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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To smack the little git

50 replies

Lucyellensmum99 · 26/07/2012 11:02

by little git i mean my dog! He has is a rescue and we have had him a few months, he has just started chewing things, and has just this morning chewed a £160 pair of glasses, i am now half blind

We have been quite softly softly with him as he was a rescue and we don't smack our other dog so why should we smack him. But just now i caught him with his teeth around the lap top cable, obviously live!! So i have smacked his bottom - poor little guy looked at me as if i have betrayed him and i do feel awful but he needs to learn. The glasses, frustrating, but my own fault for leaving them where he could get them, i just showed them too him and said "who done that aggghhhh" in a stern voice but got the look of "it was me, me i tell yah, what you gonna do about it" waggy tail, is this a game mum?

We buy loads of chew toys, he has long walks, yet STILL he is a miniture weopon of mass destruction.

I feel bad, he is laying at my feet and just looked so hurt, it wasn't a hard smack at all, just a tap on his bottom and a yelled no, it was a live wire FFS!

It is becoming an issue though - and am hoping that maybe the odd tap might curtail? but of course, i dont want to cause him anxiety and then he will only chew more :( what to do what to do???

OP posts:

Original poster

Lucyellensmum99 · 27/07/2012 00:24

oh, righto then

OP posts:

Toughasoldboots · 27/07/2012 00:37

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster

Lucyellensmum99 · 27/07/2012 10:48

Me too!!! I wouldn't muzzle anyway, we have two dogs and they playfight alot, it would be unfair to muzzle the new dog and i really don't like muzzles other than to use if you have to do something to an unpredictable dog or in public for a dog that bites. We had to muzzle our rescue rottie in public when we first got him and it made him miserable, once we were sure of him we were able to remove it and his behaviour actually improved.

OP posts:

imnotmymum · 27/07/2012 10:52

Sorry but really should be aware of things that can get chewed not dog's fault unless they were somewhere safe then I apologise for saying that. Our dog not a chewer but we all do edge on side of caution in case one day he decides to eat an ipod or something. Kongs are great stuffed with peanut butter it even lasts our springer 30 mins.

Original poster

Lucyellensmum99 · 27/07/2012 10:53

at 30 mins

OP posts:

Shakirasma · 27/07/2012 10:54

My springer used to be a git for chewing our stuff. I used to give him a stern telling off whilst waving the chewed item at him then put him outdoors for 20 minutes. He got the message that if he didn't respect the stuff on the house then he wasn't allowed to be in there.

He got the message very quickly and I never had to smack him. Make sure he has plenty of his own chew toys.

PlumpDogPillionaire · 27/07/2012 11:02

Kong is the way to go.
Or some serious rawhides to get into. If he's not interested in Rawhides at first, put a bit of something tasty into the seam or knotted part to get him started.
Smacking's a fairly useless training method - same as any other aversive methods, but particularly for chewing which is either to clean his teeth (so he needs to do it) or could be anxiety related, in which case a smack will just make him worse.
Make sure he's got his own stuff to chew and that it's more attractive than stuff that's not his own. Then tell him a sharp 'No' if he approaches out of bounds objects.

notsofrownieface · 27/07/2012 13:52

Rawhide is good as well as Nylabones, they are flavoured dog chew toys, you can get them from pets at home, I have two power chewing labs and these two things seem to work.

delilahlilah · 27/07/2012 14:21

Have you considered one of those ball toys that you can put treats inside? As they play the ball gradually releases treats? Occupies the mind as well as the chewing urge! Our pup loved his.

delilahlilah · 27/07/2012 14:22

Oh and parma ham bones are a big hit. B&M do them for around £1

DizzyKipper · 27/07/2012 14:31

Look into positive reinforcement and environmental management rather than physical punishment. Help him learn what is/isn't appropriate to chew by keeping valuable things out of his reach and praising him for chewing the toys. With a sensitive dog smacking and even things like a raised voice can just cause more stress and anxiety (which consequently could acerbate the behaviour - chewing helps to relieve stress).

whatthewhatthebleep · 27/07/2012 14:47

remove all toys and only give 1 at a time when you are playing and training...only give kong or other suitable chews when you are leaving the dog alone (associating good fun with your departure)peanut butter is cheap and dog's love it so ideal to stuff into kong or other chewable things...
Give the dog attention when you want to...not when it is demanded...use lots of re-call and demand attention from your dog to build response and re-call....encourage to settle in one place and not follow you everywhere so they are confident on their own and in their own space, etc small area they can feel secure within ( they think they need to guard the whole house and it's too much for alot of dog's)...regardless of where you are (in or out of house)
if you use toys and treats as rewards they learn quicker...
build up your time away from the dog very slowly...10mins with kong...then 15mins and everyday repeat and increase time and reinforce desired behaviour...ignore the naughty/unwanted stuff....practice, practice and build it up this way

You will have a confident, settled, happy dog who knows his rules and can cope with them....it's also about being vigilant about leaving things lying around. You would be mindful of a small child so do the same for your dog...

slowestwildebeast · 27/07/2012 16:31

you talk to your dog? Do you think it understands?
yabu to hit the dog. You need to remove it if it does chew things not have a chat and hit it.
My god.

NonAstemia · 27/07/2012 16:32

Please don't turn to Caeser Milan or anyone else spouting dominance theory!

Would you think about buying this book - it's heavy going in parts (unless you already know about operant and classical conditioning) but most of it is easy to read, extremely insightful and will totally re-educate how you think about your dog (it did me).

My dog gets the occasional smack on the bum (never on the muzzle - how would you like to be hit on the bridge of your nose, degut?) but she's so utterly cosseted the rest of the time that I know it doesn't traumatise her. How long have you had your dog? I really wouldn't smack a rescue dog - you don't know what's happened to them before they came to you and you could really betray his trust in you and damage the bond.

imnotmymum · 27/07/2012 16:33

I talk to my dog all the time and it understands lots of things. I also talk to the rabbit ...

NonAstemia · 27/07/2012 16:38

imnotmymum
"I talk to my dog all the time and it understands lots of things. I also talk to the rabbit ..."

I talk to my dog all the time, I also talk to my rabbit. Neither understand lots of things.

My dog understands lots of non-verbal communication (some of which I'm not even aware I'm saying, I'm sure) and tone of voice. She also understands some words/phrases in terms of whether they signal that something nice/exciting/nasty/scary are about to occur.

NonAstemia · 27/07/2012 16:42

This book is pricey but fascinating and informative if you want to understand how dogs communicate.

This website has lots of information about the calming signals that dogs use on each other and you. The author, Turid Rugaas is a renowned trainer and author.

NonAstemia · 27/07/2012 16:44

I read that back and it looked as though I was telling you to go off and read this stuff Imnot. I wasn't - it was to the OP/anyone who's interested!

slowestwildebeast · 27/07/2012 16:48

I talk to my cat but she doesn't understand.
Whacking animals is not good. Especially a rescue animal.

theodorakis · 28/07/2012 11:48

I don't think I have ever worked with any trainers, even in the past the dominance theorists and US dog handlers, have advocated hitting a dog ever. In my experience a dog treated with fear and hitting is far more likely to bite. I do realize of course that you are not some kind of crazy power mad dog beater, I am sure many people do sometimes smack but I wouldn't recommend it

Booboostoo · 28/07/2012 12:24

Please don't hit the dog it won't teach him what you want and if you may even get yourself bitten.

Is the dog crate trained? A crate is a great tool (if properly introduced and used) to help avoid chewing accidents.

If he is not interested in the chews you have, try different ones. Most pet shops have a huge selection of different tastes and textures. Kongs stuffed with all sorts of goodies are usually a hit.

Have you done any training with him? Teaching a 'leave it' command is invaluable for getting the dog to drop dangerous things. If you train with treats (usually the most effective reward for most dogs) it's worth starting with a 'leave it' command training to ensure you don't get mollested when you have food.

theodorakis · 28/07/2012 12:53

I quite agree. My latest foster has responded so well to treats and I can put one on the floor and use the leave it command to make him wait. Works great unless one of the bloody cats is hiding in the wings and then swoops in and nicks it

fuzzypicklehead · 28/07/2012 14:58

OP is the dog neutered yet? If not, ask the vets to check his teeth when you take him in for the snip. That way if there are any problems or retained baby teeth, they can take care of them while he's under.

That happened with our dog and he never chewed once the retained teeth were out.

Original poster

Lucyellensmum99 · 28/07/2012 15:12

Had a chew free few days, he s responding well enough to "leave" and "no" so i really don't have any reason to hit him (unless he goes to chew the lap top wire again and he will get a smacked bum - better a tap on the rump than electric shock i should think!).

I think he just needs lots and lots and LOTS of walks and stimuli, hes sensitive and loving and clearly intelligent. My other dog is a bit of a div he is quite happy with his walk, not really fussed about chewing anything wheras this one is just like a toddler, hes into everything.

Hes a bit spoilt, he sleeps on our bed and apart from the chewing he is just perfect, he recently went through a phase of pooing in the house and that seems to have just stopped without us really doing anything. If that makes any sense, i didn't want to bollock him for going to the toilet.

OP posts:

ohmygosh123 · 28/07/2012 16:13

Rescue dogs sometimes seem to be special. For first 10 mths I couldn't even say No to mine without her getting upset. We gradually developed the different voices, but the best thing was to teach her commands - eg "leave it" could also be used to train not to touch DD's toys. Toy type by toy type - and once reinforced she never went near them again. She actually responds to being glared at!

The only thing I can't stop her doing (yet) is going for bones / mouldy cheese if DH leaves a bin bag on the floor and she is unsupervised. But to be fair, I haven't intensively trained for that one, as have just moved.

I second crating - the only thing you have to be aware of is that they can then get territorial about the crate - if you send them to bed for being bad, you are effectively sending them to their safe place. that was a whole separate saga

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