My puppy lieks to eat mulch and has bad habits, help?

Question

WE just got her and shes a staffy and 8 weeks old. we're going to take her to puppy school but we need to stop teh bad habits right away true?
We have mulch at the bottom of some trees in our yard and she thinks its a game to run off with the wood chips. we scold her and take them out of her mouth but often she goes again.
Also is it bad for her to try and eat leaves. whenever she does we take them, out of her mouth and scold her, is that right?
also what should we be teaching her early?

Answer 1

Don't scold her, Buy toys. instead of scolding, take the wood chip out and give her a toy. Did this with my pup, and all my shoes and furniture are in perfect condition :) He also used to eat dirt.. Vet said it shouldn't be bad in tiny amounts unless there are chemicals in it. Or in your case, if the leaves come from a poisonous plant. Anyways, he outgrew that stage also.

Don't chase her, some dogs start enjoying being chased by their humans.. and needless to say.. causes some problems when they are running away from you

Never punish her for coming, no matter what she did. if you call her over.. DO NOT punish her, or it will teach her not to come to you when called.

If she is ignoring you when you call her don't keep on repeating her name it will teach her to ignore you.. get up and go physically catch her.

Instead of scolding for lots of minor stuff, try using a different, more positive approach, and like divert her attention, or praise her for what she does right, while just ignoring her when she does stuff wrong..

Don't punish her for things you didn't catch her doing. For example.. if you came home and she made a mess on the floor. dont punish her. She wont remember and its not her fault anyways that you weren't home to monitor her and let her out.

Teaching early should be..housebreaking, socializing (beware of parvo), getting used to the leash and collar, coming to you, having her toys and food touched by humans without her getting mad or protective, her name, what good girl means, eye contact, getting used to nail trimmings, teeth brushing, having every part of her body touched without a fuss.. etc..

Answer 2

Yaaaay - what a fun game to play for your dog - "Can't catch me!!!" That's too much fun for a puppy and it's no wonder she won't stop. It's a great way for your pup to get attention! Instead, teach your pup to "give" by always having great treats with you when you're out with her in the yard, and don't feed her her breakfast when you're working on this. Have your dog on a leash or long line (be careful to not jerk her around) and let her grab a wood chip. Get her attention with the treat and she'll drop the wood chip to get the treat. Repeat. She'll be much more interested in giving up the wood chips if you pay her to do that. No need to scold or chase - just make it a more fun game for her to give up whatever contraband she has to you.
Always work with a hungry dog. Your rewards won't mean much to her if she isn't hungry! Keep your sessions short so that you don't lose her interest. In a good puppy class, an instructor will understand if you decide to not do every exercise so that your pup can have a break.

Answer 3

It's a puppy, they explore with their mouths, stop scolding the dog, it will grow out of this.

it isn't a bad habbit, it's play.

Remove all toxic plants from your yard and there won't be any issues.

Provide your puppy with mental stimulation that it craves and you'll get the behaviours that you're looking for.

Answer 4

Dogs love to chew on wood. Provide her with lots and lots of things to chew like, Nylabone, Bullies, Pigs Ears, no hooves please, bones that are dried and in the pet stores. Lots of toys. Don't let her eat any leaves because they will give her diarrhea. If you have to get a puppy pen to put her in until she stops eating everything in site if you can't stay with her in the yard. You should be teaching her not to go "potty" in your house. She's too young for much else right now.

Answer 5

Well, you should perhaps try to divert her attention, like you would with a child. Buy her toys she CAN play with and maybe she won't be bored. But all puppies get up to mischief, it's one of their most lovable qualities. Don't crush her spirit!