Introduction
Puppies can start chewing on things for various reasons. These reasons can be seen early on. Growing pains such as teething or just boredom from lack of activity can cause puppies to want to chew on things.
Teething happens to puppies just like humans and when teeth start coming in, puppies want something to chew on. The dog looks for something to bite down on whether it is your shoe or a piece of furniture. You may start to see pieces of items all over the place and this could be a reason why.
Lack of activity can cause boredom for the dog in which case they may start chewing on things. You may see your puppy running around chewing on something because they have been alone a lot or may just be bored. It will sometimes cause problems because the puppy will not always just choose one thing to chew on.
Puppies love to play and often will choose a toy to play with. Maybe a shoe or could be a certain piece of clothing. The puppies will often run around the house carrying this item in their mouth thrashing it around, making growling noises. After that take it to a special place for them, perhaps in a corner to start chewing on it.
Puppies can start chewing when they feel that they are being neglected as well. Sometimes they want to show you how they feel by chewing one of your items. This is their way of getting your attention. At times it may even be one of your favorite items that you have told them not to chew on to begin with. Puppies will choose that item at times to grab your attention when they feel that you are not giving them enough or you have be gone too much.
Problems for Dogs that Chew
There can be some potential problems for dogs with chewing. These problems could be because of behavior issues they may be having. The problems could stem from their age, meaning being a puppy or a senior to not getting enough attention. The behavior of chewing can be damaging to your items, such as clothes, shoes, even carpets. When you see an item that is damaged by what you think is your dog’s chewing behavior, be cautious because there may be more items you’re not aware of yet.
Certain items are chewed on because a system for bad behavior was not instilled in them when they were puppies. Training can be done to correct this problem, but it may be more difficult than compared to when they were young. Taking the time to learn early on that your puppy is chewing on items can help you to correct it before it becomes a huge problem.
Older animals have a tendency to act differently than they used to. Perhaps dogs that used to not chew will suddenly chew on your favorite slippers. When a problem occurs with a senior dog, it becomes more of an issue. The dog may not know what it is really doing. Taking care in scolding the dog at this age is important. Removing the items in question could serve to be a better solution to not having them chewed on anymore.
These certain situations can cause potential destructive chewing behavior in dogs. Taking notice of when your dog starts chewing any of your items is the key to trying to prevent future destructive behavior.