PUPPIES AND DESTRUCTIVE CHEWING

The best time to start training your puppy to not chew items you don't want him to chew, is before he gets a chance to learn to chew them. This involves being there to supervise when puppy has access to items that you'd rather he didn't give his attention to, and it also involves prevention when you're not able to supervise. Anti-chew sprays are commercially available to assist, but they more often work if you use them before a learnt behaviour and habit has begun. So when you bring puppy home, you could begin by spraying the most obvious objects before he's shown interest, or follow him around and as soon as he shows interest in an item (eg - his wooden kennel) spray the 'chewable' sections. One of the mistakes many people make is that they don't refresh with the spray - they leave it to wear off and only re-spray once they see their dog back into chewing it again. This is creating a situation where your dog will think it is worthwhile continuing to have a go at chewing it, as sometimes it doesn't taste so awful. The trick is to actually make it so that EVERY time your dog goes to the item, it does taste unpleasant. Working this way through your dog's chewing phase will have him eventually become uninterested in chewing that item. Of course, dogs (especially puppies) MUST chew - it is part of teeth, gum and jaw development. So please make sure that your pup/dog has suitable and safe chew toys to seek enjoyment from, and make a point of letting him know he's a good dog whenever he is chewing on appropriate items.