Have you noticed that your puppy is chewing everything in sight? There are many reasons that your puppy is doing this, but one of the main reasons is that your young puppy is TEETHING.
Other reasons that your puppy is chewing everything, especially if they are older, could be out of boredom or it could be their curious nature. Your puppy may be chewing things to figure out textures and tastes.
Since your puppy may be chewing everything, I want to share with you some proactive steps that you can take to help your puppy.
Step 1: Give your puppy dog-approved chew toys
I recommend that you get ahead and provide your puppy with appropriate chew toys like a Himalayan chew or a bully stick, or maybe something in the medium range like a Whimzee for puppies. You may want to also consider additional textures like a stuffed animal or a squeak toy. When giving these chew toys to your puppies, you will want to monitor their behavior so they aren’t choking or ingesting pieces of them.
Here’s my favorite Whimzee treat that I want to share with you.
Step 2: Limit the amount of freedom you give your puppy
The biggest mistake that I see happen all the time is that puppies get too much freedom. I recommend giving your puppy freedom to a small section of the house that is already puppy-proofed, then slowly give them more freedom as they earn it.
If your puppy is chewing up your furniture, then you need to manage your puppy’s environment. You can get your puppy a playpen, or put your puppy in a puppy approved bathroom.
I highly recommend having a long term confinement area and a short term confinement area for your puppy. For example, a long term area could be a playpen where your puppy can roam and play safely for hours. For the short term area, you could have your puppy in a crate if you are gone for a short period of time.
Step 3: Get your puppy’s attention
If your puppy is still getting into your furniture or other things that your puppy shouldn’t be chewing, then you need to try and get your puppy’s attention by using a squeak toy.
Try to prompt your puppy to look away so your puppy can relearn what is appropriate to chew on. Don’t forget, it’s not ideal to pull your puppy away but rather get your puppy’s attention.
This should help get you started on helping with your puppy chewing problems…and remember this takes time and it won’t happen overnight!