Pillow Wars

[Lori, Quincy & Frankie]

When Quincy was 3-4 months, he started in on stealing pillows from the couch-so we put them all away.  Then he started with the bedroom throw pillows (of which I have tons) so we kept him out of the bedrooms if unattended.  He was fairly relentless and after sneaking into the guest and or my sons vacant room he found two "junk" pillows (prizes from a fair my son had won years ago).  I was less attentive to taking those away.  Eventually, they became "his" pillows and he loves to carry them around and shake them back and forth.  We gradually put the couch pillows back and he mostly left those the bedroom ones alone.  When he did'nt we would take the "good" pillow awy and give him a toy or "his" pillow.  The other night he came downstairs with a bedroom pillow and before I noticed, he had a corner chewed off- this is a first with a throw pillow (although he destroyed his crate bedding a few months back). We took the bedroom pillow away, my husband put it on a chair in another room, and I re-directed with his toy. --well devil boy had it back 5 minutes later somewhat smugly chewing away at the stuffing. I was really surprised that he went after it after being told "no" and for taking it off the chair from another room.  

Am I making a mistake by letting him have the "junk" pillows and expecting him to know which pillows are okay and which are off limits?  My husband thinks so, but I think Q-boy is smart enough to know which are his and which are not. Funny thing is he doesn't chew holes in "his" pillows, he saves that for my expensive pillows that match the comforter and were given to me by my sister!  

Should I throw out "his" pillows and ban him from having any at all?   

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

I have no advice, but your story reminded me of one of my fosters.  Her name was Somer and she came with this Shrek pillow.  She used to love to just wrap her paws around it and suck on the corner.  It left here with her when she left!  My Sophie takes all of the pillows off the Sofa.  She doesn't want them, she just doesn't want them on the Sofa.  Our Lucy on the other hand is 77 lbs and if you put a 6" square pillow on the Sofa she will get up there and try and just position herself right on top of the pillow like she is sitting on it. 

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

This is so adorable.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Ned used to unzip and de-stuff our living room pillows but has always left pillows without a zipper alone.  How did he know the difference in pillows? I have NO idea, yet he did.  We were able to put the zippered pillows away until he outgrew it - which he did.  I would put your pretty and expensive pillows away for now and perhaps it will break the habit.

[Lori, Quincy & Frankie]

[Star and Goldie]

This picture is great. Haha. I love it. I really like that fluffy black throw on your bed... oh wait...

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

we used to have this same comforter set!  Looks much better with a fluffy black throw though.  We didn't have ours at the time!

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Ours do this too.  So much for trying to keep your pillowcases 'clean.'

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I've always been a firm believer in not giving a dog any kind of "toy" that resembles real items in your home. To me, it would be like giving the dog an old shoe that you were going to throw out and then expecting him to only chew that shoe and not your good ones. They both smell the same to the dog. The problem with the "junk" pillows is that they have your family's scent on them, and they probably smell a lot like your good pillows. If one pillow that smells like his pack is okay to throw around and chew, they all are.

I know this will be hard to do, but I would take them away. Give him new toys that don't smell like anybody he knows, and keep all of his toys in a basket or some other container to make a clear divison in his mind between his toys and all other household objects.

 

[Deanna & Desi & Cori]

I also have no advice, but am reminded of my own situation.  Sedona used to steal kitchen towels quite frequently - mostly because she knew she'd get a treat if she "dropped it".  For some reason, the stealing stopped.  However, about a month ago, it mysteriously reappeared.  No clue why!!!

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I think it's asking quite a bit to expect him to differentiate.  I would make pillows in general off limits and give him other "toy options".

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

My friend's parents had a beautiful Golden Retriever that would go in and get the DH's bed pillow and carry it around. He would take naps with that pillow. I would allow him to have one junk pillow and put the others away. I think it is like a security blanket. We allowed our old Lab to have two stuffed animals. She always wanted to carry around a stuffed Chocolate Lab or her "Moosie". Our second Lab preferred an ugly stuffed possum. I think it is just something quirky that makes each dog unique.

[Kimmy & Chewie]

I DO think dogs are smart enough to know the boundaries. Chewie, for example, is NOT allowed on the couch or bed in our apartment, but is allowed in my sister's (1 floor down). And he understands this and does not broken these rules.

When we go on a holiday, I allow him on the bed with us (since it's not really OUR bed, but the hotel's). He does hog the pillows like Quincy does  :)