To rehome our dog?

[Rumplestiltskint]

We have a 6 month old labrador. We love him dearly but are at the end of our tether with his destructiveness. We are moving into rented accommodation soon and we are really worried he's going to do something to the house.

He digs up the lawn and we have had to relay the turf, we normally put him in his crate when we go out but the last few times we have left him in the front room with a chew and his toys (we never leave him for more than 2 hours and always walk him before we go), anyway we arrived home and he had torn our new sofa apart.... Insurance are going to pay for it. This morning I got out of teh shower to find he had done the same thing to the other sofa, as well as scratched the hell out of the floorboards.

We can't watch him constantly and don't know what to do... We're not irresponsible owners, walk him, he plays with other dogs daily, we play games with him, crate him at night... We're now worried he will damage the rented house we are moving into...

Crating. Definitely.

I also had that worry that the crate was too small for our dog, but please do remember that he is a dog, not a human.

The crate needs to be fairly small so that the dog feels safe and secure - that's the whole point. A human would feel confined and unhappy in a small crate, but don't fall into the trap of applying human reasoning and feelings to someone who is not human.

Also, you will find that housetraining comes on in leaps and bounds if you keep the crate small enough. The dog won't want to foul his 'nest' so will hold it until he is let out. If the crate (or pen) is too large, he will just leave the nest and foul the area away from his bed and defeat the object.

We didn't take our eyes of our pup until he was well over a year old. If we were in the shower or otherwise away from him, he went into his crate. Still had a few chewing mishaps, but they were our fault, not the dog's.

Good luck - if you want any more help, please head over to the Doghouse where there are loads of dog experts, vets and behaviourists who will be more than happy to lend a hand (paw).

tabulahrasa my lab, JRT and Newfoundland chewed right through my dining room wall when we were in bed

We heard an odd grinding noise during the night but decided it must be outside... then discovered three very proud looking hounds in the morning sitting next to their handy work with plaster dust all over their faces. Bless em!

OP it sounds like you are genuinely more interested in advice and help for your dog rather than seriously considering rehoming, I would recommend crating whilst you are out leaving plenty of toys to occupy him in there. He will grow out of it, as someone who's dogs have destroyed walls (as above), dining tables, sofas, carpets, doors, a washing machine and all of the kitchen units they could reach, I am only recently at the point where I can leave them unattended without returning to chaos. The eldest is 3 so it may take some time!! And certainly will take endless patience and hard work. You do learn to laugh at these things I promise...

He sounds like a character, good luck with him

How long are people keeping their dogs in crates?

Not while they're at work surely?

Mine was a nightmare for chewing as a pup (they are teething after all!). Kitchen units, doors, sofa, other furniture - you name it she would chew it. We used a crate when we were out and it was a god send. When we were with her there was zero tolerance of chewing (used a water spray to reinforce the message) and she is now a fantastic dog who never chews anything and can be left alone in the house with no problems. 6 months is very young and it takes a lot of time and effort to get them to the point where you can trust them in the house alone.

How long are people keeping their dogs in crates

Max 1-2 hours during the day if we were out and overnight for the first year or so.

Surely nobody would be silly enough to get a puppy if they worked out of the home???

You can buy some metal panels to create a pen around the crate if you need to go out for more than a couple of hours. It is a ball ache but it is worth it in the long run as I am sure you will eventually find you have a great dog on your hands.

Cakeme - this is where some people's brains have a meltdown. They get a dog and think sticking it in a crate or outside all day is perfectly fine :(

Itsaruddy - they shouldn't be in it for more than a couple of hours!

You can buy some metal panels to create a pen around the crate if you need to go out for more than a couple of hours

A young puppy really shouldn't be left for more than a couple of hours - it is stressful for them and that will just exacerbate the destructive behaviours.

You would be amazed how many people get a puppy even though they work 9-5.
I know at least 2 families that have just got puppies, one is left outside all day and the other is crated all day.
The outside one is now being rehomed.

Although saying that, me and DH both work 9-5 but we take the dogs to work with us.

I never crated my puppies for more than a few hours at a time during the day either.

Goldship I am at home all day aside from the school run or walks with DC4 and DC5 and the dogs come with us then anyway. We used the crate at weekends if we went out shopping or somewhere fun for DC and at nights they still use the crate as a bed with the door open (their choice).

TBH I think if anyone needs to crate their dog for more than an hour or two occasionally then they sadly don't have time for a dog.

See I never kept them in overnight. They slept in my room that way I could respond to them quickly. My most recent dog was pretty much house trained in two weeks. Though I understand that dogs in the bedroom is not for everyone.

The point being that I've never crated for more than an hour or two a day.

My dogs sleep on the floor at the bottom of my bed. They sometimes try to sneak in bed too.

It's good because one of the regularly checks if I'm still alive when hungover.

I also wake up to a nose pressed on mine, looking into Stars big brown eyes. Shits me up. Good alarm clock though, they don't let me overlie.

Ours sleeps on our bed now - he just needed a bit of time to worm his furry little self into DH's affections

I guess for us 'being asleep' fell into the category of not being able to supervise him.

Did you find that things got chewed overnight if the pup wan;t crated overnight?

wasn't

We shut our otherwiase adorable destructive dog in the kitchen when she is alone. That includes night time and when I am in bed for a few hours a day. She is quite happy there and there is not much she could harm.

Yabu to rehome your dog because of this. It comes with having a puppy. In the same way as you wouldn't leave a 2 year old in a room with felt tip pens and expect them not to have drawn on the walls when you come back 2 hours later.
Get a crate, or leave your dog in a room where there is nothing valuable to chew, with it's own chew toys.
Our dog is 18 months old and still stays in the kitchen when we are out because she likes to rip the stuffing out of cushions and also enjoys toilet roll parties which while cheap to replace and a bugger to clean up. t. In the kitchen there is nothing soft and fluffy to chew, only table legs and chairs which she isn't interested in (since I smeared horseradish on and she had a go) and her own bed which is cheap and made of rip stop waterproof fabric.

I had a rottweiler and when she was 4 months old had a dog trainer come to our house for an hour and give us tips on training her. A very good tip was buying a konk (big one) filing it with treats and wet food and freezing it over night it kept her busy for hours while we were at work. For her barking and if she went to do something she shouldnt he had us fin a tin can with little pebbles seal it with tape and if we saw her going somewhere to nibble or anything like that we would throw it near her. It distracted her and became the norm she associated it as something not to do.

She never chewed and never destroyed anything and was an indoor dog. But we also exercised her a lot.

Sorry I haven't read the whole of this thread but what really makes me mad is when people say that they really love their dog but want to rehome . If you really loved him you would be looking at anyway of not getting rid of him . You don't rehome things you love just because they chew up a few material items and cost some money. In your dogs case I think you should rehome and let's hope his next owners have given dog ownership a bit more thought than you did and really love him and his normal puppy behaviour.

He is suffering from separation anxiety, plus teething, plus toddler mischief. Its like you leaving a toddler to go and have a shower, and they rip the wallpaper, empty the washing powder all over the floor, crayon all over the wall...it does not stay like this forever - you wont find a normal 7 year old still doing those things!

As long as you have been completely honest about the fact you only ever leave him for 2 hours, then this is absolutely crackable. the problem would be if he is left alone all day (people do this without breaking up the day even with a dog walker etc and wonder why a dog destroys!)

The plan, which WILL work:

Plenty of off lead running every day

Crate him when you are not with him, even if in same house..you can get showers, cook, put dc to bed whatever in peace.

Buy plenty of large hide chews, of different shapes, some dogs find a fave shape, mine not too keen on the ones with twist at each end but love the cigar and bone shaped ones.

Buy the large black Kong from pets at home/online etc and fill with ANY food, and freeze it overnight if he empties it too quickly. Leave Kong in crate with chew toys if you are going to leave the house. If you are staying near where he can hear/see you, don't leave the Kong with him just the hide chews..save the Kong for when you go out.You might need to buy a few and keep ready stuffed in freezer.

Play this on loop repeat when you go out :

or search you tube for others and make a cd of mixes, there are loads of dog relaxation videos on there.

Good luck I promise it gets better! Once he is older, he wont be ripping your furniture, and one day, when you are through the toddler stage, you will be able to leave him uncrated!

You have finally tempted me out of lurking. I don't have children, don't plan to, but I come on hear mainly to learn so I can offer support to my sister in law, with her newborn. Babies are still a mystery to me, but I have been involved in dog training for nearly 4 years - no qualifications though.

You have already had some fantastic advice. I have two Labradors - one aged 4 and or aged six months. I honestly forgot how god-awful and annoying puppies can be at times, but I still love mine!

Labradors take their time growing up. My big dog was very bouncy until he hit two years old and he has honestly matured into a lovely, placid boy. I would trust him (but never leave him unsupervised) with children. He hasn't got an aggressive bone in his body and I know many people who would love to take him home. However, at six months old he was exactly the same as my current pup, and yours from the sound of things. I read somewhere that labs are at risk of being rehomed from around the age of yours, because of their energy levels. I will never regret working through that time with my big lad. My pup is a character. Well developed sense of sarcasm, fearless and not subtle. But he WILL be a lovely big boy.

My advice - crate training, or at least a safe space when you are out is key. Our big dog had to earn the run of the house, and we didn't try it until at least 18 months. The best thing to do is put your dog in the crate tired. Never use it as punishment, and leave your dog be when he is in there. He will associate it with calm and good things. One thing about labs - they can run all day but make them use their brain and it tires them out very quickly. Make him find hidden treats under supervision, give him interesting toys and then let him rest.

Give him things to chew, so he doesn't find stuff in your house. Rawhide is good but I would never leave my dog unsupervised with it as it is a risk of choking. Try a nylabone, or a Stag Bar (a piece of antler), which will last. Filling a Kong with biscuits, adding a touch of water and plugging it with peanut butter and freezing it is also an option.

Teething is probably a factor. Knotted, wet frozen tea towel was soothing for the big dog. Puppy crunches on ice cubes (nice!).

Ongoing dog training is also invaluable. My trainer ran a week long "boot camp" that helped my big dog grow up.

The "op" will also help. I managed to wait 9 months before the op for the big dog. On the pup's six month birthday, I was very ready to book the op. Every dog is different. Remember though, it will take a few months for the testosterone to leave his body.

Hope that helps. At the end of the day, only you can decide if you and your family can stick with it. If you can't cope, please, please find somewhere with a policy of non euthanasia. Labs can give so much.

anyone who is rehoming a 6 month old puppy in any but the most extreme circumstances is unreasonable, it happens often and usually means the owners didn't properly consider what dog ownership would be like, which is what has happened here.

it is your fault if your dog chews things, not the dog's. It doesn't differentiate between a nice chew toy and your sofa, it will choose to chew whichever one feels nicer to chew until you have taught him what is and isn't ok to chew. In order to do that a dog needs constant supervision and so a crate is helpful for when you can't supervise, but they are not to be abused and used as a place to just shut the dog when you can't be bothered. You do have to alter your life to fit around a puppy for quite a while, which means few or no trips out without the dog etc.