My cattle dog mix wants to chew on everything! (border collie, labs, bulldog)
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Lola, our year old cattle dog mix has not stopped chewing since adopting her in May. She chews on her toys, bones, rawhide sticks, and targets furniture, cabinets, clothing, shoes, paper, boxes, anything she can get a hold of, plus wants to chew on the cat, on us. I've sprayed Bitter Apple on a few things but the chewing is out of hand. She gets long walks and I play games with her but is the chewing an indication that she simply isn't getting enough stimulation? I've never had this problem with my other dogs.
You have my sympathy. My French Bulldog was/is very difficult to train not to chew. There are few pieces of wood furniture in my house that have not been chewed.
She has at least six chews (stabilized wood or antler) available at any time. Anti-chew sprays work temporarily, but one has to reapply them constantly. Fortunately, most of my furniture was secondhand stuff I bought as a student--which is not to say I didn't like it. I'm pretty sure she did her worst when I was not home. I probably should have confined to her a crate every time I left the house. One night she chewed my handmade, solid oak, Santa Fe style dresser. She had chewed the plastic zipper on her crate and could get out. She now sleeps in a metal crate. I will say that at 18 months, she is much better.
I am gradually replacing the old, chewed furniture with new and when I get a new piece, I do an elaborate and forceful presentation of the idea that it is MINE! She's not allowed on it or close to it. So far, this has worked pretty well.
Lack of stimulation would be my first thought, but I'm a long way away, and can't see through the lenses of the forum all that well! Seriously, though, we really can't tell a whole lot from this end. But you say "long walks" - I'd expect a cattle dog to do better with a run. You mention games, that might do well for the work desire. But I'd think it also might be real marginal.
The dog is also still just a pup. She'll be full of energy for the next year or two. One thing is likely - she will not be like other dogs. I thought I knew a lot about dogs - until I had to deal with herding dogs of my own. Their motivations are more complex, their reactions are more complex. They can be bossier, they have more of a sense of time. Except when they are chasing or herding - then their focus is phenomenal. They are confident of their own opinion, but not in the way of a livestock guardian dog.
I've not had any luck at all with anti-chew sprays. YMMV.
You might have luck with something like flyball - or training for obstacles. Mine enjoy obstacles a bit - with lots of treats. But if they get a chance to work with animals? They live for that - there is nothing that comes close. Their happiness at getting to work animals is just - I don't know what. But it is there. They love it, more than anything - even more than food.
PUPPIES CHEW EVERYTHING! I had been adopting older dogs for forty years and there was little chewing. Then fourteen years ago I found a puppy who needed help. She chewed everything. She even chewed the woodwork on a stairway. This went on for about a year, then tapered off over the next couple of years. Now she's fourteen and never chews anything but her food. So take heart! It's not forever.
Lola, our year old cattle dog mix has not stopped chewing since adopting her in May. She chews on her toys, bones, rawhide sticks, and targets furniture, cabinets, clothing, shoes, paper, boxes, anything she can get a hold of, plus wants to chew on the cat, on us. I've sprayed Bitter Apple on a few things but the chewing is out of hand. She gets long walks and I play games with her but is the chewing an indication that she simply isn't getting enough stimulation? I've never had this problem with my other dogs.
Agree its most likely lack of stimulation, frustration, boredom. Cattledogs tend to be puppies until about 2 years old. You do need to keep catching her in the act to have much impact. Most herders thrive on your approval. If you deny it to them it makes a dent. If you cannot keep your eyes on her she probably needs to be confined or leashed to you. YOU control the goodies; treats, exercise, social time, praise, etc. When she is out loose (where there are temptations) praise her for leaving your stuff alone and sticking to her chews, even if its just for a minute. As soon as she transgresses, she loses your company.
Some dogs stay puppies longer than others. We had labs for a while, and they're puppies for a good 2 years, including chewing. I can't tell you how many good shoes/boots or other things were destroyed by a lab puppy in zero time while my back was turned. So frustrating.
All you can really do is limit their access to anything you don't want them to chew. it's really the easiest option. Giving them access to things you don't want them to chew, will required a lot of time and effort and ability to watch them every second. if you have that kind of time and energy - great. if not, just restrict their access to anything you care about until they grow out of the chewing phase. Either restrict them to an area of the house or to a run or the yard or their crate, etc.
There are a few ways to approach this. Not only does a herding breed need physical stimulation, but mental as well and trust me, mental stimulation is exhausting for them!!
Also, when you catch her with something she's not to chew on, distract her with something she can chew. You can utilize the leave it technique with this. Have her "leave it" and when she ceases, hand her something she can chew on.
Herding breeds, as a rule, want to please. Our Cleo loved learning!! She knew all commands through voie and hand gestures as well. She did so many tricks that her vet would go home and try to get her own border collie mix to learn them, I'm certain Miss Sophie was dreading each time she caught a whiff of Cleo on her mom
Agree its most likely lack of stimulation, frustration, boredom.
This was my first thought too, and it may very well be this plus the dog's age...BUT...if it is an incessant, obsessive behaviour there might be some underlying psychological aspect going on as well. If there is, then the cause will need to be addressed in order to overcome the problem. So if all other methods continue to fail, then bringing on a good behaviourist may help.
There are a few ways to approach this. Not only does a herding breed need physical stimulation, but mental as well and trust me, mental stimulation is exhausting for them!!
Also, when you catch her with something she's not to chew on, distract her with something she can chew. You can utilize the leave it technique with this. Have her "leave it" and when she ceases, hand her something she can chew on.
Herding breeds, as a rule, want to please. Our Cleo loved learning!! She knew all commands through voie and hand gestures as well. She did so many tricks that her vet would go home and try to get her own border collie mix to learn them, I'm certain Miss Sophie was dreading each time she caught a whiff of Cleo on her mom
Going to do some remedial training, ie., with the "leave it" command. Lola does get crated when we leave the house--not only because she can be destructive but for the protection of 2 of the 3 cats. Cat #1 is her buddy, but also her "herdee" (is that a word?). Lola's daytime "walks" are always off leash so she can run and she does. It's fun to watch her run at top speed doing her imaginary obstacle course--that does burn energy! Being used to labs, it's challenging living with a cattle dog so I'm trying to learn all I can about this breed.
Yesterday when out for our early a.m. walk, we heard coyote packs from two directions and they were close. I leashed Lola, she grabbed the leash in her mouth and ran us toward the house--SMART!
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