Help before I kill him!

[Amy & Bernie]

Okay, the title is a bit dramatic. But we have what I consider a serious problem.

Bernie has been getting into things and it's driving me crazy that I can't trust him all of a sudden!

A few facts:

- Up until a couple weeks ago he had NEVER chewed or gotten into anything that wasn't his.

- I realize the above statement is unusual in itself, but I promise it's true.

- He turned 1 this month.

- We were out of town for a bit a few weeks back, but this wasn't the first time we've left him, and other than that his schedule, routine, etc. has been the same as always - no trauma.

- When left alone he's getting into the bathroom trash, ate a book, tore up a shopping bag and ate the handle off a resistance band for working out.

I realize the first step is remembering to always shut the bathroom and closet doors, etc., and we're working on it but it' such a weird thing to have to remember to do now, a whole year later!

Is this a phase? Has anyone experienced this? Do they get over it or is there anything specific we need to be doing to address it, not just prevent him from having the opportunity?

[K and Racey]

We are having the same problem. Racey was in our fenced back yard and ripped part of the gutter off. Apparently it was delicious. We just keep hanging in there and trying to keep things out of her reach that she shouldn't have.

As a side note, we keep Racey crated when we are not home and she doesn't mind it at all. We do it for her safety. There are just too many things that she could get into that could kill her.

[Jennifer and Jack]

He is bored and not getting enough things to do to stimulate him or keep him out of trouble, at least that is what it sounds like to me.

 

How much exercise is he getting? Does he have safe creative outlets to get his energy out? Can you bring him to a dog park or day care or even Pet Smart to let him play around a bit?

 

It is not just preventing him from getting into things, it is giving him things to do to occupy him. Sorry he is driving you crazy.

[Adina P]

Rosco didn't counter surf until the age of FOUR.  So sometimes they just didn't pick up on the fun they could have if they tried something new.  I wouldn't necessarily look for some deep seated reason or cause because it may be as simple as he's JUST discovered the fun of chewing up certain things.  Who knows!?  I vote for re-crating or gating in an area he can't cause harm to himself or your stuff.  It won't hurt him to be crated even though he's potty-trained, it's free, doesn't require correction or added training and it works every time.

[Wendy and Eddie]

One of my dogs have a several week spell when he turned one of being absolutely awful! So I can sympathize with your predicament. After a couple of weeks, he went back to following the rules, but it was not fun while it lasted!!

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

If you think back to those 3 times he has left you messes, can you tie those to days that he was left home longer than normal either that day or possibly the day or two before that?  I found that they only time my girls chewed anything up were the times that they were getting less exercise than normal (and by exercise I mean more than just a daily walk or two).  Days that it was raining or snowing and they were stuck in the house a lot.  Otherwise, they never chewed up anything.  Maybe he missed the dog park for a few days because of your schedules or something like that.

[Jaime and Barley Barker]

Before I forget, I love the photo!

 

Barley was perfect until he turned 6 months old and then he became evil. He was never destructive before, but he started going after my things. Fortunately, it was a temporary phase. I went back to square one with the training. It's a little odd though that Bernie is just starting to do this at a year old. It sounds like Bernie might be bored, and possibly a little mad at you. I do think animals can get annoyed at their people and act out sometimes. Barley used to go after my things in particular, and I'm also thinking of a specific cat that started peeing specifically on my stepdad's clothes (that cat would dig through the laundry basket, bypass everyone else's stuff, and then pee only on my stepdad's clothing.) Are you leaving Bernie for longer periods of time? Is it he getting as much attention as he used to? Is there a new pet? Is there any slight change that could be stressing him? For example, did you move his bed, change his feeding time, throw out a favorite toy, etc.? Is there something stressful he might be observing from the window, like a new scary dog across the street?

 

As far as a solution, I suggest more exercise both physically and mentally. For example, longer walks, new toys that might challenge him mentally, doing some more training to tire him out mentally, maybe teach him a new trick, etc. I also suggest trying to spend more one-on-one time with him if you have other pets. Barley seemed kind of depressed to the point that I would have taken him to the vet last week if he didn't always perk up to play frisbee or eat. Last week, I did a "mommy and me" day and took him on a day trip to a park a couple of hours away. Our little adventure made a huge difference, and he has been his exuberant self since then.

[Amy & Bernie]

I'm thinking Adina may be right on with the theory that Bernie just figured out how much more interesting chewing things other than his toys can be! I work from home so he's definitely gets tons of attention, and on top of that his activity level has increased, if anything, because I want to be out in this summer weather too! But yes, we're going to reduce his access to parts of the house and make a point to leave a number of his treat dispensing toys around before we leave - and full!

You've all had great ideas in regards to what could be "motivating him" but I genuinely can't pinpoint anything out of the ordinary - which has added to my frustration - like he's challenging me by increasing the bar! 

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Around 11 months old, we started trusting Peri to leave her uncrated. After she hit 1, she started destroying things and we started restricting her again.  Fast forward to Age 2 - we can now leave her out; however, she still gets bored and if you leave any paper around, she shreds. 

 

My point is:  this is normal.  I know it is frustrating, but you may have to go back to crating until he can be trusted.

[Camilla and Darwin]

Darwin became a little stinker from about 8 months to 1 1/2 years. We just kept being consistent and we seem to be through that phase. Hang in there!

[Jess and Pippin]

We went through a stage like this with our previous dog (cavalier/poodle cross).  We found that keeping his brain busy (lots of new tricks), lots of physical activity, puppy proof like crazy etc. really helped.  Pippin (our 6 month old goldendoodle) is full of puppy mischief.  We haven't had an "easy" stage yet!  Our breeder told us that he was the class clown, and he certainly is living up to his reputation.  If you are a Lord of the Rings fan, he was named Pippin for a reason!!  He is very smart and gets bored easily and then goes looking for something to keep himself occupied (trouble!).  Kongs, orbie treat dispensers, lots of play, training, bully sticks to keep him busy.  We take turns keeping an eye on him (there are 4 humans in this family) and correct him as soon as we notice him getting into trouble.  We do crate him for short periods of time if he can't be watched, or use a baby gate to contain him in the same room we are in.  He loves to retrieve shoes, pillows, socks, towels, dishrags, tablecloths, mats.. basically anything soft.  He is good if we interrupt the behaviour (a firm AH_AH works for us).  If we miss that, what we found has worked is instead of scolding him, turning this into a "bring it" game and trying hard not to laugh because he is so proud of himself!  The drop it command has saved many a towel and sock and I must say that my 2 teens have never done a better job of picking up after themselves!  Much easier than trying to convince Pippin to give up a prize.  Hang in there, persevere and try to keep a sense of humour.  It is tiring, but at the end of the day (year??) you will have a well behaved dog.