The dog...need help with Destruct-O-Matic

[squirrelgirl]

Love our lab...but he is getting on my patience and wallet. He just turned a year, and is really a sweetheart. However, when I am at work and the kids are at school, he becomes a total pain. I expect some things to be messed up - muddy pawprints coming in from the yard (he has a doggie door), assorted branches/leaves and other treasures in the house, some torn up newspaper/shoes or anything left at his level - I fully expect some level of mischeveous behavior.

However, he has started to chew on the carpet, sofa...stuff like that. The carpet guy has come to repair stuff more than I care to admit. We keep all the doors in the house shut, but the dog is finding new things to destroy. It is stressful to come home everyday and find something new ruined. And yes, it is getting expensive. I have purchased destructive proof toys which he simply shreds. Rawhide and bones he sniffs, takes and hides in the yard never to be seen again!

I know that he is a 'teenager' in dog years, and labs are generally goofy creatures anyway. He wouldn't dream of chewing on a thing while we are home....he has full access to every room and doesn't touch a thing. But when he is alone, he turns into a different creature! I know he must be bored...but I don't how do I manage this and keep my home intact while I am at work? He is a family member and a total sweetie with the kids and others. Folks are telling me to keep him outside during the day, but it gets very hot in my area (110+), so I am not happy with that option. Help!

 

[tinkarooni]

Why aren't you crating him when you are not at home? Are you gone too long? We crate our dog whenever we are not home but I work at home so it's only a few hours at a time.

Do you have an unfinished basement or something like that where he couldn't get into too much trouble?

Labs are high energy. Sounds like he is bored.

 

[SandrA9810]

I'd go with crate training. You'll have to introduce it while you're still at home so he doesn't get stressed out while you're not home.

Thankfully my dog is not a chewer at all... just a puller (samoyed mutt). I've never come home to a destroyed house, although an occasional destroyed trash can. But I try to keep it above her nose, or else she won't try to hard to get into it.

 

[RN4Babies]

I have been a dog trainer for classes at our local shelter for the last 25 years.

You need to buy a crate/kennel for him, and put him in it whether you're leaving the house for 30 minutes or for several hours. Do NOT buy the plastic kind; get the one that's metal and looks like a cage (high energy dogs can chew their way out of the plastic kind). Eventually he'll come to look at it as his bedroom, and not mind going into it.

I don't agree with putting him in your basement. He can still destroy things down there. I've heard stories of dogs eating/chewing on pipes, electrical cords, storage boxes, etc. A kennel is the kindest and safest place for him to be when there's no one home.

 

[lurkernj]

We got a Weimaraner puppy 5 years ago and went through something similar. He figured out how to open doorknobs and cabinets (and garbage) in no time and it seemed like no matter what we did, he was one step ahead of us. If it wasn't for our two boys, I gladly would've sent him back to the breeder.

We tried many things from keeping him in a cage (don't know who ever said they won't go where they sleep/eat), to leaving the TV/radio on during the day. For our dog, giving him more space and leaving the TV on seemed to calm him. We also bought some of those rubber KONG toys where you can stuff treats/peanut butter inside, those would keep him busy for hours trying to get that stuff out of there. Also, DH would take him for a long walk in the mornings to tire him out so he would sleep part of the day away.

I am sorry to say that we suffered for about three years before he "grew up" and became "normal". He is now 5 1/2 and is a valuable member of our family.

I would advise against leaving him outside, as he may be whining/barking all day driving your neighbors crazy.

 

[crisi]

We crate our dog during the day. We hire a dogwalker to come mid day so he is in for about four hours, out for half an hour, and back in for four hours (sometimes its six on one end or the other). The dogwalker hasn't been cheap, but cheaper than carpet repair.....

 

[Chicago526]

Ditto. If you don't want to crate him, is there a room you can "dog proof" that you can keep him in instead? We always used our laundry room off the garage, since it was tiled and easily closed off.

 

[extremesoccermom]

Another vote for crate training.
We have an eleven yo Shepherd,terrier, cocker mix that was an angel since day one. She never chewed on anything including her toys.
Within the last 1 1/2 years we have added a puppy German Shepherd. We used the crate for a while but she has proven herself worthy of no longer needing it which is good. Because we now have a new (9 mo) terrier/lab mix. She is very good when we are home and usually is happy to lay around. But when we leave she gets bored and destroys anything she can get her mouth on.
The kennel is still up and she gets a KONG every morning when the last person leaves the house. She loves her kennel and even sleeps in there without being told to.

 

[kkwis2]

I also agree that your dog needs to be crated. When we first got our Springer 14 years ago we thought crating was mean. We got over that soon enough when she detroyed an entire couch - she started with the cushions, which we removed, then moved on to the couch structure itself. She was crated for 10 years until we finally decided that she had gotten old enough that all she did was sleep when we were gone (and most of the time when we were home!) anyway.

We now have two more dogs who are crated indoors when we are not at home. Both have been through obedience training, and the trainers highly recommend crating as well.

Labs also need a lot of exercise and play with you. I have learned that sending them out to the yard to run around is not enough. They need to have to think, too, so that they are both mentally and physically tired.

 

[DSNY4ever]

we crated our dog as a puppy and it worked well (then he got older and didn't need it). But the real solution to the stopping the problem was training and exercise. How often are you walking him? Our dog has to have two walks a day to keep his energy level down (especially when he was that age!). And the walks were two 30 minute brisk walks or we would substitute one of the walks for fetch at the park. It is a lot of work and we have to wake up really early in the morning to fit it in, but it is worth it. I have now turned the morning walk into a run, so hopefully I will get fit too now

 

[gracie1]

You should definately crate train. That is what we did and they actually start to appreciate not being in the crate when your gone. My couch and chair legs are chewed, carpet is chewed, wallpaper torn all the way up the walls in 2 different rooms I haven't repaired everything yet till she proved she was out of the puppy stage.
She is 97% there

 

[1stTimeDisneyer]

I agree with create training. Both of our dogs are crate trained. My boxer loves her crate and uses it all the time. I would also suggest a morning walk or run before you leave the house, if it is possible. Another thing we do is nothing is for free. Every treat, every walk, every meal, they have to work for. It can just be them sitting or giving a paw, but they learn to work for everything they get. I know it sounds weird but seems to help with behavior.

 

[Teresa Pitman]

I have a very high energy Lab and crate training did not work for him. He was able to move the crate around (I think by throwing himself at the sides repeatedly) and caused a lot of damage to the floors that way. He would also move it until he could chew something. He'd move it over to the book shelf and chew books on the shelf.

What worked for him was Kongs full of peanut butter and treats and rawhide chews. He just needed to get that chewing out of his system, I think. Two large Kongs, stuffed with little treats and peanut butter, plus a large rawhide stick would hold him for most of the day.

He's six now and has finally settled down a bit.

Teresa

 

[kacaju]

crating would be my first choice. BUT he also needs to get his energy out. is it at all possible for you/dh (or one of your children if they are old enough and strong) to walk him for a good 1/2 hour before everyone leaves in the morning? A good walk with the purpose to tire him out, not a slow stroll through the park type of walk.
I would walk him, crate him with a stuffed kong, and see if you can hire a dog walker to come mid day to and walk him again. Once everyone is home for the evening another good walk and if you can make the time take him to an obed class. Most dogs that destroy things are dogs that are bored and need a *job*.

 

[disneymom2one]

We also crate our lab-beagle mix who is 2. She'll continue to be crated until she proves that she can be left in the home alone without us. Our golden has run of the house (at 5 years old) but only because we know the worst he'll ever do when we're gone is sleep on the couch.

We just last weekend left the lab-beagle out too while we were gone for about 1/2 hour. She did fine and we'll continue to do short times for awhile.

Also, our dog loves her crate. All we have to say is "go to bed" and she runs to the room where the crate is and goes inside.

Why aren't you crating him when you are not at home? Are you gone too long? We crate our dog whenever we are not home but I work at home so it's only a few hours at a time.

Do you have an unfinished basement or something like that where he couldn't get into too much trouble?

Labs are high energy. Sounds like he is bored.

 

[squirrelgirl]

Thanks for the responses. He was crate trained, but once he became fully potty trained and we put in the doggie door, we gave him more freedom. We still have the crate, but I think he would be really upset being put in it. I was thinking about allowing him access to the one room that has the doggie door and the back yard. So basically allow him to have full access to the yard and keep him contained to the kitchen while we are gone.

I agree he needs more activity. Just don't know if that will be enough to keep him happy mid-day. I wish he would chew on a rawhide. He loves squeaky toys, but rips out the squeaker in no time.

 

[StitchandPooh'sMom]

He sounds bored and in need of exercise. We have a 1 1/2 year old lab. He is crated when we are not home - he could cause too much damage to himself and the house eating things. He gets walked twice a day - once in the morning before I take the kids to school, and once in the evening after dinner. The walks are mainly for mental and social stimulation, not exercise. Labs need to RUN. He chases the kids, fetches a ball, and runs while we ride bikes. Labs have a tremendous amount of energy, and a tired dog is a better behaved dog.

We didn't stop crating our last lab until he was about 3. One is pretty young to not be crating a lab, especially if he is not worn out before you leave.

 

[peyjax]

Now I am not a huge animal lover, however we did get our lovable puppy back in October. All of my family has labs and I knew I could not handle that high energy of a dog. With that said I did a ton of research on dogs before we got ours. It was not a fly by the night decision so I wanted to be prepared.

The bigges thing I learned is, it is all tied to the DOG FOOD. Dog smell, shedding, pooping, and yes most importantly behavior are all related to the food they eat. My mom was skeptical with her lab (2yrs old) until I convinced her otherwise. She went home after a visit with me and changed the dog food to a higher grade and it made a world of difference. The shedding decreased and the dog calmed down. It can get frustrating because of the added expense but it is worth it. Not only because it is better for the dog but also because it can help save your sanity.

We use Wellness large breed. There are several other really good brands out there. Go to dogfoodanalysis.com to get a good idea of a five or six star brand. I am telling you it is worth it. I have convinced my family and they tell everyone it changed thier labs.

 

[StephMK]

Be careful with restricting his space. That didn't work for our hyper golden. He ended up chewing the door frame & somehow got hold of a corner & chewed the linoleum floor! I thought I had him in a "safe" room. He did mellow around 5 & was a great dog til he passed last summer at 13.

We have an older beagle mix who has the run of the house, I know she sneaks on the furniture while we're gone but can be trusted. All she does is sleep. Though the one day she accidentally got shut in our son's room, she went nuts & also chewed the heck out of the door frame! This from a lazy, can't be bothered, type of dog.

Our lab/spaniel mix is 2 & crated. He knows the routine & always heads for the door to play fetch when we get home. I accidentally left him alone for the afternoon & came home to a shredded couch pillow. He also still marks every now & then, he was a stray when we rescued him & that is his least favorite habit!

 

[Parkers_girl]

Thanks for the responses. He was crate trained, but once he became fully potty trained and we put in the doggie door, we gave him more freedom. We still have the crate, but I think he would be really upset being put in it. I was thinking about allowing him access to the one room that has the doggie door and the back yard. So basically allow him to have full access to the yard and keep him contained to the kitchen while we are gone.

I agree he needs more activity. Just don't know if that will be enough to keep him happy mid-day. I wish he would chew on a rawhide. He loves squeaky toys, but rips out the squeaker in no time.

Just be careful what toys you leave him with when you're not around, you don't want him choking or biting of a piece too big. We crate trained our border collie (very very energetic) and made sure to wear him out with the frisbee before we stuck him in there for the day. We left the tv on, since he watches it, some water and his bed. We started leaving him out when he was around 1 1/2, we left him out for 5 mins here, an hour there. Now the crate is packed away, but he is still confined to our room. We close all the doors, put everything away(even his toys), leave the tv on and he's fine. I know labs can be pretty destructive, have you tried a nylabone to get some of his mouthy energy out?? I know how stressful it can be to have a crazy pup, he should calm down though as he is only a year old. Good Luck!