<p>As much as we all love labs, they’re not all suited to a lot of indoor time. Some of it depends on breeding and it seems the further the line is from actually hunting/retrieving, the more likely they can adjust to being a house pet. My lab was one generation removed from living in a duck blind and he was just not happy with the sedentary life. His mission in life was to retrieve, swim, run, retrieve, swim, run until he was too exhausted to do anything else. If that wasn’t provided, he chewed things - the steps, the walls, the floor, glasses, shoes, everything. I couldn’t accommodate what he was bred to do so I gave him to a friend who lived on a 500 acre farm and he lived his last years in heaven on earth. He never destroyed a thing while he lived there.</p>
<p>cartera…I hear you. We do try to take him for LONG walks every day (his hips have always been bad so he’s never been much of a runner).
I worried about the bones. Don’t you need to supervise dogs with bones? He could choke on a splinter I would think. Are there ones that don’t have pieces that break off?</p>
<p>I will talk with my H and figure this out. We have already ordered a new liner for the damaged back of my SUV. He seems to need to chew something. Would sticking an old towel back there be dangerous? He seems to have a fondness for fibers…lol. We have gone through a few destroyed dog pillows over the last three years. He has also chewed vinyl blinds, a software box, a bike helmet, and much more.</p>
<p>The latest and greatest thing in dog chews is … ANTLERS. Your good local independent store should have them. Apparently they last forever! And no deer or elk are harmed or even harrassed in collecting the antlers …</p>
<p>Gave our chewing dog a big ol ham bone many years ago. Thinking it was safe as there was absolutely no way this dog could bite a piece of this bone off. Within a week the dog stopped eating and was throwing up. Ended with a seizure and a trip to the vet (not easy with a 110 lb dog). Apparently she nibbled on the bone so much that the fine particles of the bone were ingested and clumped together and turned into rock in her intestines. $600 worth of surgery and we got our dog back. One expensive bone. I have also heard of dogs chewing and swallowing pieces of kongs. I don’t have the answer just know what didn’t work for us.</p>
<p>Our golden retriever puppies ate through the dry wall in our garage and into our family room. </p>
<p>Should have crated them from day one. Live and learn.</p>
<p>So those antlers are safe to leave him alone with? That’s when he does his most destructive chewing (in the car and at home too). </p>
<p>I’ll also try the peanut butter in the kong…he is NOT one to damage his KONG…he LOVES his Kong. I just can’t believe how efficiently he gets those biscuits out!</p>
<p>About the bones: I find my dogs, when offered good quality real bones regularly, don’t chew anything else. (Well, one of them likes to shred empty yogurt containers.) Yes, you should supervise real bones, but you might find a real bone every few days alleviates the loneliness-chewing problem too.</p>
<p>Cheez whiz squirts well deep into a Kong. And you can stuff a biscuit in there too, having both in there will distract him a little longer.
As for all the chewy things like pigs ears, and rawhide, my vet called them a vet’s best source of income. The can easily become lodged in the dog’s intestine, and cause a blockage.</p>
<p>Well, I believe I have been less than creative in my approach to a Kong! Great ideas. I will go for the simpler ones. Never tried putting it in the freezer. I like the bread and peanut butter…never thought of that! I don’t go near Cheeze Wiz…I can see how it’s a good idea but I’d rather not buy it. </p>
<p>So I ordered a medium antler off Amazon and will supervise it. </p>
<p>I’ll try the Kong in the car and leave an old towel around in case he gets through it too quickly. </p>
<p>We’re holding off on getting a crate for now…but will cover our luggage and other stuff with a tarp (I’m sure the tarp will get chewed but better than the luggage!). </p>
<p>No chewy or soft things like ears or rawhide…been down that road and we’re lucky we avoided surgery.</p>
<p>I urge you to reconsider not getting a crate. You don’t have to throw the dog into and leave him there. You introduce him to it in steps and make sure he is very comfortable and will go in there himself because he associates it with good things. Then after he is comfortable with it in the house, you move it to the car and, assuming he likes car trips, he will associate the crate with another good thing. </p>
<p>Here is a detailed and thorough article on crate training. Remember - a crate is not a punishment - it is a positive thing. </p>
<p>thanks cartera. Interesting article. But one part caught my eye. Our dog mostly chews
when he is left alone. We contain him in our rather large laundry room at night and when we are away and he hangs out on his pillow with no problem. I don’t want him to hurt himself! And I’m not sure I have the energy to take on a full retraining. I’m trying the Kong! </p>
<p>"Attempting to use the crate as a remedy for separation anxiety won’t solve the problem. A crate may prevent your dog from being destructive, but he may injure himself in an attempt to escape from the crate. Separation anxiety problems can only be resolved with counter-conditioning and desensitization procedures. You may want to consult a professional animal-behavior specialist for help. "</p>
<p>If he is hanging out in the laundry room without you and not freaking out, then he probably doesn’t have separation anxiety, at least not to the level that the article references. There is no more reason for him to hurt himself in a crate than he would in the laundry room. </p>
<p>I understand the hesitancy to do the crate training, but there may come a time as he ages that he will need to be in a crate - an illness for example. You don’t want the crate to add to his anxiety. Just put in on your to do list. Most dogs take to crate training really quickly if it is introduced with treats and food and toys - what’s not to like about that!</p>
<p>OK. I bought a metal folding crate on Amazon. I had to go for the 36 inch (vs 42) in order for it to fit in the back of our SUV. Our lab is on the small side so I’m hoping it’s OK.
I’m not sure about using it in the house but we’ll give it a try using the training tips and leaving the door open for now. I’m hoping I don’t have to get TWO crates…although we’ll do what we need to do. I see your point about getting this established BEFORE he really starts having old dog problems. Thanks! (Can’t find the KONG at the moment…who knows what he did with it!)</p>
<p>The crate needs to be big enough for him to be able to stand up and turn around. </p>
<p>Since your guy has hip problems, I’m sure you have comfy mats or blankets to put in there for him. My dog likes to have something he can arrange so on top of a faux sheepskin, I put an old robe of mine that he can paw at and nuzzle. When I visit my mom, he never seems to be able to get comfortable in her den, so I put the crate in there and leave the door open. He ends up napping in there. </p>
<p>Being on the small side also helps with hip issues. Breeders are not as careful as they need to be about hip dysplasia. Add to that the fact that Americans like their labs bigger than they ever need to be. They breed for size, and the result is arthritis and hip problems. English bred labs are different form American bred labs and are often more laid back.</p>
<p>Another relatively safe bone is the raw marrow bone. I get them in the meat section or in the freezer at the grocery store. Keep them frozen. It’s good for about 1/2 hour. The dog will lick, chew the marrow out then grind on the bone for a good length of time. I look for the ones that are about 2 inches “tall” and with very thick bone so the dog isn’t able to splinter off bone sections. They are also very inexpensive, I can usually get 3-4 bones for under $2.00. I generally toss them pretty quickly just because of the splinter issues. I think people use them for soup, but not sure if people actually cook with them or just buy them for dogs. I still can’t believe that people have dogs that have actually eaten authentic Kong toys. Just amazed. I have a champion 80# chewer and not experienced that. We also finally found toys that survive champion chewers. Tuffies’s Pet Toys. I’m not sure if “Tuffys Pet Toys” are the same thing. The two Tuffies’s we have are over a year old and still intact. Good luck OP. I know my mechanic’s lab ate the top off his shifter in his SUV. I did not know labs chewed like that. I thought I had the only destructo breed.</p>
<p>We’ll see about the size of the crate. We may need to have one for the car (smaller) and one for the house. </p>
<p>Yes, our lab has had hip dysplasia for all of his life. We saw it first at 6 months. Poor thing could barely walk down the street at that point. We were very worried. Considered surgery. Fast forward, and he has done beautifully over the years. He gets high doses of fish oil and Glucasomine/Chondroitin every day. Long walks every day. Not too much food (he’s not fat like most Labs!). And yes, he’s naturally on the smaller side which helps. He’s had episodes of stiffness and lameness but nothing long lasting.</p>
<p>The chewing took us by surprise after s left for school. He just can’t help it I guess. Anyway, we hope to have him around for a few more years…and I’m sure the crate will help. Still can’t find the Kong. He’s not one to eat them though.</p>
<p>mom of 3 - will check out tuffies. Thanks. Not sure about the bones…don’t like the idea of splinters.</p>
<p>Toneranger: everyone I know who feeds bones says you don’t get splinters if you feed raw bones. I don’t like the idea of handling raw bones so I pour boiling water over them before feeding. My vet (who feeds raw bones herself) says that’s okay. I buy beef femurs and ribs from the human butcher.</p>
<p>My lab had hip dysplasia too. I didn’t know to ask for xrays from both mom and dad before getting him. I also didn’t know that the food given to lab puppies can impact the condition because it is made worse if they grow too fast so you want to give a lower protein food than lots of puppy foods. I think I also over exercised him as a youngster, not realizing that would add to problems with the hips. They need to stay lean and muscular, but not much jumping and high impact activities. Mine was a Frisbee dog and would be to play with it - leaping through the air, never missing a snag. I had no idea the damage I was doing.</p>