5 months and crazy

[Shianne Mack]

My puppy is now 5 months old and for some reason he is starting to be extra crazy when left alone. I leave him in my backyard and when I come home (even after only an hour) the whole backyard is a mess. The cushions are off the outside couches, the pillows are everywhere, and since I leave my trash bins in the back he has even gotten into those and shredded up all the garbage. Today I left him inside as I ran to the supermarket real fast (15 minutes gone) and he tore through my couch cushion inside! I am very frustrated and tell him it's not okay, but somehow I feel like he does not take me seriously. He sits in the corner and when I put him in time out he just wags his tail as I scold him. What should I do to let him know this behavior is not acceptable. I exercise him 2 times, sometimes even 3 times a day.

[Paige and Leo]

Leo is in a crate when I am gone. Even for a little bit. A puppy or dog left alone will get in stuff. I think by the time you get home....he probably doesn't know why you are scolding him. Not caught in act? I know more experienced owners can help? Leo loves his crate.

[Jessica, Loki and Moose]

I think you might be giving him too much freedom too early. Loki, who is now 17months ate a wall around 4-5months so I know your pain! Moose is close to the same age as Mikey and is a little teething machine right now. I would gate him in a smaller area of your home with nothing he can damage or maybe just keep him in a crate for a little while to save your sanity. Maybe start small and increase his freedom slowly? I started with the laundry room, then the kitchen, now it's the laundry room, kitchen and dining area. Loki was crated until 7 months and now is sectioned into a small portion of the house... He likes to eat down pillows and comforters so no rooms with those! Moose is still crated and I will probably keep him crated until he's a bit older and not getting into so much. Good luck!

[Malenie Piscetelli]

My opinion, you should never leave him alone in the backyard. He is a puppy. He needs a lot of attention. Again, you shouldn't leave him alone in the house 15 minutes. Otherwise put him in the crate when you are not home. Sounds like he have anxiety cuz no one is with him.

[Cindy and Olive (Ollie)]

I agree with the others - Rip was crated until a year and until I knew he could be trusted, then given free reign on one floor only. Since your guy has already learned this self rewarding behavior, you'll have to be even more diligent with supervision (catch him in the act) and with trading him for chew toys. Maybe you can post this in the training group to see how you can 'un'train this? I'm curious, too... Good luck!!

[Kate, Mel, Tenley & Harper]

1. Don't leave him outside, doodle theft is a real thing. In fact, they're targeted. Especially if when they're found they aren't spayed/neutered. In a growing number of places, it's illegal to leave your dog outside unattended. I wish they had that rule everywhere.

2. Don't give him so much freedom inside.

3. When you "scold him" when you get home, he has no idea what you're scolding him for. Unless you catch him in the act, he has no idea what you're talking about. "Don't chew the couch cushion" means nothing to him. That's why he "isn't taking you seriously"-- he has no idea what you're scolding him for. In fact, by putting him in the corner and making him stay there and scolding him, he will interpret that as you scolding him for staying in place which will make training a "stay" very difficult.

4. If for whatever reason you can't crate train him, leave him in a small room (hallways with all the doors shut or bathrooms with everything picked up off the floor work well) and that will be his "world". You could also try getting an exercise pen for indoors (not outdoors).

[Laura and Angus]

I agree with what everyone said here. We NEVER leave our pup unattended - he is a year old now, but he is also very naughty and mischievous. I'd also wanted to share something our trainer taught us - that talking to a dog (especially a doodle) is reinforcement to them. Think about how they bark at each other. If we talk or yell, their tail is wagging because they're thinking, "Oh yay! They're paying attention to me!" Same thing with eye contact. Our trainer scolded my boyfriend and me many times for making eye contact or talking to our puppy when scolding him because we kept reinforcing his bad behavior. If you catch your pup in the act, say "No!" and then immediately take him to a time-out spot - no eye contact, no additional words. This is more upsetting to our doodle pups who love attention. If someone even looks at Angus, he wags his tail. I believe this is the golden retriever in him. 

The last thing I would mention is that if you don't use a crate, you might consider either starting to use a crate or using baby gates to fence your puppy into a smaller area at home. He might be going crazy from anxiety. And then as soon as your home he's happy and tail wagging because the anxiety is gone. Many dogs feel less stress when in smaller/confined  areas because it helps them feel safe. You might consider acclimating him to be in a smaller area like a kitchen or laundry room where you can move anything out that he might get into (at first for short periods of time while you're home) and then for small bits of time (like 5-10 minutes) when you "leave." 

[Nicky, Riley & Boris]

Dogs left outside  become bored, destructive, a target for thieves and finally depressed. Many end up in shelters. Much better is to crate him while you are out making sure he gets exercise before you go and if you are gone for any length a dog walker or sitter to come in mid-day to let him out and give him his mid-day meal. If he is not crate trained this is the first thing you need to do. Dogs treat crates as their dens and most often sleep while their owners are gone. Stuffed kongs and safe chews can be left with him. At five months you need to be doing lots of training and a class is a good idea. He also needs lots of different experiences, perhaps there is a great doggy day care nearby that you could use once or twice a week?

[Susan & Randy's Kate]

I have had over 20 dogs and most from the time they were pups.  The craziness seems to improve around 2 years old.  Kate quit chewing things up and hadn't for about five months - until she chewed my shoes.  I had a boxer that chewed couch cushions, a granddog that gnawed on my $140 sewing machine cord (everybody was there - I put electrical tape on it and I am still using it).  Our labradoodle ate some electrical cord and was in emergency all weekend until her gut started working again.  I try to have as many toys available.  Believe me though it will be awhile before your pup is trustworthy.  Hang in there.  Cute pup....

[Shianne Mack]

Yeah! I have to remember even though he is a bigger size, he is still really young. Haha thank you!

[Sheeba Daniel]

We also have a 5 month old and for the most part she is a pretty mellow, sweet dog. But.....I would never trust her with too much freedom alone. This was a great post because I was able to read responses to my husband to remind him never to trust our seemingly sweet dog alone in the backyard. He tends to forget she is a "toddler" and is often too trustworthy and is fooled by her calm demeanor. He tries to leave her out there for a few minutes watching her from the back window. I don't even let him do that because if you have your eye off of her for even a minute, she has something gross in her mouth and then comes the diarrhea.  One day, I hope I can leave her in the family room uncrated while I take a shower - but I am guessing that is a long way away........

[Laura and Angus]

This is so funny! My boyfriend was just like your husband, but we've really gotten to know our dog by this point - he's a year old. However, he still surprises us with weird or crazy behaviors haha. I laughed about your shower comment because we would always bring Angus into the bathroom with us when we showered until he was like 9-10 months and then we'd just have him in our bedroom. But I'd still be checking on him from our shower haha. They're SO sneaky!!

[Cindy and Olive (Ollie)]

Haha, yup, hub and I were just outside with Rip and he moved behind us for a second and we both looked at eachother and asked, "where's the baby?" (Lol, half kidding!) in all seriousness though, it is like having a toddler!! Until - when? They turn two and we leave Puppy Madness Group? ;)