How To Stop Puppy Chewing

If you have a puppy, then I'm sure you have discovered that puppies love to chew.  Most of us understand that and don't have a problem with it.  What we have a problem with is when our puppy starts chewing things they shouldn't.  That is when we begin to want to stop puppy chewing.  Dogs love to chew.  Sometimes they might be chewing because they are bored, or because they might be teething.  You don't want to try to stop your dog from chewing.  You actually just want to redirect their chewing to more appropriate things.

Why Try To Stop Puppy Chewing?

When your dog is a puppy, that is the best time to train.  Dogs are most open to learning new behaviors and the right and wrong behaviors for living in your home when they are young.  If you don't stop puppy chewing, then many dogs will continue to think they can chew anything they want as they get older.  You will be having constant battles with your dog about what they chew.  Now is the time to learn how to stop puppy chewing.

How to Stop Puppy Chewing

I'm sure most of you know this already, but harsh discipline with a dog doesn't work.  All you end up doing is creating a nervous, fearful dog.  When you catch your dog chewing inappropriate things there are much more effective things to do rather than yelling or harsh discipline.  Let's look at a few.

1.  Redirect - Remember that you goal is not to stop your puppy from all chewing.  Your goal is to have them only chew appropriate things.  When you see your dog chewing something inappropriate like shoes, don't yell, freak out, or hit your dog.  Simply take the shoe away and replace it with an appropriate chew toy.  When you dog begins to chew on the chew toy, praise your dog for chewing on the chew toy.  Your dog will soon learn that the chew toy is good for chewing, while the shoes are bad.

2.  Fight Boredom - One of the main reasons that dogs begin to chew on things they shouldn't is simply because they get bored.  So to stop puppy chewing, make sure your dog isn't getting to bored.  Dogs will chew just to be active.  Make sure your dog is getting lots of activity and exercise.  When they get lots of activity they will have an easier time when they are alone.  A dog all alone with lots of energy is a recipe for disaster.  Make sure you have lots of dog toys for them so they have appropriate things to focus on.  Praise them whenever they play with their toys.

3.  Crate Training - If you have to leave your dog alone a lot during the day, then you really want to think about crate training your dog to help stop puppy chewing.  Crate training your puppy will be an important step in keeping them out of trouble while you are gone.

4.  Sprays - There are actually some safe sprays you can get to spray on items that you don't want your dog to chew on.  These sprays have a bad taste to dogs and so they will often leave those items alone.  This is an option that may help, but from my experience, get a dog bored enough and they will chew even the most foul tasting thing if it looks fun to them.

5.  Consistency - With any type of dog training, consistency is critical.  You will never stop puppy chewing if you aren't consistent in your methods.  The tips mentioned in this article will work, but only if you consistently implement them.  If you do, your puppy will learn fairly quickly and you won't have to be fighting the chewing battles in the future.

Remember chewing is normal and healthy for a puppy.  You just want to make sure you are directing your dogs chewing behaviors to appropriate things.

For more help on how to stop puppy chewing, please check out our small dog training resources page.