Chewing up my kitchen Island!!!

[Molly&Douglas]

Hi,  I'm wondering if there is a tried and true way to deter a dog from chewing on furniture!!  Besides the obvious...put him in a crate.  Douggie outgrew his crate a couple of months ago.  He will be 7 months on Friday. I had the summer off of work and am now back at it.  I have been gating him in the kitchen (with several chew toys) which went well for weeks until he started chewing on the kitchen island.  It is unfinished, so I don't know if he is attracted to the particle board wood that the sides are made of or just bored and ticked off for being confined. I don't wanna buy another crate.  I bought some upholstery to cover the sides and back of the island but decided to hold off putting it on until he stops this revolting so that he doesn't just chew thru the upholstery.  Every day (today is the third) I come home wondering what mess I will find and wonder how to correct the behavior. The hole is now bigger than a softball.  I can't stay mad at this fluffy Douglas Floppadoppalas (we call him).  Any suggestions will be appreciated!!

[Star and Goldie]

I don't have much advice to give other than getting some Bitter Apples spray. I'm going to follow this discussion to see the advice others give because I'm sort of in the same situation. Goldie is 9 months old and is suddenly quite the chewer as well. She has grown fond of the patio furniture. I just bought some bitter apples spray yesterday and so far so good.

[Jolene, Sassparilla & Josie]

My suggestion was going to be bitter apple too there is also another brand out there I've seen in discussions.  Didn't work for us but for most it does.  Good luck, my girls chew on stuff daily but luckily (knocking on wood) it hasn't been furniture or expensive stuff!

[Gail and Bailey]

At 7 months of age he should probably be in a crate for his own safety.  I would be concerned about him eating the wood.  Is he alone in the area or is the other dog with him? 

[Molly&Douglas]

He is in the kitchen alone.  He grew out of his large dog kennel a couple of months ago.  He has his good days and his naughty days.  At night I lay blankets over my small shag carpeted living room because he has two spots he's worked at pulling the carpet out.  Nights go just fine when the carpet is covered.  I'm wondering if he'd be better if he wasn't confined.  I could put the gate at the stairs so he can't go up there.  Douggie has eaten some crazy things including G.I. Joes recently!!  He must have a stomach of steel, but I do worry he will have an obstruction one of these times. I really should just get a bigger crate, but was hoping to avoid that.

[Gail and Bailey]

If he is eating things like G.I.Joes he should certainly still be in a crate for his own safety!!  He will get an obstruction for sure if he is allowed free roam when you are gone. He is still a toddler and he needs you to protect him.  Help your children understand that their toys and clothes must be kept away from areas where Douggie can get them.  There have been too many dogs who have had to have surgery and/or died from obstructions.  My friend's dog died after eating one of her children's socks!  Please just get a really big crate and protect your sweet handsome Douggie!!

[Sharae & Winston]

This isn't what you want to hear... But you should just bite the bullet and buy a bigger crate. It's always good to have one in case you ever need it anyway. We had the same problem with our guy only it was the baseboard in the kitchen...:-l and that's after we had been confining him in there for months. It's like all of a sudden one day he decided it looked tasty or something lol. I agree with the above poster- I would be concerned about his safety with ingesting that wood and also to save your furniture. They can become fixated on something once they've started like that. We went back to putting him in the crate and its been a couple months... We started leaving him confined in the kitchen while we are home or for short periods of time when we're not to see of we can begin trusting him again and so far so good. I would recommend doing the same. Your puppy is still young and is about to go through adolescence where those behaviors generally get even worse.

[Molly&Douglas]

Bigger crate it is!!  Darn it. :-)  Thanks everyone for talking me thru this.

[Gail and Bailey]

:)

[Donna Bay & Buzz]

Get a bigger crate!

[Anita - Thunder, Noodle, Sparky]

Floppadoppalas - I love it!!!! My friend calls my youngest one a Muppet, and doesn't classify him as a dog :) I have to say, XL crate is the way to go. I have 4 dogs, 3 doodles and they are all crated every time we leave the house. They actually prefer it and find comfort in it. So, don't think you are a bad mommy by putting them in a crate. It keeps them safe, comfortable, and saves your house. Only my puppy (14 mths old) really has to be crated, but if I accidentally don't latch one of the doors when I leave, they are incredibly stressed out when I get home. Think of the crate as your friend and his friend :)

[denise rumbaugh]

Agree with those that said keeping him crated until he is more mature and able to be out on his own. I started mine off with short periods of time alone until we built up to longer. My Doodle is 4 mths and is a chewer with a personal taste for wood. Honestly, this is my first dog that likes wood. On that note I bought him a Kong to chew on and on occasion I will place treats inside and that keeps him busy to wear him out mentally so he isn't prone to what seems like nervous energy and then chewing.  I also found this chew toy at the pet store that is hard like wood with a wood smell and taste. He seems to really enjoy it. I hope you find a solution that works.

[Molly&Douglas]

I went out right away and bought the really big metal crate and a KONG.  He wasn't thrilled about going in the crate this morning I had to coax him in.  But he was completely distracted by the KONG right away.  I feel MUCH better about what to expect when I get home tonite, a little peanut butter in his fur is better than a giant hole in my island!!