Destructive dog advice?

We have a 11mth old working cocker quarter poodle. It destroys anything it can pick up. This is becoming increasingly expensive. I didn't want a dog, I'm a cat person. I reprimand the dog every time it does it's thing. My wife who has had dogs all her life just coos at him that he's a naughty boy and doesn't offer anything in the way of aversion therapy for the bad behaviour. This is mostly a way of getting at me because that's what our relationship has degenerated into.

What are my options for mitigating the carnage? I try and get things out of the dogs reach but being a young spaniel he is very agile and quite honestly I shouldn't have to move stuff, the dog should have been trained by now. I also worry that at 11 months old the behaviour pattern is kinda set now and breaking it will be difficult.

What i am best trying without resorting to a divorce?

Reward rather than reprimand? Have a bag of treats ready for those good boy moments. To a dog a reprimand can be a reward as they have got your attention, so they do it again.

It's not easy as wives always say they are being cute. Butter wouldn't melt in their mouths, but every zip fastening on my jacket has been chewed to bits.



Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

Unfortunately the little swine only does this when he is left alone which while only one day of the week between 8 and half 3 is more than enough. I will try ignoring him next time see how that works. I'm also thinking about taxing the wife each time it's my stuff that dies, it might make her more interested in sorting out the behaviour. Cheers.

Have you had the dog from a puppy?? or did you get it later from another owner?
This sort of behaviour is a pain, however, as it is a working dog, perhaps more serious exercise would help, i have 2 x parsons russells, and, if for any reason they don't get a walk on a particular day, the can be really highly charged, and tear around like loonies, and while they don't chew stuff, they do 'POLISH' the cushions in their beds if you get my drift...!
We never had a problem with either dog chewing as pups, as firstly, they always had a toy of some sort, and , whenever they were left for any length of time, we brought back a dog chew or something, so they tended to behave generally, sorry, i don't have any qualities in Wife training...good luck.!!

Yeah I think you need to give plenty of exercise
That's a long time to leave a puppy to its own devices,
Have you tried a Kong stuffed with treats?
Can you get someone to come in for a bit? He's just bored and still very young

Unfortunately I ain't able to bring him to the farm because our sheep are not used to dogs and I'm not about to start so he has to stay home. Rest of the week he does have lots of walking but even then he has that much energy....

What are the options for chemical repellents like cider vinegar?

Will have to see how we go.

We have been dog breeders for years. We used to help our puppy buyers with things like this, giving help and tips. I would not recommend trying to wear out the dog by too much exercise, too much play or too long walks. with a puppy the first thing is to practice calmness, contact and leadership in my opinion. We do not recommend playing with the dog at all and keep all stress levels down. Never wake up the dog while he is sleeping, never throw things, never activity with ball as we like playing with our kids in the garden without the dog running after the ball and the kids. Never let the dog walk through a door before it is calm, and always after you the leader. Never let the dog out of the den, car or cage before it is calm. if it pulls the leash, I will not walk an inch in that direction before it is calm. I am the boss, I am the leader, no playing like you fight because we do not ever question who is the leader. When the dog behaves it is greatly rewarded and is very happy. When there is no doubt who is in charge the dog will feel safe and secure and taken care of.
Sounds completely "nazi", I know, but it works for me.
With a calm dog that you have leadership of your training and learning is much easier. removing unwanted behavior is almost impossible without the good basic training. Teaching a calm dog that you have a clear leadership of is very easy though.. We bred large dogs so having a 50-60kg dog running about the house could lead to injuries .
I guess i am a bit extreme when we suppress all that wild and natural behavior but that is how I want the dog to behave. I hate crazy dogs that jump up at you. The result with my own dogs is just how we want them mostly.. One of our dogs bark a lot when the doorbell rings and trying to stop him from doing this is almost impossible. When i try to reprimand this i guess he thinks he didn't bark good enough, and will try to bark better the next time not a very big problem but still unwanted. This dog came to us when he was three years old and we have removed jumping on women and kids, pulling the leash and some other "defects" but the barking will not come off..

I think calm might be a bit of an ask but I am up for trying it. Thanks.

Have a look at adaptil plugins
Some good advice from yakuza

Could also try leaving it lots of toys, maybe a stick to chew on and some old clothes - plenty to keep it occupied?

I’m all for lots of good reward based training and love dogs but I also feel that punishment is an important part of behavioral training too, bad behavior should not be ignored. Not hitting a dog, but displaying strength and dominance - that can manifest itself in different ways in different situations but as an example our pup chewed the kitchen cupboard when we were out. Once home I simply dragged it over there, held it close and tightly so it couldn’t move, pointed at the damage and shouted in an extremely angry tone. After two or three times like this it stopped doing it. Many dog lovers might argue that the dog wouldn’t understand unless caught in the action but that’s rubbish. They’re intelligent enough to understand and the proof is in the pudding.

I have been thinking about this more and quite honestly I shouldn't have to train the dog. It isn't mine and I never wanted it. My preferred approach is going to be training the wife through taxation for everything of mine that is destroyed. Harsh but fair in the circumstances.

Young Pretender wrote: Could also try leaving it lots of toys, maybe a stick to chew on and some old clothes - plenty to keep it occupied?

I’m all for lots of good reward based training and love dogs but I also feel that punishment is an important part of behavioral training too, bad behavior should not be ignored. Not hitting a dog, but displaying strength and dominance - that can manifest itself in different ways in different situations but as an example our pup chewed the kitchen cupboard when we were out. Once home I simply dragged it over there, held it close and tightly so it couldn’t move, pointed at the damage and shouted in an extremely angry tone. After two or three times like this it stopped doing it. Many dog lovers might argue that the dog wouldn’t understand unless caught in the action but that’s rubbish. They’re intelligent enough to understand and the proof is in the pudding.

Well..
There is a difference between using force, and using violence in my opinin and i do think the use of force is ok used at the right time. I have tried ignoring bad behavior but I do not see the point of it if your dog responds to corrections.
I am not sure what you describe here and i have personally very bad experience using too much force on the border of violence.
When excessive force is used in the wrong way or at the wrong time, the dog can come to doubt as to who is in charge. Never fight your dog for the respect, it should never be questioned. If it comes to this point you have failed already as i see it.
If you have a calm dog and you have clear leadership and the dog knows what "no" means (that must be trained) then it should never come to this. Be a safe and clear leader. And of course a bit of cuddling and reward in some form must be used.

Lambert: agree! We had 4 dogs and one had ADHD and one where a puppy.. Never been so close to divorce.
However as with all marital disputes it might help to help out a bit.