Chewing Shoes And Remotes

[Guest ctgreylover]

Violet is a beautiful shy girlie. If you look at her, she looks away. Sweet. Loves to give kisses. Shines at meet and greets.

HOWEVER...

she likes to chew. plastic hangers. remotes. sneakers and now my winter boots!

HELP

can someone tell me how to train this behavior away? I really hate to put ALL the footwear in my bedroom closet!

[cleptogrey]

time to start practing putting everything away and closing doors and keeping the house tidy. greyhounds and other tall dogs can reach ANYTHING they want, so putting something up high is not the answer. behind closed doors that she can't pull open(don't leave a dish towel on a handle). i have had shoes chewed, innersoles ripped out- my fault, not the dogs. they smell good- like you and the pup needs to learn to leave it. but the first step is always the owner not letting such delicious object out. it's work, but a good habbit to acquire- that is putting everything out of sight!

 

just be happy she's not pulling books off the bookcase and eating the bindings- been there

[TheFullHouse]

I had to put the remotes in the end table drawers. All shoes have to go in the closet behind closed drawers. The one thing I have not had luck with is making Dammit Arrow leave the sofa pillows alone.

[Guest sheila]

putting things away is a good first step. Muzzling is the second step.

[Feisty49]

Fortunate mom here because Annie Bella is very sensitive and hates to feel ashamed about anything. She used to grab pairs of my slides so I put them all away, until the day I forgot. One does get lazy sometimes. With the opportunity, the minute I left the house, she commandeered the shoes. I was so irked (at myself really) that I shook my finger in front of her face and said with great disappointment, "Shame on you, Annie Bella. Shame shame shame." She hung her head, nuzzled into the blanket on her bed and has never touched another pair of shoes, ever. If she hadn't responded to that, I would never again forget to put shoes away.

[Guest jbbuzby]

I actually don't put things away at my house. I've found that this doesn't teach the dog, and only puts a band-aid on the problem. With my first labrador puppy, another family started raising him for me (he was a potential guide puppy), and when he came to my house, we took their advice and just put everything away and out of reach. Well. The instant anyone forgot to put something away, he'd go RIGHT for it, and it was just irresistible to him. This was an ongoing thing for him, as he always saw them as opportunities and not common place.

 

With my next puppy and all my subsequent dogs, I've simply left the house mostly as is (not a pig sty, but with a pair of shoes by the door or things within reach but not really inviting to the dog to take). Then, I constantly supervise the dog and wait for them to take something they shouldn't. I correct the dog verbally or with a squirt bottle (if they are persistent) and make it clear that the item is mine and they need to respect that and see me as the one in charge. I am very black and white; taking something they shouldn't gets a low deep upset voice, or other unfavorable consequences. When they drop it, or obey my "out!" command, I give them a treat and become very warm with lots of gentle praise. After the first few times, it is rare that any of them make the mistake again, labs, mutts, and greyhounds alike!

 

But, everyone does things differently. Do what feels best and works for you; if you feel better putting everything away, gradually re-introduce it back to every day life and be ready for them!

[NevadasMom]

I've had Trolley for 2.5 years now & she is still a master shoe thief.....EVERY chance she gets! It's her one & only bad habit. I do admit that it makes me chuckle....

[Guest ashphobiax]

ive found that if i leave out shoes that have a fur lining my dogs tend to play with them especially my uggs so i have learned to not leave those down. does your girl have toys down all the time for her?

[Guest ctgreylover]

I like the water bottle idea. I just have to hide and wait for her to make her move. She definitely knows she did wrong when I take the shoe away. She's so shy, she does not like to take treats directly from me. She has nyla bones and other harder chew toys but she chews shoes and remotes -seems like she likes plastic stuff, not so much stuffies. slippers just get collected, not chewed (its open, she's never closed in) She so adorable and seems so innocent but , we know better! lol

muzzling her does seem the next step if the water bottle doesn't work, but I need a new one as she chewed hers!

[Batmom]

YMMV with something like punishment (water bottle). Sighthounds are highly observant -- they know when you're watching vs. when you're not. Here I've had success with teaching the dogs to leave some things alone by primarily positive methods (redirect and praise). Other things, I put away.

 

And for those who are wondering, I used to do things like setting the dog up and having water bottle or my Voice Of God at the ready. Stopped that sort of thing because more often than not, it didn't work.

[GeorgeofNE]

YMMV with something like punishment (water bottle). Sighthounds are highly observant -- they know when you're watching vs. when you're not. Here I've had success with teaching the dogs to leave some things alone by primarily positive methods (redirect and praise). Other things, I put away.

 

And for those who are wondering, I used to do things like setting the dog up and having water bottle or my Voice Of God at the ready. Stopped that sort of thing because more often than not, it didn't work.

 

 

Or it only works when you're home!

 

It's perhaps a blessing in disguise. I can't see a single downside to learning to put your shoes away, and keeping the remotes in a safe place like a drawer.

 

I am by no means a neat freak, but I find that once it becomes habit to put your things where they belong, it's no more difficult than kicking them off wherever you happen to be, with the bonus being you never have to go looking for them!

[kudzu]

Haven't read other responses yet. Here's how we do things. For the most part we don't dog proof the house but instead make every effort to house proof the dogs. There are dog things scattered all over the floor. Only minimal # of humans things are on the floor & only in particular spots like a couple pairs of shoes right by the front door or slippers by the bed or things on the floor of the closet or laundry room.

 

They are in general allowed to pick up, play with, chew on anything on the floor. Exceptions are the few human things on the floor are off limits. Anything that juts up off the floor or attached to something that juts up off the floor is off limits, aka furniture or trash cans. Any surfaces above floor level are off limits, aka anything on furniture or counters.

 

Newbie are not left loose unattended. They are encouraged to play with toys on the floor & rewarded for doing so. They are also rewarded for simply laying peacefully on their beds. If they go for anything off limits they are redirected to something acceptable. If what they go for is something off limits but out of the ordinary then a correction is required.

 

If necessary it might require even drastic action. In that case I might go as far as roll up a section of newspaper or magazine & use it to apply a whack to the shoulders or back of the head of the human who left the item there. "Bad human! Pick up your stuff." OK, I'm lying there. I usually just use the flat of my palm to do that in a gently playful, but meaningful way. But I do make it clear to BF or myself that it was the human's fault.

 

In your case you have an established pattern so it will take longer to correct. Also, you do need to do some dog proofing for a while. Shoes & remotes must be put away when you are not right there to supervise. Do however have them out when you are able to supervise. If she is near the item but not touching it, reward her. If she is consistently leaving the items alone when you are in the room then start leaving the room quite briefly & rewarding her for still not bothering the items. Though I throw like a girl I have gotten much better aim through practice, nearly all of which came from throwing treats across the room to dogs who are being angels. I can even manage to throw around corners with occasional accuracy.

 

An example from my recent past. Greyhound I adopted last year was begging in the kitchen & being pushy with other hounds when food was present. He learned to instead lay on his bed on the floor on the dining room floor which is on the opposite side of the bar separating the two rooms. I did that by first redirecting him to his bed & rewarding him for getting on it & later for simply tossing food over the bar & onto his bed which encourage him to go there without any physical redirecting or command. That effectively got him to start hanging out near his bed more when I was in the kitchen. I then switched to only tossing food at him when he was already on his bed. Now I reward him about once out of every 5-10 times I am in the kitchen. Meaning he goes to his bed nearly every dang time I am in there but only gets a reward a few times a week.

 

However, that same hound managed to snag food off the counter a few times early on in our relationship. His counter surfing escalated rapidly after that to the point that he tried to snag stuff even while I was in the kitchen. Training him to go to his bed stopped that part & careful attention by humans has the surfing to a bare minimum but with the way we are in my house I seriously doubt I will ever fully prevent counter surfing here. It was so powerfully rewarding that I think it will forever at least cross his mind if he smells food & so will always be a possibility.

 

The above are just two examples of how powerful rewards, positive reinforcement, can be. It is so powerful that often no amount of correction or punishment can eliminate a behavior that has been intermittently rewarding.

Edited January 7, 2012 by kudzu

[mychip1]

Sounds like you have stolen my JJ!!! Remotes and shoes are top of his list!! In fact, just had another remote bite the dust this morning while I was in the tub. My fault for it not being put away.

 

Mine are muzzled when I am not home for their own good. I laugh about the remotes, but I get them away from him fast. I would be worried if I wasn't home about him eating the batteries, etc.

 

Shoes must be in the closet or (for outdoor foot gear) behind the babygate near the back door.

 

They have tons of toys....but teaching them to understand that some things on the floor are theirs and others aren't is beyond me!

 

I'm with Susan...just put the stuff away......solves the problem better than anything.....and consider muzzling if you think she may get into other stuff when you are not home.

[Guest BrianRke]

Diamond had a fondness for remotes and shoes. I sprayed my remotes with that bitter apple spray. She tried picking them up a couple times after that and the stuff must work because she has never touched another one. I only had to spray them once.

 

Diamond still loves shoes and will steal them often. She is not picky, she will take anyone's shoes. All visitors who remove their shoes are warned of this. The good thing is, she never chews or damages them in any way. She carries them off to different places in the house. I always have to go looking for my shoes Not 5 minutes ago, I just saw her run past my office with one of my shoes.

 

I think this is really cute, BUT if she was damaging them, NOT cute.

[Guest june]

It only took me losing one remote and Rona had me trained to keep them put up and out of her reach!

:lol

[Guest verthib]

We put everything away.

[Guest Greyt_dog_lover]

I like the water bottle idea. I just have to hide and wait for her to make her move. She definitely knows she did wrong when I take the shoe away. She's so shy, she does not like to take treats directly from me. She has nyla bones and other harder chew toys but she chews shoes and remotes -seems like she likes plastic stuff, not so much stuffies. slippers just get collected, not chewed (its open, she's never closed in) She so adorable and seems so innocent but , we know better! lol

muzzling her does seem the next step if the water bottle doesn't work, but I need a new one as she chewed hers!

 

 

Your hound doesnt "know" she did something wrong, she is simply reacting to your attitude (body posture, facial expression, tone of voice, etc.).

[Jackandgrey]

I never won the shoe war with Jilly and she did not chew them all the time only whenever the mood struck her. I am also not good at putting mine away so the compromise was a babygate at the back door whenever I left the house. She never chewed when I was at home.So in essence the shoes were gated away from her.

[Guest jettcricket]

I have to do that with my foster boy, JA's Mezzo - aka Jay. So far he's gotten my cell phone, 3 pairs of slippers and the Comcast remote and almost destroyed my eye glasses. So...I've learned if you don't want it eaten, put it away.

Edited January 9, 2012 by jettcricket

[Guest verthib]

Violet is a beautiful shy girlie. If you look at her, she looks away. Sweet. Loves to give kisses. Shines at meet and greets.

HOWEVER...

she likes to chew. plastic hangers. remotes. sneakers and now my winter boots!

HELP

can someone tell me how to train this behavior away? I really hate to put ALL the footwear in my bedroom closet!

 

Does she have enough chew toys around? She might need something more than stuffed animals. My Angus is that way. Looooves to chew. I got him a kong ball. He chews that to his heart's content now.

[Guest ctgreylover]

When she first showed signs of chewing, I got nyla bones and hard rubber toys. she will chew on them too but only when there are no remotes around. she's always looking, not hunting, but scanning for something. I will catch her grabbing something and I will say no and give her a chew toy, not a stuffie. Those she likes to toss around outside or collect in her crate. She does not seek stuffies to chew. I am on her all the time now. I dont have a coat closet so my every day shoes are downstairs on a low shelf by the back door.(next time I buy a house, a coat closet by the door is something I must remember to look for!) I try to put a folding step stool to block access. I am trying every day when I leave to make sure I have picked up everything. I have to replace 2 muzzles (plus 2 remotes and several pairs of flip flops boots and sneakers), then I will muzzle her when she's alone.

Thanks for all your help!