Something that....

[Burnsway]

Really helps chewing since I didn't get to the other thread, and many seem to have trouble with this natural part of a puppy, I suggest stuffed frozen Kong's. In the book Culture Clash she goes over how puppies have to chew a certain amount of time a day. They have to, it's in their nature. She gives several ideas in that chapter.


For those of you that will not confine your dog when you run to the bathroom or another room and won't use the tethering to you method which I swear was a God send with Psyche and me, I suggest you buy about 10 small Kong's and freeze them with their daily kibble and instead of bowl feeding, every time you have a need to go to another room make sure your dog has something they would rather chew then your assets. I bet a nice tasty frozen kong would be much more interesting then your furniture and carpet! They are going to chew, nothing is going to stop them. They have to chew its in their nature...;)

[Grendl]

I have been told, and confirmed with my own obervations that younger puppies prefer to chew on soft objects, and I wonder if a kong would be too hard for the younger set? Personally, if I cannot be right there to supervise, into the crate the pup goes, regardless of how few minutes I will be indisposed. I had not heard of the tether method when I last had a pup, and I am interested in trying it with the next one, whenever that is.

[pbach]

I have an 18month old rottie girl, that we got at age 16 months. The tethering method is something that we live by. I believe it has helped us bond more and has also set her up for success.

Our other guy Claus has complete run of the house, but my Nikki would eat anything insight. Since I have her tethered to me there's no room for failure. Besides this is a great training tool for me too. I'm a first time Rottie owner and it helps me to recognize her body signals, etc.

We also give our guys frozen kongs and even fill them with treats. They will chew on them for hours.

[moondog]

Originally posted by Grendl
I had not heard of the tether method when I last had a pup, and I am interested in trying it with the next one, whenever that is.

Not only does it prevent the puppy from getting into mischief, but it can be a real asset to potty training, too! Not to mention how helpful it is in establishing that ever-so-important bond between puppy and owner! :)

My dog loved her nylabone when she was a puppy. Come to think of it, she still plays with it! I kept her busy little mouth well stuffed with chew toys during the pac-man phase. :D

[pbach]

moondog

pac-man phase.

Aint that the truth. You couldn't have hit the nail on the head any better. I don't have a puppy, but I can definitly see them as little pac-man's.......:D

[scoop]

How long do you keep that tether method going? Always or unti the pup is older and trained?

[pbach]

I’ve had Nikki tethered to me for the past two months. We're really bonding well. We’re noticing a big improvement. She’s calmer. I take her everywhere with me. When I’m cooking it’s in the kitchen, when it’s the bathroom, she’s there too. It’s up the stairs and down the stairs, doing laundry, etc... It’s also a good way to work on those commands, like sit, come, down, etc…

There are some occasions when she's allowed off leash in the house. But when she goes back to wanting to play with the cat and chases him, it's back on the leash she goes. She's learning and it's been hard breaking her of her bad manners, but she's getting there. You can also do a search in this forum and you'll get some very honest answers. I'm pretty new to the forum, but I've received some very good information, along with constructive criticisms. The opinions and information that some give may not be yours, but no one said you had to follow it. One thing that I have learned from this forum is that everyone on here LOVES the breed and would do anything for their companions.

We're currently in a Level 1 obedience training class and we know with the research we've done on the breed that training will be a big part of all of our lives – forever.

[Emme]

I too used the tether method with Emme and LOVE it! I was a wonderful way to train. We are actually using it now on our yorkie who is 18 weeks but finding it incredibly difficult because of his size (4lbs) and the chance of stepping on him. We tethered Em from the time she was about 12/14 weeks up until she was about 7/8 months old. As she got older, we weren't nearly as faithful as we were when she younger - but that helped wean her of the line. By the time she was off the line she was begining obedience training. Our trainer highly reccommended the method and suggested it to several others in the class. Having beginers obedience coincide with removing Em from the tether was really helpful becuase we could practice a stay and leave the room, knowing she wasn't getting into anything. It also helped that she was out of the "pac-man" stage. It did definately help us to bond - I used the tether and my husband didn't - I'm convinced that why she will follow me around now.

[Luvs]

I love the frozen kong idea. I have two kongs that I put stuff in and freeze and give to them at night or when they are in their kennels for an extended period. I will have to get a couple of the smaller ones and try giving them one when I leave the room.
They do make puppy kongs which are alot softer than the regular kongs. They are blue and come in different sizes.