Separation Anxiety
House destuction usually occurs in the owner's absence, primarily because the puppydog ismore likely to be bored when left at home alone. Also, a dog may resort to chewing becauseshe becomes anxious when left alone, either because she misses her owner and/or becauseshe lacks sufficient environmental stimulation. To compensate for the social void, the dogprovides her own proprioceptive and kinaesthetic stimulation by vigorously and repetitivelychewing clothing, household items, furniture, walls and in some cases, by chewing herself.Anxiety-fueled chewing often becomes stereotypically excessive and eventually assumesobsessive and compulsive proportions. Dogs chip and shred furniture like they are possessed,but even more disturbing, excessive grooming may lead to self-mutilation, whereby the poordog licks herself raw, or gnaws away at her paws and tail.The dog's anxiety is often exacerbated by the Jekyll and Hyde nature of the home environment:When the owner is home, the dog receives unlimited attention but when the owner is away, sheis subjected to solitary confinement. Ironically, showering the dog with love and affection,causes the dog to miss the owner all the more. In such cases, the owner must build the dog'sconfidence and teach her to enjoy her own company when left alone, as well as resolving themanifested chewing problem. Luckily though, redirecting the dog's obsessive and compulsivechewing behavior goes a long way to assuaging the dog's fears and anxiety. Once the dog ishappily ensconced chewing an appropriate object, she will not feel so lonely and depressedwhen left alone.
Separation Fun!
There is an additional reason why dogs invariably chew in the owner's absence. After repeatedpunishments, the dog quickly learns it is generally a bad policy to rip socks, shred carpets anddestroy furniture when the owner is around. But since chewing is normal, natural andnecessary,the dog simply waits for the owner to leave, before indulging her natural pastime.In fact, many dogs just can't wait for the owner to leave, so they may safely and peacefully actlike a dog!For any punishment-oriented training program to be effective, the dog must be punished eachand every time he misbehaves. This, of course, is impossible because by and large, humansare inconsistent beasts. Rather than learning that chewing certain items is wrong, the dogsurmises it is OK to chew when the owner is away or preoccupied. Thus the problem isunresolved. The dog continues to “misbehave,” the owner becomes increasing frustrated andthe dog is frequently punished when the owner returns home.In such cases, many dogsbecome anxious with their owners' return, not their departure.Even if humans were consistent, trying to curtail inappropriate chewing using punishmentbecomes an ineffective folly akin to The Myth of Sisyphus. For example, the average Labrador,without even moving his brain from first gear, can think of hundreds of wonderfullyinappropriate items to destroy. This means hundreds of reprimands are necessary to evenattempt to contain the problem. This is not much fun for the dog or for the owner. Mucheasier, more efficient, more effective and certainly, much (MUCH) more enjoyable, is to simplyteach the dog what you would like him to chew.
Solutions
Whether teaching a new puppy household manners, or retraining an older dog with an existingchewing habit, the same sense of urgency exists. Puppies may develop a bad chewing habit atthe drop of a hat and adult chewers can cause a lot of damage in a very short time. My recordchewing case involved a male Akita that meted over $10,000 worth of damage to the interiorof a Mercedes in less than 25 minutes!
Leave a Comment