Stop the Digging

[Renee Grogan]

Does anyone know how to stop your doodle from digging?  We really try to exercise our doodle and play with her but she still loves to dig. 

[Eva]

Yes please tell..... My darn doodle will dig in the dirt then lay in the hole. I know she does this too cool herself, but going into the air conditioned house is her option too, but she prefers the cold dirt on her skin. Oink oink. She might have a little swine in her bloodline I think...

[Diana Allen]

Hey there... Cagney does the same thing.... right now we are trying to grow some grass in some spots where our two dogs have peeed..... We now have to put chairs on top of the grass seed or Cagney will dig it up and lay in the dirt..... he has squashed plants in our garden last summer and we hope to get him out of the habit... What helps is keeping a childs plastic pool around for cooling off in so they don't mess up the yard or garden.... let me know if you have found something else that works.....

[Ann Kendig]

Is there an area in your yard that you can designate as an area where your doodle is allowed to dig? My Sheba loves to dig and I couldn't get her to stop. We do have an outdoor kennel with gravel. When she wants to dig she runs into the kennel and digs in the gravel then I just rake it back into place later. I will be interested to see what others post as I couldn't get her to stop this behavior. Another behavior I would love to stop is rolling in stinky things!! : )

[Adina P]

I see only three options for digging:

1) Don't allow her outside unsupervised for long enough to dig.
2) rigorous obedience training plus #1 above
3) provide a digging area (sand box) where she can dig.

Can you tell why she is digging (do you have moles?  Is it to get somewhere?  Is it to lay in a hole?  Are there worms in the soil she is eating?)

[Ann Kendig]

I know Sheba digs because we have moles and she loves to dig for worms...then she rolls on them. Once when we are out in our woods she found a ground hog hole. She was digging faster than I had ever seen her dig before! I don't think she's ever seen one but the smell drives her crazy. I don't like for her to get close to anything in those woods and we always have them on leash when we are there. We stick to the trails for several reasons. Mostly to keep them from running off but also to keep them away from the wildlife and it lessens the chance of them getting covered in burrs. I don't allow her to dig while we are at the woods, just in the kennel. Our dogs are not allowed out without supervision and Sheba would start digging even if I was standing next to her!!! She has gotten much better about the digging since I allowed her to dig in the kennel.
Now, I can recognize when she is getting ready to dig as she wags her tail when she is sniffing the ground. That almost always means there in a mole!!!!

[Renee Grogan]

We do have a great deal of chipmunks so that could be part of it as she's digging into their holes sometimes. But she also just loves to dig, chew grass, etc. She's not digging to get anywhere. She digs in the middle of the yard, under plants, next to the sidewalk, etc.

[Carla, Lucca and Izzy]

With our Golden Retriever we buried her poo where she liked to dig. I had read that somewhere and it worked. Didn't work for Lucca though:) I only allow it in certain areas.

As to rolling in stinky stuff...the problem is one second they are just smelling, the next second they are rolling in something only they see. Very frustrating and very stinky!!!

[Ann Kendig]

So far I guess I'm lucky as Sheba is the only one that rolls in stuff. Duke just smells what ever it is and either tries to eat it or walks away without rolling in it. : )

[Lynn & Sadie in WI]

Carla, what I found works for me is to fill the hole in with the dirt, then I put some of their poop on top of it and let it there. They won't dig in that spot again. Luckily mine have been on the edges of the yard, so not in the most traveled areas but the poop on top of the filled in hole stopped them from digging in that same spot. I didn't have trouble with them digging any place else either.

[Amy]

My trainer suggested that I put some of my dogs poop in the holes then cover it up. It has worked wonders around our house. Might be worth a try!

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

A trainer once told me to put a blown up balloon in a hole and cover it up. When the dog digs in that area, the balloon pops.

[Ann Kendig]

That's an interesting idea, I wonder how well it works. My Duke would probably run away when it popped but Sheba would find it intriguing I'm afraid.