Now that Halloween has been and gone, it's officially okay to talk about Christmas as recognised by the British Society of Widely Acknowledged Unspoken Rules. Brace yourself for mince pies with every meal, "Driving Home for Christmas" blasting out of every stereo and chocolate bars so small you accidentally inhale three without even noticing. Only 50 days to go. Plenty of time to stock up on shower gel gift sets and novelty Justin Bieber calendars for your loved ones. Lucky, lucky loved ones. It is also the time when bored animals left alone at home get up to mischief.
Aaaaargh! my dog has eaten something and needs to go to the vet!
The Chair Leg… The Rubbish bin… Your New Shoes!
Sometimes, an adult dog who has never done anything wrong may suddenly surprise you with an oral foray into the forbidden and when it does, anything it finds is fair game.
This may be a stress response to something environmental happening in your absence, such as a burglar trying to break into your home, loud equipment working in the street in front of your house, or stray foxes screeching, yipping and romping through your back garden and the dog can't get to chase them. Sometimes even something like a compelling need to urinate or defecate can stress a well-trained dog into inappropriate chewing. By telling them off for chewing your prized Jimmy Choos or leaving a gigantic puddle in the middle of the floor merely makes them more stressed. Its hard, I know, not to bellow "Look what you've done? You wicked dog." You have to glare at them and not utter a cross word but dogs are intuitive and they can sense your disapproval. Will it stop them? Nah! they will do it again when you least expect them to!
If you can determine the nature of what is stressing him, you can perhaps control or remove the cause, and maybe your dog will quickly revert to his prior good behavior. That's easier said than done because I know of a 6 year old dog who will suddenly decide to munch on something inappropriate. His last munch was a pack of 21 tea lights left on top of a chair in the hall. We went out and said the usual phrase: "Now you be good and look after the house. We'll be back soon." When we got back 2 hours later, the floor was littered with little metal pins and containers but no tea lights. A panic call - half an hour before closing time on a Bank Holiday weekend - we whisked him to the vet who gave him a shot to make him throw up. The urgency for medical attention on this particular occasion was because, as the vet explained, is that when wax softens in the bowel it forms a sausage then can't go around the U bend in the gut. When that happens -without urgent medical attention- it is instant doom for the dog.
A return to inappropriate chewing may be a result of inactivity and pent-up energy. I see many dogs going out with a walker in the afternoon but I often see these people sitting on a bench making long telephone calls while the poor, frustrated dogs are sitting patiently under the bench. There are a good number of these people in the parks who get paid but don't actually walk the dogs. That restrained energy has to go somewhere - and for some dogs, it goes right to their jaws. The solution here is a renewed commitment to provide adequate exercise, with the addition, perhaps, of mental exercise into your dog's daily routine.
On the other hand, some dogs simply get a buzz from ripping out the innards from soft toys, eating socks, tissue paper and anything else that comes near the mouth. It just feels soooooooo good at the time.
The best solution of course, is for you to put away all your prized possessions and make sure that there is nothing that looks interesting enough to chew. A big tripe bone or a Kong toy stuffed with goodies helps until its time for a zzzzzzzz.
PUP TRIVIA....................................................................................................................................
Each day in the park, groups of middle eastern people scream, dodge and get agitated when they approach dogs going about their own business. Muslim reticence concerning dogs is perhaps due to the fact that rabies has always been endemic in the Middle East and they consider dogs to be dirty animals.
Now here's something you didn't know. The shape of a dog’s face suggests how long it will live. Dogs with sharp, pointed faces that look more like wolves typically live longer. Dogs with very flat faces, such as bulldogs, often have shorter lives.
Here's a nice heart warming video of animals hugging humans.
You wanna hug?
That's it until the next blog. Wrap yourself up warm, put fleece on all your tender plants and get ready for winter.
Dawn (''')
