Why do dogs chew on whatever they can get to?
By kanedog227
@kanedog227 (14)
United States
March 19, 2008 7:11pm CST
I have a mutt, he's half black lab and half beagle he's six months old. Some days he's the best dog but other days he will destroy anything he gets his hands on. For example he tore up the tile in my laundry room down to the wood underneath. Why would he chew up tile? it cant taste very good and he has perfectly good toys right in the same room. it makes no sense, i take him out to play, he plays with the baby. he runs around outside but in the end of the day he had to destroy something, or it would not be my dog. I'm stumped on this one, i have had four other dogs and none of them did this when they were his age.
3 responses
@TriciaW (2441)
• United States
20 Mar 08
You were lucky with the other dogs believe me. I have had this more then not when my puppies got bored. You have two very active dogs in one so he will need more attention and time to play. He doesn't mean to be bad it is just something to fill his time. Perhaps he needs more outdoor time verses indoor where he can destroy. I had two dogs that had a thing for cords and no matter what I did when they were left alone they would chew up a cord and it was always plugged in so heaven knows they had to have gotten shocked when they bit through it. That didn't stop them but I did find that more outdoor time was better on my house. Good luck with the puppy.
@Seraphine (385)
• Finland
21 Mar 08
It's what puppies do. My dog chewed a LOT at that age. They do grow out of it but it takes a bit of your time. He needs constant supervision from you to make sure he does not get into he shouldn't, crate him/put him somewhere safe when you can't watch him and whenever he has something you don't want him to have, trade it for something better that he can have (don't chase him and take what he has from him as that will only make him value it more, you need to trade it for a higher value item). Also increase the exercise and mental stimulation. Tired pups are usually good dogs, and a lab/beagle mix will need a lot of exercise to make him tired.
Chewing up tile does make me wonder if it's just a puppy chew thing or if he just doesn't like being left alone (I assume he was alone, why else would he be in the laundry room). If it is separation anxiety it needs to be addressed now before it gets worse.
@choudhary03 (943)
• Hyderabad, India
20 Mar 08
Dogs teeth have a pecuilar problem that is their teeth have itching and when this happens they get to chew everything they get their teeth on.
Two reasons for that one is you are not providing good food according to the dogs personality. Second reason is give them something hard to chew like a fake bone, or anything harder.
Believe me it worked with my dog, i used to make it play with the bone. It chewed my table leg,cot leg,crouch leg,etc. you are lucky
