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Hi,
Can anyone give me some advice, I adopted Bonnie one of the scottie puppies, at 10 months old she is still a real chewer, you can’t trust her with anything, she is fine when we are around but once left on her own she is terrible, anything from CD cases, Video Cases, electric cables, shoes, we can’t leave anything around when we are not there, we have bought her 100’s of chewy toys which I started to only give her when we were going out to keep her occupied but has made no difference they are like new and everything else is wrecked, it came to a head on Saturday evening when I was only upstairs for 35 minutes when I came back down she had pulled one of the seats of the couch and had chewed it, luckly for her is was in the inside so it is hidden when I put the seat back on the chair, does anybody have any tips for me I have bought a spray at the weekend and sprayed it on any surfaces that she is fond off, she even manged to chew the window cill. Hopefully it is something she will grow out off.
Hi Catherine, Hamish our scottie chewed everything in sight for the first year! The alarm wires, tv cables, pieces of wood around the doors. You name it he chewed it! we bought every toy and bone also but he still loved to chew. He was two in october and I would say in the last six or seven months he has stopped. He loves his bones now and loves to spend the evening chewing away on them. He loved shredding beds also but this no longer happens.
The scotties have such big jaws and teeth. Wish I could be of more help but they do stop in the end!!Hi Catherine, well, we’ve been there so I know what its like! Having had our other two rescue dogs for about 10 yrs (both perfect in every way, never destructive at all!), we didnt know what hit us when we took Roxy from Ashton! She ate phone cables and tv cables (all thankfully disconnected!) to beat the band, chewed the corner of our coffee table and ate so many things over the year they would be impossible to name – she has had so many x-rays when the bits and pieces of her spoils could not be located and we feared for her intestines……
Its a frustrating journey but your westie WILL settle down with age. The thing you’ve got to try and identify though is WHY you reckon your dog is being destructive – you can eliminate the behaviour to a degree but you must address the cause – i.e., is it lack of stimulation (physical or mental) – if its the former, increase walks / split the walks to be more frequent of lesser duration, if its mental, you can get really good deals on the intelligence games for dogs – you know the ones where you hide treats under wooden bits etc., which we found brilliant for Roxy. Other causes, and there are many, could be separation anxiety (it sounds a bit like this from what you’ve said as your dog seems to do it when you’re not in the room). If it is separation anxiety, its too long to address on the board, but you COULD try seeking the help of a behaviourist. Not plugging anybody here but we have attended many of the DSPCA courses over the years (a lot of them are free, just phone and enquire), these are done via Alex Petrilli and King of Paws Training and they are absolutely excellent, couldnt recommend them more highly.
Just a personal OPINION, but I feel the sprays are pretty ineffective from the point of view, they MAY eliminate the behaviour (as discussed above) but arent addressing the root cause. Thus your dog will start to manifest these behaviours in other forms, example soiling etc etc etc. Finally on a positive and happy ending, if it is merely the folly of youth believe me, it will stop in time! In the meantime, for your sanity (and the sake of your possessions!), dont leave temptation in your dogs path – remove everything, where possible obviously, that you think little teeth may be sunk into. Also, hate to mention the war BUT would you consider adopting another rescue companion for your dog???? This would provide both mental and physical stimulus for your dog, and also vital peer companionship. Just a thought! Sorry cant be more specific but hope some of this helps you. Let us know how you get on!Thanks for that once I know there is light at the end of the tunnell, last night I gave her a really soft plastic pig and she chewed on it nearly all night, I think she may be teething again, I will say one thing for her we are a much tidier house since she came on the seen nothing is left on the floor.
The scotties have such big jaws and teeth. Wish I could be of more help but they do stop in the end!!
Its a frustrating journey but your westie WILL settle down with age. The thing you’ve got to try and identify though is WHY you reckon your dog is being destructive – you can eliminate the behaviour to a degree but you must address the cause – i.e., is it lack of stimulation (physical or mental) – if its the former, increase walks / split the walks to be more frequent of lesser duration, if its mental, you can get really good deals on the intelligence games for dogs – you know the ones where you hide treats under wooden bits etc., which we found brilliant for Roxy. Other causes, and there are many, could be separation anxiety (it sounds a bit like this from what you’ve said as your dog seems to do it when you’re not in the room). If it is separation anxiety, its too long to address on the board, but you COULD try seeking the help of a behaviourist. Not plugging anybody here but we have attended many of the DSPCA courses over the years (a lot of them are free, just phone and enquire), these are done via Alex Petrilli and King of Paws Training and they are absolutely excellent, couldnt recommend them more highly.
believe me, it will stop in time! In the meantime, for your sanity (and the sake of your possessions!), dont leave temptation in your dogs path – remove everything, where possible obviously, that you think little teeth may be sunk into. Also, hate to mention the war BUT would you consider adopting another rescue companion for your dog???? This would provide both mental and physical stimulus for your dog, and also vital peer companionship. Just a thought! 
Sorry cant be more specific but hope some of this helps you. Let us know how you get on!- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.