Flavgan! Or someone who knows dogs! My chihuahua won't stop chewing leather!

[Maraya1969]

I've had her since last December and she had just had puppies, (she's from the pound). She is still young though.

She has ruined so many pairs of shoes. Now I put them up so she can't get to them. But the latest was this morning when I found my new cell phone cover to my new cell phone on the bed chewed.

There are bones all over the house. Both of my dogs love to chew on them.

The guy at the pet store said I should still be crating them when I am out and at night if that is when she chews. But she will chew by sneaking something away from me.

I thought about getting her a leather chew toy but they don't have them and I just read that leather can be dangerous if they swallow little pieces.

I'm going mad here.

[RebelOne]

1. I have a Chihuahua, but I cannot help you with the leather problem.

My Chihuahua loves to chew up my carpeting and throw rugs. Sort of hard to take up the carpeting. So, I just keep her in a big doggie playpen when I am not home.

[LiberalEsto]

2. Maybe she is bored?

My daughter's half-chihuahua, half-cavalier king charles spaniel Bailey, who lives with us, had literary tastes. He devoured one book after another, regardless of the quality of the writing. He loved fiction and nonfiction; any book he could sink his teeth into.

We tried putting all our books out of reach (a near-impossible task since our house resembles a used book store) and putting plywood barricades in front of the lower shelves. But he kept finding ways to appease his hunger for reading material.

In late September we adopted a 3-month-old female puppy. Penny is half cavalier spaniel and half American Eskimo. She was partly intended as a companion to Bailey, partly as company for me. In just a short time Bailey switched his interests from books to drooling over this cute young miss, even though he is neutered. Penny is now spayed, but love conquers all. They spend a good 25% of their time making out rather romantically. Bailey hasn't touched a book since.

[Maraya1969]

3. Bailey is one educated dog! Peanut used to play with Paco the other

chihuahua but since I picked up this stray cat, Prince Harry she and him are in love too. I feel bad for Paco since he gets left out but I play with him more now and I can still get the two of them playing if they are on my lap first.

Anyway here are the lovebirds in my house. The one on the left is the culprit.

[flvegan]

4. Howdy!

Yeah, first, don't get her a leather chew toy. Two reasons, yes it's dangerous, especially with a very small dog. Two, it makes it even tougher to differentiate between "my toy" and "mom's cell phone case" if left out.

How do you correct her when you see she's gotten something she shouldn't have?

Keep in mind that some dogs (especially when young) will choose certain types of toys that they prefer to chew on. Some like the squeak toys, some like Kong type things, some like the harder stuff like nylabone products. Oftentimes they will simply grow out of it. Other times, it's a texture issue, and you'll just have to train her to leave the leather stuff alone.

[Maraya1969]

6. When I would find my pocketbook or shoes chewed I would put them in her

face and yell "NO NO NO NO" and then by the time I calmed down I remembered to give her a real chew bone. Now all I have to say is..PEEANNUUT and she either runs under the bed or out the dog door.

I did remember the chew toy early this time, she was under the bad and I went under a little and gave it to her and praised her "good girl, good Peanut"

I just realized that the 2 new toys I got them do not squeek very easy and she does like the squeek toys. I think I only have one left.

I might try and take back the 2 toys and ask for a replacement.

I'm also going to the pet store with her new harness on and ask them for another one, (even though you are not supposed to bring them back after they wear them) because I brought both of the in the store and one of the sales person's helped decide on the size and we put them on right in the store. Her little feet keep getting though and she gets tangled. This all has zero to do with the topic but I feel talkative.

Thanks for your help!

[flvegan]

8. Keep in mind that when correcting bad behavior

that you have to catch them doing it and correct them at that time. In other words, if you come home and find a shoe chewed, you can't scold the dog for it (no matter how badly you want to). You can wave anything in their face and yell, but they won't equate your yelling to that item. The dog will consider it to have been bad for doing whatever it was doing when you started yelling. So, if Peanut is dancing around, happy to see you home, and you start waving a shoe and yelling, Peanut will equate your yelling with her dancing/excitement. A dog can't make that mental leap.

Now if you catch Peanut with a shoe, you take the shoe and say "NO" or whatever. That way, Peanut equates having the shoe with being bad.

I think that the key is going to be finding the type of toy(s) she really likes and can chew on, and keeping LOTS of those around so she won't get bored and go looking for fun shoes and purses to tear up.

[Maraya1969]

10. Is it ok to put them in their crate when they are bad. Case in point.

I now have a new stray cat - see picture above and my other cat has not been home much since he came here. I go out and call her and she comes in a few minutes and I bring her inside.

Anyway, I was trying to sleep and she came into the bedroom and was next to me in the bed. All of a sudden my male dog, Paco starts barking and chasing her and she ran to the other side of the house and up a cabinet while both dogs were barking at her. They never did this before the new cat came into the house.

I just realized that I could have picked them both up and put them in their cage.

This behavior is bizarre because KityKat used to come in anytime she wanted. Now I am also thinking that when they go out to the backyard and bark like they are chasing away a raccoon they might be running her off.

What is this?

[MrCoffee]

5. Flava Flavgan? I like the sound of that!

Yeeeaaaahhhhh, boyyyyyeeeeeeeeeeee!

[flvegan]

7. !!!!!!!!!

:rofl:

[Noseyaboutpollution]

9. NO and kennel

If dog doesn't earn freedom of running the house, you have to put in kennel whenever puppy can't be supervised. Really is for puppy's safety.

NO has to mean NO, it's not being mean.

Set up camera to see what dog does when you leave? Check link in signiture for do-it-yourself camera info.

Good luck, dogs are better than most people!