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puppy is driving me crazy


ktgrok
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To be fair, it's the combination of puppy plus 4 other kids including a newborn that is driving me crazy. Dog is about 1/2 bloodhound, 1/4 blue tick coonhound and 1/4 newfoundland. Not a single room of the house is truly puppy proof due to the kids always leaving stuff places. And he's a BIG puppy..he's one of the tallest dogs at the park already at not quite 7 months old. All legs. So he can reach things up high pretty easily. And he is VERY energetic and needs so much exercise to keep him quiet and calm. We had been doing a few hours a day at the dog park but I can't always do that with a baby in the house. I also sometimes do doggy daycare. But still. He's always trying to chew up something he shouldn't, even when he has a ton of things he LIKES laying around to chew. He will walk past a nice cheekbone or rawhide (don't start....I know the pros and cons here) and grab a kid's toy or a candy wrapper someone dropped or the baby's pacifier or start chewing on the furniture. I rotate various chews, but he just gets bored or likes the novelty of new things he finds. And since I often have a baby nursing in my lap it's driving me BONKERs to have to constantly get up and take stuff away, or at best tell him to leave it and call him to me while yelling at a kid to go grab whatever it was the dog had and put it somewhere else. ALL DAY LONG. I can't leave him unsupervised for a second. Literally. 

 

He is crated right now, thankfully, but he usually hates that and whines and barks if he's in an energetic mood. I'm willing to tune that out, but my husband isn't and it's usually in the mornings and evenings, (dog sleeps mid day for the most part, thankfully) so when hubby is home. That's also when dog is at his worst behavior, so husband is NOT pleased with dog. (dog also chewed up his brand new clarks shoes)

 

Ideas? I'm thinking I can wear a treat pouch I guess and use that to reward good behavior. A long leash maybe, but he tries to chew it (and doesn't mind bitter apple spray). 

 

I will admit, this is the first dog I've EVER considered using an electronic collar with (vibration, not shock) just because I could use it when stuck under a baby when he tries to chew the furniture across the room. 

 

Rehoming him is not an answer, we are his 7th placement and we got him at 3 months. I know he will someday be a good dog. He's just well....taking longer than I thought. And since he doesn't like to fetch or play with toys, he's harder to exercise or entertain than previous dogs. And as a hound cares less about my thoughts and opinions, lol. 

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Try a flirt pole--great way to exercise dogs, particularly one that has some hound in it. I warn you that you'll get dizzy, so take it easy your first time out, but you'll be thrilled with how well a flirt pole tires him out! You can make your own out of rope, PVC pipe and a dog toy. Google for directions.

 

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seven placements?! That breaks my heart. The poor guy got really lucky with you.

 

We adopted a two year old German shepherd who was all alligator-mouth. The best advice I got was to give him something he could chew. The SPCA told me to take a hard bone, slather peanut butter/yogurt/mashed banana on each end, wrap with saran wrap, stick in freezer.

 

Then pull it out when he needs to chew.

 

You can do the same thing with a Kong: fill it was pieces of apple, carrot, and dog food. Stop it up with peanut butter and freeze it. Give it to him in his crate or on the floor. It gives him something to do.

 

He sounds really smart.

 

I like your leash idea.

 

Just an aside: I had a foster puppy years ago and I was talking on the phone to a potential new home. After talking to the really nice lady for about 10 minutes -- the phone went dead. I looked down and the puppy had chewed through a phone line right under my chair.

 

Hang in there. My 2 year old alligator is now a 6 year old calm dog.

 

Alley

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And for the record I know this is 100 percent my fault. 

 

I look at the German Shepherds and other "bred to obey humans" dogs and just sigh when we are at the park. No more hounds for me. 

 

my full bred German shepherd is very stubborn. If something doesn't sound good to him, he just won't do it. Really annoying. He loves playing ball, but he won't bring the ball back to me.

 

I think you're doing the right thing,

 

Alley

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Feed him all his meals in frozen form in a Kong or similar toy? So he spends a good part of his day on those?

 

Any chance of hiring someone to get him some more exercise?

 

Do you have a heavy piece of furniture you can tether him to? Some dogs who hate crates will tolerate tethering.

 

Of course work like the dickens on the basics for house manners -- sit, down and stay.

 

And remember every time he picks up something he's not supposed to have to work on leave it (or give--whatever you call it).

 

We got our Brittany when youngest DS was 18 months old. That dog had the most rock solid "leave it" of any dog I've ever owned. ;) By the time he was a year old he'd spit out a piece of steak on command.

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Thanks all. He does have a fairly good leave it...the problem is I'm having to say it so many many many times. I feel the poor dog is constantly in trouble! Tethering is an idea..I do have some places. I'd still need to watch carefully to be sure he doesn't chew the furniture he's tethered too, lol, but it would contain the issue. I may ask DH to put some eyebolts in a few places as well, I'd heard of doing that. 

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I'm not sure about the flirt pole as he really doesn't give a crap about toys. 

Now...a paper bag or cardboard box he can shred to pieces? That he will enjoy. Poopy diaper, even better.

 

A few minutes ago I let him out of the crate because he was being quiet, to show him that is the way to get out. Gave him a bully stick. He ignored it and grabbed a shoe out of the bin they are in by the door. Mind you the bin is 4 feet up on top of a piece of furniture to try to keep the shoes out of reach but still be accessible to the kids. Sigh. 

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We don't have a large dog nor a hound- so take this as you will! But when we got our puppy, I was going nuts with the amount of work watching her. Called the breeder and she said the puppy should either be tethered to us or in the crate, even if we were in the same room- the puppy should be crated when I was making dinner for instance or too busy to spend all my time watching her. She should have zero freedom at that stage. When I thought about it, I realized I did that with my kids. As infants and then toddlers, they were in a bouncy seat or exersaycer or playyard. They got their freedom when I had the time to teach them the house rules and could watch what they touched etc.. So we did similar with the puppy and life was much less stressful! Good luck! I've watched my neighbor dragged all around the neighborhood by her hound. The dog is off at every scent.

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Ugh. So sorry. :(

 

I'd try 100% tidiness . . . puppy proof some areas of the home . . . put that shoe basket in a closet with a door . . . Be crazy about keeping everything out of reach . . . I'd personally rather do THAT than have to worry 24/7 that the puppy is destroying things. 

 

One of my very favorite dogs ever stayed in destruct-o-puppy-mode for 2 full years. She chilled out after her 2nd birthday. Despite her destructive tendencies, she was an AWESOME dog. Hopefully, your boy won't take 2 full years to out grow his chewing . . .

 

Can you task your older kids with playing/walking/etc the dog? Maybe your 17 year old would like to be hired for $10/hr to hike/run with him once a day for an hour or so?

 

One truth about dogs: A tired dog is a good dog. Works 100% of the time, IME, for a "good dog" . . . (obviously, not for aggression/etc, but for naughtiness). So, anything you can do to tire him out will be a good thing. 

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I'm not sure about the flirt pole as he really doesn't give a crap about toys. 

Now...a paper bag or cardboard box he can shred to pieces? That he will enjoy. Poopy diaper, even better.

 

A few minutes ago I let him out of the crate because he was being quiet, to show him that is the way to get out. Gave him a bully stick. He ignored it and grabbed a shoe out of the bin they are in by the door. Mind you the bin is 4 feet up on top of a piece of furniture to try to keep the shoes out of reach but still be accessible to the kids. Sigh. 

They are super cheap to make. It totally sounds as though he's two things: bored and smart. Playing with him with a flirt pole is great mind as well as body exercise. We've used it with great success. With his breeding, he needs to be mentally stimulated, especially when he has all of that energy. I encourage you to try it. What's the worse that could happen?

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Feed him all his meals in frozen form in a Kong or similar toy? So he spends a good part of his day on those?

 

Any chance of hiring someone to get him some more exercise?

 

Do you have a heavy piece of furniture you can tether him to? Some dogs who hate crates will tolerate tethering.

 

Of course work like the dickens on the basics for house manners -- sit, down and stay.

 

And remember every time he picks up something he's not supposed to have to work on leave it (or give--whatever you call it).

 

We got our Brittany when youngest DS was 18 months old. That dog had the most rock solid "leave it" of any dog I've ever owned. ;) By the time he was a year old he'd spit out a piece of steak on command.

 

 

Awww.  I miss my Brittany.  She did obey 'drop it', but not stay.  If she got free she ran like the wind.

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Pick up a copy of Don't Shoot the Dog. I just finished reading it a couple of months ago.

I've read it and used to teach clicker training classes. The problem is no one else is on board and it's very parent intensive and I'm trapped under the baby so not able to be as responsive as I should be.
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My sister put up baby gates in her kitchen and that's the area the dogs got to stay in.  Try to find an area in your house that could be his, but also have access to people. That way you can restrict his area of destruction, while also training him at the same time. 

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I do sympathize.  We got a puppy that quickly turned into 50 lbs when dd was a couple of months old and then shortly thereafter dh took a traveling job for a few months without us.  I thought several time that I should just shoot the dog and end my misery.  He is now a very sweet 7 yo dog who still only occasionally counter surfs.  He has been dd's best friend.  Mine liked balls so he I would play fetch with him while feeding dd and while dd was still bfeeding the dog taught her how to throw a ball.

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Can he not spend most of his time in the backyard? Would that make him miserable for some reason?

He wants to be with people too much. And digs....huge holes.

 

Tonight I made everyone really clean up everything in his reach and then went to the park and he was good after that.

Edited by ktgrok
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YMMV, because I didn't have a hound (What were you thinking!!! ;-) ) and she weighed much less and I didn't have littles.  This was not a crateable dog and every minute in the crate made her behavior worse.   She is a people dog.  I was reading a thread here about tomato staking and I thought "AHA!!"  I clipped a short leash to my belt and she had to be at my side ALL the time.  She was always within reach for correction or treats.  She got lots of exercise, because she had to hop up to flip the laundry, help with math, put away dishes, everything a mom does all day.  It wore her out and she slept well at night.  It's not perfect because if you are distracted they can chew on your shoelaces while you wear them or chew through your charging cable, but it made a huge difference.

 

She's 9 now, and still jumps up to go with me everywhere I go.

Edited by Joules
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I think you probably have a better shot at training the kids to keep a dog-safe space, at least for now.  It doesn't have to be the whole house, or even the entire day, but at least an area he can handle for a few hours.

 

When our big guys were puppies, the kids were about 7, 3, and 2.  It was definitely a challenge.  Even now with our tiny dog, we still do a room clean up before letting him run free in the living room.  The last thing I need is for him to choke on a Lego!

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I wish I had a solution for you. We have 2 Crates. One is a Folding Wire Crate I bought many years ago. I think those are made in MN. Sorry I can't remember the name of the company and it seems to be faded off.  The other one is a Kennel Aire (Plastic crate) made (I think) by Doskocil or something like that in Arlington TX.   Dogs are "Den animals" so if you have a   Crate in the house where he can see you, if you are lucky, with time, he will love the Crate and go into it voluntarily, to sleep, rest, etc.    That will be his space.

 

We unexpectedly had a Rottweiler, which DSS and DIL saw fly out of a pickup truck stopped at a stoplight on the highway, when they were on their motorcycle. I think he was approximately 3 weeks old when he arrived here. I knew he would be huge.  As a puppy he certainly destroyed a lot of things, but he grew into a wonderful wonderful dog and was in the house more than the other dogs combined. Unfortunately, he died before he was 2 years old.  He would watch TV or movies with my wife and sit on the couch with her.      He was great with a young boy (about 6) who came to visit.

 

Now, whether your problematic dog who has been in 7 homes during his short life will become like our late Rottweiler, or, continue his bad ways, is something one cannot predict.

 

He is extremely lucky to have someone like you, who is so devoted, trying to give him a good home and not just take him to the SPCA or otherwise try to rehome him.  

 

Nylabones were things I bought for my Old English Sheepdogs and hopefully they learn to enjoy chewing on those and not on the furniture... (I think there is some controversy about Nylabones now).

Edited by Lanny
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He wants to be with people too much. And digs....huge holes.

 

Tonight I made everyone really clean up everything in his reach and then went to the park and he was good after that.

 

Oh yeah, our hound is quite an excavator. He was on doggy timeout yesterday for digging a huge crater in the back yard. 

 

I love the hound personality, but I can see where it would be very challenging to deal with in your situation!

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So, keeping things picked up is helping immensely, and by picked up I mean NOTHING he can reach. But he still peed in his kennel today when I didn't let him out right when he whined (he whines every time, and I try not to let him out when he's being loud..and he'd JUST been outside!), found a dirty diaper to chew up, and tore up some toilet paper. Sigh. 

 

I just ordered a hands free leash to wear around my waist (no belt loops on most of my outfits). 

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Can you hire a teenager to take him jogging several miles per day?

 

:grouphug:

 

D$23 has a black mouth cur (hound) and she is the strongest, most energetic puppy I have ever seen. Thankfully he is also young, energetic, and lives right by a lake so he can throw a ball or stick so she can swim for a half hour every day. You live in florida though, right? No doggies swimming in lakes there. :ack2:

Edited by trulycrabby
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That sounds awful! Exercise is your best bet, but I really have good luck feeding meals out of kongs. I get the XL one, stuff the small hole with cheese, put 1/3 or 1/4 of his food in there, fill it with water and freeze. My dog is very food motivated, so he will work on that until it's gone. He's an agressivevchewer, and it still takes him almost 45 minutes to finish it. Doing that 3-4 times a day really mentally wears him out. If your dog isn't as good motivated you mix some more exciting treats in there.

Hiring your teen son or a dog walker/runner sounds like a great idea too.

Good luck!

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My boss had a very energetic dog like this that turned out to be addicted to chasing the dot from a lazer pointer. His dd would sit on the porch and wave the lighter around while she did homework or read fiction and the dog would chase it around for up to an hour at a time. Saved his relationship with his dog. Maybe that would help you???

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I have a 10 month old German Shepherd/Lab that can also drive me crazy.  He learns quickly, but is also very stubborn.  It doesn't help that he entered his bratty adolescent phase at 6 months and it is still going with no end in sight.

 

He isn't big on playing with toys either, but there is something about that flirt pole that he loves and it can wear him out quickly.  He does prefer our purchased one over our homemade one though.  I'd still recommend to give it a try.

 

Training and walks help.  Also, the frozen kong and frozen bone trick work really well.  I always have something frozen for him to chew on.  Other than that, he also gets his meals each day in either an interactive toy (like the kong wobbler or magic mushroom) or in one of those slow feeder bowls.  That makes him have to work harder for his food.

 

We don't need to anymore, but we also used a lot of gates and containment fields to keep him in certain areas.

 

Good luck!  I know it's frustrating but hang in there.

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Can you hire a teenager to take him jogging several miles per day?

 

:grouphug:

 

D$23 has a black mouth cur (hound) and she is the strongest, most energetic puppy I have ever seen. Thankfully he is also young, energetic, and lives right by a lake so he can throw a ball or stick so she can swim for a half hour every day. You live in florida though, right? No doggies swimming in lakes there. :ack2:

 

SaveSaveJogging isn't advised when they are so young, it's bad for their forming joints/bones, sadly. 

 

We don't do lakes, but we do have a pool. Haven't started using it this season yet, the water is still cold, but I'm hoping he'll swim this summer. That would definitely wear him out!

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Kong is a good idea, I only have the small ones right now so haven't been using them much. Just bought an x large one on Amazon, same day delivery, so will start putting more of his food in there. Just need to be proactive and remember to do it ahead of time so I can at least partially freeze it, not to mention I can scoop into a bowl with one hand while holding a baby, but stuffing a kong takes two hands...sigh. 

 

Also going to try the laser pointer idea, I think DH has one. 

 

In good news with nothing else to chew (mostly..he did get a rechargeable battery to my vacuum that the cat knocked off the shelf!), he's spent a good hour working on one of those himalayan yak milk chew things. It had been hidden beneath his bed in his crate, so when I took the bed out to wash it I found it and gave it to him. (hidden probably means he buried it, lol). Given how long he's been working on it I just ordered another, bigger one. Hoping his interest lasts!

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You are not alone. I have no great advice but I'm sitting here with coffee, about to let the 10 month old whirlwind out of her crate - she was in for a ten minute nap while I did some work. She sounds just like your boy, but not a hound.

 

Frozen kongs have helped here. Tons of exercise. I'm reading along and hoping for more ideas.

 

I spent most of Saturday filling 400 holes in our yard. It was starting to look like the moon back there - craters everywhere. If I look away for 30 seconds, she'll have a huge hole. Aaaagh! :)

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My boss had a very energetic dog like this that turned out to be addicted to chasing the dot from a lazer pointer. His dd would sit on the porch and wave the lighter around while she did homework or read fiction and the dog would chase it around for up to an hour at a time. Saved his relationship with his dog. Maybe that would help you???

 

FWIW -- Most experts advise NOT to use laser pointers with dogs. Many are susceptible to a type of OCD like condition that is thought to perhaps be triggered by laser pointers. It involves things like "fly snapping" and shadow chasing. Those problems can occur in any dog but I've heard of them more in herding breeds. A search will bring up lots of information warning against it. Here's one short blurb from a vet clinic.

 

(I'm not saying it absolutely shouldn't be done. Sometimes it's a choice between a maybe-not-good thing and being able to keep a pet. Or in other words, sometimes the potential benefits outweigh the potential risks. Just posting this for informational purposes.)

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Possibly someone taking him for walks/runs while the person is on a bicycle (with the dog on a leash of course), if you live in a quiet neighborhood where that is safe to do. We live in a huge rural subdivision and I've seen people running with their dogs, or taking them while on a bicycle or motorcycle.

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Fortunately, my dog has a low need for exercise, so she is usually pretty good but even at 2 years old, we do not leave her unsupervised in the house.

 

She sleeps in her crate in the basement and stays there when we are not home.

 

When we are home, she is on a leash in the house with us. I do fill up her kong a couple of times a day. She enjoys that.

 

When I take a shower, I put her leash on the towel rack and close the door. If I take out the trash, I get a kid to hold her leash or I take her with me.

 

She isn't bothered by the leash because she just wants to be with us. I can see it would be a huge hassle with a baby, but I'd make the older kids help.

 

I feel like the more time she spends being good, the more of a good habit it becomes.

 

My best friend works with drug detection dogs. She taught me to use a spray bottle on them when they won't be good in the crate. My dogs love their crates but when they start barking at a cat across the street, or the mail person, all I have to do is show them the spray bottle and they stop.

 

Good luck! Puppies are so labor intensive.

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None of these behaviors are unexpected with puppies.  I agree with Amy that puppies are labor intensive. 

 

Oh, absolutely. It's totally my fault, for having a puppy at this stage in life. Before though, I always crated puppies, and that was a sanity saver. And they all loved chewing on appropriate things. This dog came with baggage despite being so young (3 months) which threw me for a loop. Hated the crate, and had learned to pee IN the crate because he'd been left in it for 10 hours a day at one place, plus did a 10 hour car ride in one and he gets horribly carsick. So crating a lot wasn't an option really. And instead of loving nylabones and such, he was "meh". My puppies are generally nylabone addicts. Even rawhide he turns down sometimes, in favor of the furniture. Sigh. 

 

Honestly, I think my real lesson here is that taking in a dog that is 3 months old and been in 6 or more homes already = the energy of a puppy plus the baggage of a rescued adult. 

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Oh, absolutely. It's totally my fault, for having a puppy at this stage in life. Before though, I always crated puppies, and that was a sanity saver. And they all loved chewing on appropriate things. This dog came with baggage despite being so young (3 months) which threw me for a loop. Hated the crate, and had learned to pee IN the crate because he'd been left in it for 10 hours a day at one place, plus did a 10 hour car ride in one and he gets horribly carsick. So crating a lot wasn't an option really. And instead of loving nylabones and such, he was "meh". My puppies are generally nylabone addicts. Even rawhide he turns down sometimes, in favor of the furniture. Sigh. 

 

Honestly, I think my real lesson here is that taking in a dog that is 3 months old and been in 6 or more homes already = the energy of a puppy plus the baggage of a rescued adult. 

So you clearly understand what a poor placement this was for the dog. It's truly not his fault. He's doing what high energy, smart puppies do. Now it's up to you to find things that will engage his mind and help him get out the energy. Sadly, just saying how he won't chew on appropriate things won't do much for him. He's dependent on you to make his life a good one. 

 

I would encourage you to look on YouTube to find games and such that your family can and will play with him. It is true that running isn't recommended--for long distances--but he could certainly run sprints and play about with an active teenager. Play hide and go seek, try the toy I told you about, make his exercise a big family priority. He will engage if you engage with him, I'll bet. The smartest dogs I've had were never happy with a toy as they wanted attention, not to be by themselves being quiet.

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Possibly someone taking him for walks/runs while the person is on a bicycle (with the dog on a leash of course), if you live in a quiet neighborhood where that is safe to do. We live in a huge rural subdivision and I've seen people running with their dogs, or taking them while on a bicycle or motorcycle.

 

I second this. Get on your bike and make him run alongside. Good for your health, great for tiring him out. Your pup is so destructive because he is going nuts with too much energy. Hounds are bred for traipsing about all over tarnation.

Edited by Aelwydd
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So you clearly understand what a poor placement this was for the dog. It's truly not his fault. He's doing what high energy, smart puppies do. Now it's up to you to find things that will engage his mind and help him get out the energy. Sadly, just saying how he won't chew on appropriate things won't do much for him. He's dependent on you to make his life a good one. 

 

I would encourage you to look on YouTube to find games and such that your family can and will play with him. It is true that running isn't recommended--for long distances--but he could certainly run sprints and play about with an active teenager. Play hide and go seek, try the toy I told you about, make his exercise a big family priority. He will engage if you engage with him, I'll bet. The smartest dogs I've had were never happy with a toy as they wanted attention, not to be by themselves being quiet.

 

To be fair, I've had high energy, smart puppies before. They just weren't crate phobic when I got them, nor had they learned to urinate in their crate, which made the situation a bit easier. 

 

And we do try to play with him with toys...he just gets bored in about 2 minutes and goes off to find something else. Tug is all he'll play...no retrieving to speak of. Toys with kibble/hard treats he also gives up on pretty quickly...we have several balls and such that are designed to dispense kibble but he's a bit too ADHD to keep playing with them for very long. 

 

I just keep saying, "some day, he's going to be a great dog. Someday."

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I second this. Get on your bike and make him run alongside. Good for your health, great for tiring him out. Your pup is so destructive because he is going nuts with too much energy. Hounds are bred for traipsing about all over tarnation.

 

Every vet has told me not to run on pavement with a large bread dog until at least 1 year of age, probably longer. Trust me, I look forward to this!!!

 

As it is, we do walks, which he does enjoy a lot, and try to get to the dog park at least 5 times a week where he runs for an hour or two at a time wrestling with other dogs. Days we can't do that I usually take him to doggy daycare for a few hours.

 

So to be clear, he IS getting at least an hour of hard exercise almost every day, and I'm still having these issues. Maybe I wasn't clear on that before. I used to take him to the park twice a day, so 2-3 hours, which worked a lot better, plus although I was very pregnant I wasn't dealing with nursing a newborn, so I could be quicker to get up and redirect him if he got into trouble. 

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I would not give up on crate training even if he is phobic now. I have seen success with a friend putting mouthwash in a squirt bottle and spraying the puppy when he cried in the crate. I never had to go that far, but I know that puppy learned to love his crate.

 

We look at crate training like making a kid hold hands in the parking lot. It just has to be done. I'd ignore the peeing in the crate for right now. Just clean up and continue using it.

 

My dog won't engage with toys that have dry kibble. She does like a kong with cooked chicken or some other leftovers though.

 

My dogs are a breed known for never coming when called. We finally found a treat, some grain free salmon treat that looks like beef jerky and smells like fish food, but they will do anything for one.

 

We give them one when they go crate and when they come when called as well as for following other commands. It is worth searching around to find what motivates your particular puppy.

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Every vet has told me not to run on pavement with a large bread dog until at least 1 year of age, probably longer. Trust me, I look forward to this!!!

 

As it is, we do walks, which he does enjoy a lot, and try to get to the dog park at least 5 times a week where he runs for an hour or two at a time wrestling with other dogs. Days we can't do that I usually take him to doggy daycare for a few hours.

 

So to be clear, he IS getting at least an hour of hard exercise almost every day, and I'm still having these issues. Maybe I wasn't clear on that before. I used to take him to the park twice a day, so 2-3 hours, which worked a lot better, plus although I was very pregnant I wasn't dealing with nursing a newborn, so I could be quicker to get up and redirect him if he got into trouble.

 

Understood. He might need 2-3 hours daily exercise to really wear him out though. My standard poodle required at least 1.5 hours exercise and vigorous play until he was over a year and a half. Otherwise...chewing books and shoes and carpet and...lol.

 

This is maybe why he got rehomed so many times, the others didn't expect a pup with so much energy. It really is like taking care of a baby!

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For very smart dogs, like the one I have who is a Corgi Poodle mix, kong doesn't work at all,  He gets the stuff out within a minute.  Now my dog is not a young dog and in fact, he is dying, and he came with fairly good manners already and learned super quickly everything else I wanted.

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Also, in my defense, we didn't think he'd be this big! "out of reach" is hard to do when he's this tall!  

 

(prong collar is not my first choice, but this photo was taken shortly after giving birth and I needed to know he couldn't pull me over while I was carrying the baby, and he HATES his easy walk harness.) He's 6 months old in this photo. 

 

17634533_10154615331978666_1573969267900

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