# Stop destroying things



## Jopa (Mar 10, 2017)

I have a 1 year old male. He is great has never had issues with chewing as a puppy. 1 week ago, while we were sleeping, he ripped up my daughter book that was sitting on coffee table, since then he has started to destroy items when we leave him alone. He has been exercising regularly, before we leave and before bed, we bought him new chew toys but nothing seems to help. Any suggestions???


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## cdwoodcox (Jul 4, 2015)

Crate him. What is his training Like. Could he be bored. Maybe he needs more mental stimulus. Exercise alone isn't enough for my dogs.


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## Dracovich (Feb 24, 2017)

I second crating him. When a dog needs to just sleep, then being crated makes them sleep. Dogs crated at night or while owners are at work WILL need more exercise than if they were not crated though, because they get more pent up energy. There are different brain games people do with their dogs as well to help them stimulate an active mind.


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

It's very difficult to control your dog's behavior when you're not there or cannot supervise, such as when everyone is asleep. As others mentioned, you need to confine him when nobody is watching him so he has no access to things he can destroy. Crate him when you're gone and at night, or at least keep him closed in the room with you while you're sleeping. 

We've had dogs that never went through a destructive chewing phase, we've had dogs who had horrible chewing phases but eventually outgrew it, and we even had one that seemingly outgrew it but then had a later, second chewing phase months after she'd been fine. She did ultimately outgrow it again, but I wouldn't trust a GSD unsupervised for a good year and a a half if not longer. 

Halo is 8 and will still chew occasionally. Fortunately not furniture, books, shoes, or rugs, but anything that may have touched food is fair game, such as potholders. She is also a big fan of toilet paper, which she will eat right off the roll.


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## Thecowboysgirl (Nov 30, 2006)

When I first started letting my girl sleep in bed with me, she was maybe 11 months or a year. One night I woke up to a weird sound.

riiiiiiiip
rrriiiiiiiip

Peaked over the bed and my naughty girl had woken up, got bored, found some folded moving boxes under the bed, pulled one out and was methodically shredding it into little strips of pieces. LOL

Back in the crate she went, I forget for how long, two months maybe? If they make bad choices they are telling me that's where their brain is so obviously they can't be trusted unsupervised.

My boy is almost 2 and I have never left him loose in the house when I am gone. I may never. He has a nice roomy kennel that he loves so it's fine. He has never destroyed anything but I have 3 dogs that I don't want together when I am not here, and also on he off chance that my house was ever broken into I know my dogs would be safer being contained. I don't want them to risk themselves for my stuff. They are way more important to me than stuff

He has slept in bed with us since about 1 yr. when we started, he was baby gated in the bedroom and closet doors were closed and I checked to be sure there was nothing of interest to him lying around. He never did anything naughty so we gradually quit worrying about the rest and now he has run of the house at night (he stays in the bedroom by choice)

For me they earn privileges by gradual steps of increasing freedom and we back way up if there is an issue, or if not we continue to relax as they mature and prove they know how to act.

If you aren't there, you can't teach the dog how to act.


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## zetti (May 11, 2014)

Thecowboysgirl said:


> When I first started letting my girl sleep in bed with me, she was maybe 11 months or a year. One night I woke up to a weird sound.
> 
> riiiiiiiip
> rrriiiiiiiip
> ...


Sounds right to me.


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