Destructive Nesting

[Riverhound]

We’ve had Joe for about a year. At first, he was not allowed on furniture at all & was always crated when we weren’t home. After a few months, I “graduated” him to being allowed to take naps with me in the guest room when I had a migraine. Shortly thereafter, I went back to work full-time and we decided Joe was ready to stay in our bedroom during the workday. (I come home at lunch, there’s a teenage dog-walker after school, and we’re pigs with a messy kitchen full of nice trash that Joe really wants! Messy kitchen is staying as-is. Non-negotiable. Joe needs to be elsewhere, and the bedroom is what works.) We’ve recently started letting Joe on the sofa, cause I want more cuddle-time since I’m at work all day. He’s decided that being allowed on the sofa = being allowed on our bed, even though we’ve told him on no uncertain terms that’s not the case (he gets led off whenever we catch him up there).

 

Thing is, he’s a MAJOR nester. He destroyed the comforter in the guest room. Has killed 4+ beds. Rips big holes in his dog blankies and has torn up my (thankfully nasty, old) carpet. Last weekend, we left him home with the dog sitter & went away for a few days. Came home, he’d been on our bed, shredded the sheets, and tore a small hole in the mattress.

 

I don’t want to go back to crating him during the day. He tries to nest in the sofa, too, but I can correct him when I see it and he settles. I’m not sure if the “super-nesting” was stress ‘cause we weren’t home, or is likely to continue (I caught him on the bed one day last week, and he’d booted the pillows onto the floor). I can’t afford a new bed as comfy as this one is if he decides to “kill” the mattress.

 

How do you prevent a normal behavior, like nesting, from being destructive? How can I keep him off the bed when we aren’t home? (That’s not a priority if he doesn’t destroy it – just don’t tell my DH!)

 

Would something like aluminum foil keep His Majesty off the bed, so we can continue to confine him in our room when we aren’t home? (He loves that room, and is fine behind closed doors.) Would boots let him nest & prevent destruction? (He does sometimes use teeth, but not too often!)

 

He likes not being in a crate; I like not crating him. He gets a morning walk, an afternoon walk, and usually an evening walk. I don’t think this is an exercise issue. I think he wants to be comfy. Halp!?!?

[Sambuca]

You could take empty soda cans, fill them half way with change or rocks, tape them closed and place them all over your bed especially near the edges. When he jumps on the bed, the cans will fall and scare him. Tinfoil could work. Or underbed storage containers. Get 2 or 3 and put them on your bed when you're not around. They are light, easy to stack out of the way and will block him from getting on the bed.

[Riverhound]

You could take empty soda cans, fill them half way with change or rocks, tape them closed and place them all over your bed especially near the edges. When he jumps on the bed, the cans will fall and scare him. Tinfoil could work. Or underbed storage containers. Get 2 or 3 and put them on your bed when you're not around. They are light, easy to stack out of the way and will block him from getting on the bed.

 

 

I like the storage container idea!! My husband could handle that! Or a pile of cardboard boxes (hubby has an Amazon problem). I actually wouldn't care if he was just sleeping on the bed; I just don't want it destroyed. I feel so darned guilty being back at work and leaving him alone. I'd be miserable if I left him in a nice, comfy crate with a well-stuffed kong every day (and the kong would be refilled at lunch, cause I'm a sucker!).

[christinepi]

I've used this successfully with our cats who insisted on wandering around our counter tops and urinated up there all the time: it's called Scat Mat, and it's little wires embedded in a vinyl mat and a battery, which, if touched, will give a little electric shock (adjustable). You can get them online. Never used it with a dog, but there's no reason why this couldn't work. Only thing is, they're not cheap, especially not when compared to soda cans or boxes.

[cleptogrey]

i use the plastic runners for carpeting upside down on my couch during the day. it has kept all but one strange grey off the couch. that strange on slept on the hard plastic nubs...(duh...not too bright). it's cheap, home depot or a hardware store carries it. i have a feeling that he most likey will pull it off the couch or bed. this call for a plank of plywood or subflooring(lighter to move) on the bed during the day. give him carpeting stapled on it, a thick cheap rug and let him have a blast! didn't the dogs get a chunk of carpet at the track? i saw carpets hanging at bridgeport when i picked up my first grey.

[greysmom]

You can also set up an xpen around the bed to keep him off. OR around him to keep him off. It's bigger and more open than a crate, though it is much easier to knock over and get out of.

 

Some of his nesting behavior could be stress, but in my experience, they just like to nest. My Copper has destroyed more expensive dog beds than I can count. I finally relented and buy Costco ones and let him rip them up. It takes him a while, but still......

[Riverhound]

I like the x-pen idea, I think piling "stuff" on the bed might work, and carpet runners sound workable (and I have one shoved in a closet somewhere). Joe is pretty sensitive, so the scat-mat isn't an option, but thanks for the idea. He's getting a junk heap tomorrow, and I'll go from there. It'd be ideal if he'd go back to hanging out on his beds in our room during the day, but I know that won't happen overnight. I get that he may be trying his boundaries, or that we're sending mixed signals by changing the places where he's allowed to be. I'm kinda surprised it took him this long to realize that if we're not around, we can't boot his rear-end off the bed!

[Guest MnMDogs]

What we've used with success is those plastic rug runner/protector things - I think Kennelmom suggested them long ago. They have pointy plastic nubs on the bottom part, and we would just put them upside down on our sofas. I remember the first time Mork tried to get up on the couch after we got them... The look I got from him... But they work.

 

Since then, we've decided to allow them back on the sofas, and have given up on having nice things! What also may work is a thick fitted sheet covering your made bed if you might want to allow him up there. I double up 2 of them on our spare bed, and that works nicely since Macy and Greg like to hang out there all day, and Macy May is a fierce nester as well.

 

Edit because I missed the carpet runner suggestion that was made! Oops. But our guys never tried to pull it off... And Mork is fairly resourceful!

Edited September 21, 2011 by MnMDogs

[Guest Dog_Daddy]

You might also consider that this is obsessive compulsive behavior...

 

Our Murray - a stout 95 lb big boy took a liking to marking our drapes in the living room. Didn't matter what we did - he'd mark them...to the point that we took them down and put up bath sheets over the curtain rods.... which we could then launder every day.....

 

I might mention Murray also tried to head butt and chew his way out of a crate one fine night when we went out for dinner... I used to wonder about the curved canines he had with the curious wear pattern and one broken canine....After the crate incident, that all became clear..........He was a crate chewer.........

 

Well, the smell of pee was really getting to us and the same daily loads of laundry made me think sometimes that we were using cloth diapers with a new baby in the house...

 

Then someone suggested Prozac......... We talked it over with our vet and he said it'd might help and wouldn't hurt the dog... So we tried it... It made an immediate difference.... He stopped peeing on the drapes..... He was a bit stoned-out for a week or two, but this faded - So consider asking your vet about it. It has made a great difference in the quality of our lives and has probably extended the life of our laundry set-up...

 

 

 

Dog_Daddy

Edited September 21, 2011 by Dog_Daddy

[robinw]

Phoenix was an uber nester. I used to go through duvet covers like crazy. I started piling cheap blankets on top of my bed so he nested with those instead of the good stuff.

[FountainLady]

We had a prblem with Rainy shredding comforters and also licking wet spots through them We purchased this covelret from Orvis DOG PROOF COVERLET It is dog proof! It will not let any moisture through, it will not rip from dog nails, and it is nesting resistant, too! The top layer of the coverllet is not attached to the bottom layer, if the dog pulls on the coverlet, it goes right back in place when they lift thie paw off of it. It was pricy to buy (they are on SALE now!) - but it has been the best investment and totally protects our bed. We put it over a heavy comforter in the winter months, and use it by itself over a light blanket in the summer months. It won't keep your dog off of your bed .... but it will protect your bed from accidents, licking, drool, hair and shredding. Rainy gave up trying to nest on our king-sized bed when she found out that the coverlet always returns back into place, and will not allow her to bunch it up, They don't come in any fancy prints, just basic solid colors.

Edited September 21, 2011 by FountainLady

[GeorgeofNE]

I'd also check the length of his nails--suprised no one else suggested that.

[Guest june]

My girls like to nest although with discouragement from me they aren't too bad now. To help them to be able to nest some, without destroying there beds, I've cut old comforters into quarters sewing the edges and place a couple pieces on each bed. The girls tend to be satisfied with moving those around and mostly don't dig the actual beds.

 

An added bonus is when the comforter pieces get dirty they can be thrown in the wash. Much easier to add one or two comforter pieces to a load of wash then to wash the whole comforter. If a piece gets too ragged I just throw it away. I hunt old comforters at yard sales through the summer and sometimes get them as cheap as a couple dollars.

[racindog]

I gave in and bought some cordura fabric to put over my sofa and bed when necessary. Several greyhounds have dug rather enthusiastically and have not been able to tear or penetrate the cordura so whats under it is protected. My mom who is a wonderful seamstress actually sewed beautiful covers for her cushions and it also worked to keep her Doberman from tearing or damaging anything. Its a really strong fabric and has worked good so far. It comes in various shades, patterns etc. Cordura is a patented material. Of course it could never be as pretty as a beautiful spread but it is prettier than a beautiful spread that is sheredded .

[Guest KennelMom]

I'd also check the length of his nails--suprised no one else suggested that.

 

that was my first thought. our destructive nesters have been products of my laziness with the dremel

 

What we've used with success is those plastic rug runner/protector things - I think Kennelmom suggested them long ago. They have pointy plastic nubs on the bottom part, and we would just put them upside down on our sofas. I remember the first time Mork tried to get up on the couch after we got them... The look I got from him... But they work.

 

i'm glad you found that tip useful! We still use it from time to time with the dogs...it's also the only way I can keep the cats off the treadmill belt!