Dog chewing

[raggies1]

If anyone can help id be very grateful!!!
My 9 month old dog chews like mad. He has every texture of toy we can find but his fave is wood. He's ruined the living room door and dining table, we have drainpipes on our table legs and plastic cladding on the stairs to deter him. This has worked but he just finds another piece of wood to chew! Weve tried bitter spray but he loves it!! We have a crate for him but we're trying to get him out of it but when we try him out of it overnight we can hear him chewing. Shall i just admit defeat and keep him in his crate and try again in a month or does anyone know any secret solutions? Also are there any particular toys we could use? He has kongs, dental kongs, rawhide, nylabone and nyla bone dual action plus all the rubber and plastic toys. He likes wood because he can make an impression on it so I suppose thats why I cant find any wooden toys.

[lankeela]

He is still probably at the tail end of teething, and needs to chew to sooth his gums. As he is used to a crate, why not leave him in there overnight? Why do you see it as defeat? It means he will not be able to chew your furniture and you won't be cross with him.

Give him pigs ears or knuckle bones to chew on, as they are more tempting than toys., and the bones will last longer.

I presume he is getting enough exercise, relevant to his breed/size?

[ruby27]

I agree with lankeela
but also I am currently going through a similar situation. In my experince with previous dogs it is partly just something that goes with the territory - young dogs are destructive and also it requires everytime you see your dog chewing something you don't want ie furniture telling it off - recommended is to make the noise ach ah, provide dog with what you want to chew and as soon as its chewing that give lots of praise,
Although dogs love wood it is not edible and it can splinter causing damage so no toys are made of wood

[raggies1]

He's a mongrel and gets 3-4 miles every morning without fail and between 2-4 miles in the evening. He never chews when we are there only when we go out or to bed. He has pigs ears but iv always been wary of knuckle bones, are they safe? if so he'd love them! I see the crate as defeat as we'd love him to have free roam but while we cant trust him he's caged.

[raggies1]

Also im at home during the day and he's never left for more than 3 hours during the day but at night its between 6-7 hours.

[meltoadhall]

our dog is now 18 months and has been crate trained from 9 weeks old, he has never ever chewed anything because he is crated when we are not here.
it is not a sign of defeat but leaving your dog in a safe place while you are out - his den is his place let him have the security of it

[emx384]

I agree with the crate training - if you only leave him during the day for three hours max then he will be fine. My dog went through the same stage of chewing everything in site when she was a pup, I even had to re-plaster the corner of the wall on the landing! She has now grown out of it and is a happy, lovely young dog. Just a tip - have you tried leaving the radio on when you are out, just as an extra bit of 'company' for him?

[doggydays]

a RAW knuckle bone is safer than a pigs ear, just be sure to freeze it first then defrost before feeding. I've found a lot of dogs actually like the bitter spray, clove oil is the best thing iv found for chewers, they dont like the smell or taste :-)

[lankeela]

Some dogs won't eat a raw bone, a cooked one has much more appeal.

[raggies1]

Thank you all, were keeping with the crate for now but i may try him at the weekend when we'll be out for about an hour and half. so raw knuckle bones are ok? iv seen the cooked ones at pets at home, where would i find a raw one? also are the cooked ones safe because im sure one of those would keep him quiet!!

[Snappy]

Cooked bones arent safe, they are brittle and splinter easily. I know a dog currently in the vets after eating a cooked lamb bone on sunday. He's very ill. And those roasted bones in the pet shop are full of additives and chemicals. Raw is much better option, just ask my dog currently munching on lamb ribs!

[lankeela]

The cooked knuckle bones that I sell contain no additives or anything - they are just baked in a large oven and they are certainly not brittle. They are beef bones, and I would not give cooked lamb or chicken bones to any dog. The larger the bone the better. Marrow bones are also ok, although larger dogs may break them with their teeth.
Knuckle bones can last ages, and once they have chewed all the gristly meaty bits off and eaten them, they will often pull their old bone out for a good old gnaw. Mine have still got a 'postman's leg' (giant bone) that they had when they were puppies in the litter at three weeks - they will be four in June and every so often it gets dragged out for a chew.

A butcher will let you have a raw bone (technically they are not supposed to, in case you eat it yourself!).

[raggies1]

Weve tried the marrow bones but he just destroyed them, we found the thickest ones we could but they were no match for him (he only weighs 15kg!).