Help! My lab mix is extremely destructive and I can’t seem to find a pattern to the behavior. Quick back story, we rescued her about 10 months ago and she’s 20 months old. She is crated while we’re at work, has free reign when were home, and sleeps with us at night. Behavior issue #1: she has behaved beautifully in the crate for 10 months however in the last month she has destroyed the bottom plastic pan three times. We come home from work to find plastic shards everywhere. After the 3rd time we replaced the bottom with a sheet of wood instead of plastic. She hasn’t destroyed it but I can see deep gouges from her nails digging at it. Behavior issue #2: She obsessively sucks on everything; dog beds, blankets, pillows, my couch, my mattress. Cloth surfaces are constantly soaking wet, they smell and some things like my couch/mattress are difficult to clean. Behavior issue #3: other than the above mentioned sucking she’s usually well behaved when she sleeps with us. However on two random occasions we’ve woken up to find she’s chewed holes in our drywall and base boards. This is frustrating due to the level of repair work, but also because on both occasions she was in a room with us and surrounded by a variety of chew toys and bones. I can’t quite figure out what is triggering these behaviors, any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.
How long is she crated for? It sounds like it's too long. Certainly longer than she can cope with and she is getting distressed. Are you able to set up a pen (with the (open) crate inside it to give her more room?
Hi @Penny’s Mom Sorry to hear about the problems What toys does she have while crated? How is she mentally stimulated during the day? When she is out of the crate what things do you undertake together? Have you filmed her behaviour when you leave for the day? If so, what have you observed?
Hello and welcome, I think 20 months is a high energy stage and they need lots of exercise and stimulation to wear them out enough to settle. Free roaming at home does not really seem to do the trick. Does she get plenty of exercise including off the lead ? Have you tried classes ? Meg slept like a log after obedience classes, it wore her out. Have you thought about crate alternatives...it’s a full on stage but get they over 2ish years they calm a bit...
She’s crated for a normal work day which is about 8hrs. Not really able to set up a pen she would jump out and we live in a climate that is too hot most of the year to give her an outdoor pen while we’re gone.
She has her fleece blanket, bones, rawhide, and a Kong while in the crate. When she’s out of the crate we either do a 5k walk or hour trip to the dog park (depends on the day). She has several friends at the dog park that are comparable size and age. They play wrestle and release a lot of energy together. When she’s out of crate she has access to additional toys; ropes and squeaky toys. She also gets along decently with the cats they like to sleep near each other when she’s out of crate.
Hi @Penny’s Mom 8 hours is a long time to be crated. You're right on the maximum. And your dog's behaviour is telling you it's probably creating problems. So you really need to do something about the long hours of confinement. Here are number of suggestions. 1. Get a dog walker to come in during the day to take the dog out one on one. Avoid a dog walker with multiple dogs. Better still, would be to get a dog trainer to come in and teach your dog each day. Expensive but so is repairing your walls. 2. Following on from 1, your dog needs to be mentally stimulated. A session in the dog park will not tire a dog mentally. I'd be inclined to avoid the park. You don't want the dog to think being highly aroused is the norm when outside the crate. To place some mental demands, try teaching your dog various things using the shaping method. Retrieve. Go to mat. Scent detection. 3. Rotate her toys. Rather than leaving them with her all the time. Buy some toys that are puzzles. 4. Take her to obedience class each week. 5. Pay a friend to look after her during the day. Or take her to dog day care. Choose wisely. You want one that teaches your dog some things rather than letting him run around all day.
