

you can give him something with a bad taste then he might get the hint but don't give him something that will get him sick

Answer 8

you should tack hm to the feat