Have you noticed a surprising recurrence of old habits
in your adult dog? Sometimes dogs do start acting like puppies
again, marking in the house and chewing up your belongings.
Your first course of action should be to observe your dog
for other symptoms. Urinating in the home is a sign of several
medical problems. Check with your veterinarian to make sure
that this issue is purely behavioral. Separation anxiety
is also a common problem which causes dogs to misbehave.
When you set out to take care of a chewing problem, keep
in mind that this is normal canine behavior! Even if it
hasn’t been your canine’s normal behavior up
until now, there is no need to worry. Make sure that your
dog has several available chew toys, especially for those
times when you aren’t able to supervise his actions.
If you allow your dog to roam free in the house while you’re
not home, you may want to try out crate training. This means
that your dog sleeps at night in a crate and goes in the
crate for short periods of time during a day when you need
to run out for an errand.
A very effective training method is to use your dog’s
food as a motivator. Buy doggie chew toys that can have
a dog treat put inside them, like congs. And for a few days,
keep several of these toys filled with treats, and do not
fill your dog’s food bowl. This way your dog will
have to pay attention to those toys, if he wants to eat!
If your dog has been biting, this is a sign that he sees
himself as head of the pack. This is most likely a problem
that has developed since he was a puppy; he wasn’t
dealt with firmly enough in the past, and now he doesn’t
respect or yield to the owner. If you can catch this behavior
early enough, you’ll not only correct a very bad pet
behavior, but you’ll also be avoiding a possible liability
lawsuit.
In this case, see a qualified instructor or dog behaviorist
right away. Follow this expert’s suggestions to the
letter, and make sure to adopt fully the new set of behaviors
you’re told to use with your dog. Keep in mind that
his change will be for the rest of his life. The modification
period, getting to the point where the new relationship
between the humans in your family and your dog is a habit,
is the most difficult part. No one will find it convenient,
but it is the best option for the future health of everyone
involved!
To prevent the further development of these issues, make
sure to take action or ask help of a professional!
