Amaya Problems..

[Aonir]

Amaya's been extremely good about chewing - until recently. She destroyed a $80 headset, hat, cup, and has stopped wanting to potty outside. She has PLENTY of toys. She has 3 balls, 2 sqeekys, 1 weird toy, 1 rope, 1 new huge bone.. And she always has a bone! She LOVES her bone.. And a leg from a stuffed animal.. and her stuffed animal! She always chews on her bone or brings her ball to play. She plays a lot... And I have no idea what started this chewing spree this passed week!

Same with housebreaking. She did really good last month, now she barely goes outside anymore! The carpet is bright yellow and we just washed all the previous stains out not even a month ago.. She's 7 months old. So she's not in a teenager stage.. I just don't get whats going on! Please help!

[drjeffrock]

Aonir napisał(a):

Amaya's been extremely good about chewing - until recently. She destroyed a $80 headset, hat, cup, and has stopped wanting to potty outside. She has PLENTY of toys. She has 3 balls, 2 sqeekys, 1 weird toy, 1 rope, 1 new huge bone.. And she always has a bone! She LOVES her bone.. And a leg from a stuffed animal.. and her stuffed animal! She always chews on her bone or brings her ball to play. She plays a lot... And I have no idea what started this chewing spree this passed week!

Same with housebreaking. She did really good last month, now she barely goes outside anymore! The carpet is bright yellow and we just washed all the previous stains out not even a month ago.. She's 7 months old. So she's not in a teenager stage.. I just don't get whats going on! Please help!

Sorry to hear about Amaya's troubles. Here is my advice for what its worh (probably not very much, LOL.) When we first got Dex he refused to pee outside. I guess he was trained by his previous owner to pee on mats inside. I overcame this by doing a few things. First off, I would take him on many, many walks. When he did pee outside, I would dance, praise him and sing at the top of my lungs. Often he did not want to pee outside, it was like he would hold it till he got back inside. Anyhow, when he refused to go outside, I would bring him back inside give him plenty of water, and put him back in his kennel for an hour or two. Then, back outside till he peed. After a while he figured out that he was supposed to pee outside. It took a while for him to learn. It's like you take two steps forward, and one step back.
With regards to chewing, I dont know what to say. Is Amaya exercised regularly? I know that Dex will chew on things when he is bored, or has too much energy. He is a completely different dog when he has had vigorous exercise. Good luck!
-Jeff

[Aonir]

The exercise is another thing. This all started after she was taken to play with Maya(friends dog) for a couple hours. They wear each other out! So she is well excercised. Plays fetch and walks.. I just don't get it.

[Guest Anonymous]

Sorry to hear all this is going on. Do you Kennel her while you are gone , that way she CAN'T chew things up? I only give my dogs 1 toy each, becuase someone told me on here that they shouldn't have that many toys, becuase Zoey startedt o chew everything, and Cody also, any stuffed toy ( that was NOT THHEIRS! they belong to the kids i watch ) they chewd. so i took all their toys away and they stopped . for hte most part Zoey is still an excessive chewier and is kenneld any time we are not home, and now kenneled at night, as she ate my new slippers last night. as for hte peeing thing. Kennel her up when you are gone, and just take her out every hour like she is a brand new puppy to get it in to her head that she needs to do that stuff out side.

hope that works!

[imported_Cassie]

Puppies chew on whatever they can get their mouths on for any number of reasons: they are bored, they have a lot of energy, they are teething which is probably what Amaya's going through right now... most puppies are undergoing some form of continued teething, either erupting or replacing baby teeth until about 9 months of age, some dogs/pups chew as they are just curious. Dogs learn through their mouths. It is their tool; it is how they receive a great deal of information. They are naturally inclined to use their mouths whenever they can.

To prevent problem chewing and to direct your pup's natural inclination to chew toward appropriate objects, follow these simple guidelines:

Puppy-proof the confined area. If possible, remove all items your puppy can chew on, including socks, shoes, furniture, plants, etc., from any area in which you confine your puppy. Tape over electrical outlets and make sure electrical cords are out of reach.

Confine your pup in a crate, cage, or puppy-proofed area when you are away. Because puppies learn with their mouths, giving your teething puppy free rein in the house is asking for trouble. Keep him confined.

Closely supervise Amaya. Not unlike caring for a toddler, you should always be aware of where your uncrated pup is and what he is doing.

Amaya already has plenty of chew toys...there are also many safe, long lasting chew toys that are made for teething pups...you can even take a nylon rope toy and dip it in water then freeze it, this will give Amaya's mouth some comfort... :wink: The items you choose for Amaya to chew on should not be similar to articles you do not want your puppy to chew. Your puppy can not tell the difference between an old teddy bear and a brand new one.

Make departures low key to avoid causing separation anxiety, which is often expressed through nonstop barking, whining, or destructive chewing. Before you leave, add your scent to your dog's toy. Rub the bone between your hands and give it to your pup as you leave.

Give your puppy plenty of exercise to relieve boredom and burn off energy - two significant factors contributing to destructive chewing.

If you catch Amaya in the act of chewing anything but his chew toy, remove the object and replace it with an acceptable chew toy. If your pup then chews on the toy, praise him. You always want to reinforce desired behavior with praise. If possible, treat the 'inappropriate object' with a product designed to deter chewing, such as Bitter Apple.

Teach your pup to ignore non-toy objects if he consistently chews the wrong things. Place tempting objects on the floor along with your pup's chew toy and pretend not to pay any attention to him. If (and usually when) he starts to put his mouth over one of the forbidden objects, correct with a firm 'No!' and point out his bone. Once he learns he can only have the toy when you are in the room, it is time to leave the room for short intervals.

If he chews on forbidden objects after you leave the room, your quick return will catch him in the act - the only time when corrective action should be taken. Again, give him the toy, and praise if it is accepted. If he is chewing forbidden objects but you cannot catch him, he should be crated when unsupervised until he learns what is and is not acceptable to chew on.

As for the house training...you will have to start over again from square one... :-? We have lots of clients with simular relapses in house breaking with their pups...take Amaya out to do his business about 30 - 40 minutes after each meal...of course use excessive praise as drjeffrock mentioned already...never scold Amaya for soiling in the house unless you catch him...and then the only scolding that should be done is a stern "NO" then take him out side...if he finishes his business out side praise him for doing this. I find walks around the neighborhood to be a wonderful way to get a dog to releive himself...my dogs will hold them selves for thier morning, noon and evening walk...my Rottie will not even pee in my yard unless I give her the command to go...I use "go pee pee" verbal commands are very useful with house training...when indoors saying "Amaya needs to go outside?" take him out and say what ever command you use...like "go pee pee" then once he has gone go back in at once...never use the house training commands before going for a walk etc. as this will just confuse your pup.
Crate training is a perfect way to train Amaya over again....take him out before putting him in the crate, and take him outside as soon as you take him out of the crate....get a good schedule going...for myself I take my dogs out at 6:00 am, 12:00 noon, 6:00 pm then once more before going to bed around 10:00 pm. My dogs are very good with this schedule.

DeafAussieLover also has some wonderful advice...it really makes sense about having too many toys.

[Aonir]

The items shes destroyed was never in her reach. Its in the cats reach lol, they knock things on the ground. Particulary Angel.. She's been going around knocking everything on the floor.. I've put things up where they can't reach it. But SOMEHOW she got the hat again!! It was in the closed closet. How it got out, I do not know.

Took her for a 30 minute, straight, freezing walk today. Brr.. I need ear-muffs lol She always enjoys her walks but she loved this one cause I went through a new neighborhood

[Peng1zrule]

for the chewing...i guess it's all been covered. but i'm surprised NO ONE mentioned the weather as to the peeing outside thing! i know my girls (well, the smaller girls--gypsy and india) do not like to pee outside when it is cold...the reason being that the nether regions are very, very, close to frozen ground....I conclude this from seeing how they spend four months of the year just spreading thier feet further apart so they can pee, instead of squatting as they usually do.

[courtnek]

well, I'm going off the wall a little here, but maybe the fact that this started after a romp with another dog has brought out her pack desires...
she might just want the company of another dog to play with.

Once Freebee had gotten accustomed to having another dog around, she moped and got lethargic until I got another one. Something to think about at least/

[MajiesMom]

I know it's been suggested but I also vote for crating her until she can prove herself to not soil in your house and chew weird misc. items. Things you know she will chew and are in her reach you should make the effort to put away in a closet or somewhere they -the tag team can't get to. LOL
I have one idea, she might have seperation anxiety?
For pooing and peeing in the house - do a housebreaking refresher course until she's back on track.

[Aonir]

Amaya absolutely hates being crated. But we crate her when we have to leave for a couple of hours. I was talking to my fiance today, and we've decided to add a bit more to it while we're home to see if that help any. She barks for a while until she calms down. But then she's quiet as a bunny up until we get the leash on her to take her outside. She never barks at us or anything when we leave from home though. She usually just lays down and watches us go.. planning her next move..

I'd actually love to get another dog, but I live in a townhouse filled with 7 cats and that's already enough. She's still a puppy and I want her to get her training better done before I ever commit to a new dog. And I want a house before I get me a new dog. Next time I think I'll go with a trained-adult lol