Destructive behaviour

1523 Views 22 Replies 8 Participants Last post by chip18, 3 mo ago

Sugarshaw

Discussion Starter · 4 mo ago

Hi, first post here but Iv been lurking a good while.
im now on my third boxer and I adore the breed. However I’m having trouble with my puppy Chester he’s 19 months old and whenever we leave him In the house (never more than 3 hours) he gets destructive with mainly his beds and then the sofa. His little brother rocky doesn’t bother at all. Just recently it’s got worse to the point I’m having to go get a crate for him tomorrow, he’s eaten part of a door today while we were out for a hour.
They all get 3 walks a day, 2 short 15 min walks morning and lunch then a long walk in the evening of around 45 mins, and I have a large garden they stretch their legs in so he gets loads of exercise.
Surely he’s not teething at this age? Whenever we go out he gets a kong and he’s got loads of chew toys.
he’s also left with his brother rocky so he’s not lonely or bored. Any ideas? Desperate for help. Heres a pic of them together

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· #5 · 4 mo ago

This is separation anxiety, my male Boxer that i have now went thru this. One of the keys to correcting this is the crate if he will accept it, another is when you do come home after being away don’t make over him when you come home ignore him for about ten minutes or so I know this sounds cold but if you make over him when you come in it reinforces his anxiety about you being gone. My male gets plenty of exercise and I have his half sister here all the time with him so that was not a factor with him.

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· #8 · 4 mo ago

Well the crate thing was a problem for me because he would not crate he actually made his mouth bleed trying to get out and that’s a no go for me. I ended up baby gating him in the kitchen for a time and he was fine with that. I tried the treats in the kong thing with him to chew on but he didn’t care about food he wanted to be with me. I did the short time away from the house thing and tried to leave when he was already tired from his outdoor activities, ignore him when I came home and he just pretty much got over it. It took about 3 months of this for him to stop being destructive about it, he still to this day worries a bit when I leave but my house is fine when I come back! He will be 4 in February.I still ignore him when I come home from being out I really do think this really helps because if you make over them when you come home it’s like rewarding them for being anxious. I would try the crate I don’t know how big your dog is but he should be able to stand up and turn around in the crate without touching it and have a crate mat.

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· #14 · 4 mo ago

He doesn’t want to come in because he knows its crate time. When calling him get his favorite toy and speak it as your calling him in when he comes in maybe give him a treat These dogs are super smart so maybe don’t immediately crate him when he comes back in mix it up so he can’t anticipate what’s going on. My dogs are loose in my house and they do get on my furniture and beds. I never have night crated. I don’t have any problems with my dog at all

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· #22 · 3 mo ago

I would never take a puppy to a dog park, the threat of disease and worm infestation is huge at those places. They are a fantastic way for the puppy to learn bad behavior with negative interactions with dogs that are out of control. A better option is a more controlled environment with a play date with a mentally stable dog

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