# Chewing Shoes



## Clara (Dec 14, 2013)

Buddha has been taking more and more of an interest in shoes and I often have to take them away from him. He never gets very far with them as I am right here and I crate him when I have chores to do and I can't keep an eye on him. Sometimes though if I am in another room and he has a minute or two he will grab a shoe and begin to chew on it.

Some questions: Should we put all shoes up and avoid the problem altogether? I was thinking of getting a tall wicker basket or something to keep by the door where everyone takes their shoes off as that is where he gets them from to chew on, just have everyone put their shoes in that for now. I'm thinking that this phase will pass but does Buddha need to be trained to not chew shoes? 

For now when I catch him with a shoe I take it away and give a drawn out Noooo...What did you do? Oh No....and I hold the shoe close to me and keep the low tone drama up until I reach the mantle and I put it up there. He is very interested in my reaction and sometimes he goes under the footstool and just pokes his nose out as if he is getting it. But I don't know for sure how to train a dog not to chew.


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## MarinaGirl (Mar 25, 2012)

I don't think your tone drama is going to get you the result you desire. Instead of telling your dog “no,” tell/show him what you want him to do. Dogs don’t generalize well. So take the shoe away and exchange it with an acceptable chew toy or bone. All shoes should be kept out of Buddha's reach for awhile.


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## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

MarinaGirl said:


> I don't think your tone drama is going to get you the result you desire. Instead of telling your dog "no," tell/show him what you want him to do. Dogs don't generalize well. So take the shoe away and exchange it with an acceptable chew toy or bone. All shoes should be kept out of Buddha's reach for awhile.


right on .


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## Clara (Dec 14, 2013)

MarinaGirl said:


> I don't think your tone drama is going to get you the result you desire. Instead of telling your dog "no," tell/show him what you want him to do. Dogs don't generalize well. So take the shoe away and exchange it with an acceptable chew toy or bone. All shoes should be kept out of Buddha's reach for awhile.


Thanks. That is helpful. The reason I was handling it the way I was with drawn out drama is because I was processing what to do about it. The first half dozen or so times I just took the shoe away and said and did nothing.

The giving him something else to chew on was what I was about to get ready to do IF I didn't decide to keep the shoes out of reach. I just wasn't sure if chewing shoes or chewing in general was just a phase. Also I wasn't sure if putting the shoes out of his reach was just postponing the problem. It does make sense to just avoid a pile of trouble if possible. He doesn't chew on any other non allowed things, yet. My sons dog chewed the corners off of more than one piece of wood furniture.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Clara said:


> Thanks. That is helpful. The reason I was handling it the way I was with drawn out drama is because I was processing what to do about it. The first half dozen or so times I just took the shoe away and said and did nothing.
> 
> The giving him something else to chew on was what I was about to get ready to do IF I didn't decide to keep the shoes out of reach. I just wasn't sure if chewing shoes or chewing in general was just a phase. Also I wasn't sure if putting the shoes out of his reach was just postponing the problem. It does make sense to just avoid a pile of trouble if possible. He doesn't chew on any other non allowed things, yet. My sons dog chewed the corners off of more than one piece of wood furniture.


I think the others are right in terms of how to handle it. Keep things out of his reach as much as possible, and replace them with an approved chew toy when he DOES manage to get hold of something.

Chewing IS a phase for most dogs (though some will persist into adulthood&#8230; not usually Havanese, though) So a lot of it will fade over time,e ben if you do nothing. Also certain puppies seem to decide on one thing to chew, while others will chew something else. Kodi never touched any wooden furniture, but he was DEATH on throw pillows and (really bad!!!) the fringe on my oriental rugs&#8230; which are in almost every room in our home. We put all the throw pillows away, because we could. With the rugs, since pulling up every rug in the house seemed excessive, I had to come up with a "cure". I tried bitter apple spray, which had absolutely no effect. Finally, I pinned scraps of cloth along the edges of the fringe in the rooms he had access too, and put hot sauce on the scraps. He had already (to his dismay!) learned about hot sauce because we had to use it to keep him from chewing electrical cords. It took very little time with the hot sauce before he leaned to leave the edges of the rugs alone! 

Kodi wasn't bad with shoes, EXCEPT he found the leather laces on my husband's Docksiders irresistible. In the end, the laces lost, and were replaced by cord ones. 

The good news is that by 15 months or so, the chewing was really a thing of the past. I can't remember the last time he chewed something inappropriate.


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## Celesthav (Mar 20, 2013)

Buddha is sooo cute! I hope it's a phase. My little girl is 6 mos old. She loves our shoes. We keep the shoes out of the room Maggie is in or out of her reach. If you have a puppy, they are teething and want lots of chews. Maggie says, "Yum yum nice merrells suede feel so good on my gums" as she runs off into her crate with one of my husband's merrells. It doesn't help that we laugh so much!  But she's so darn cute. We do take the shoe away and give her a chew toy. Oh, shoes strings are also a favorite, too. 
Jeanne & Maggie


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## Ruthiec (Jun 18, 2013)

All good advice but I also think it's worth introducing a "correction" word. It doesn't matter what Charlie is doing, he now understands that "ah ah" said in a particular tone means that he should stop whatever he is doing because he shouldn't be doing it. That doesn't mean he always stops, but he definitely understands what "ah ah" means.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Ruthiec said:


> All good advice but I also think it's worth introducing a "correction" word. It doesn't matter what Charlie is doing, he now understands that "ah ah" said in a particular tone means that he should stop whatever he is doing because he shouldn't be doing it. That doesn't mean he always stops, but he definitely understands what "ah ah" means.


Yes, for sure, as they get older, you want to make sure you have an "interruption" word, that can keep them from getting themselves into serious trouble or danger. Even if it only stops them for a split second, it can mean the difference between you getting to them or not. (though I haven't found it totally effective with dead things in the woods!  uke


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## Clara (Dec 14, 2013)

krandall said:


> I think the others are right in terms of how to handle it. Keep things out of his reach as much as possible, and replace them with an approved chew toy when he DOES manage to get hold of something.
> 
> Chewing IS a phase for most dogs (though some will persist into adulthood&#8230; not usually Havanese, though) So a lot of it will fade over time,e ben if you do nothing. Also certain puppies seem to decide on one thing to chew, while others will chew something else. Kodi never touched any wooden furniture, but he was DEATH on throw pillows and (really bad!!!) the fringe on my oriental rugs&#8230; which are in almost every room in our home. We put all the throw pillows away, because we could. With the rugs, since pulling up every rug in the house seemed excessive, I had to come up with a "cure". I tried bitter apple spray, which had absolutely no effect. Finally, I pinned scraps of cloth along the edges of the fringe in the rooms he had access too, and put hot sauce on the scraps. He had already (to his dismay!) learned about hot sauce because we had to use it to keep him from chewing electrical cords. It took very little time with the hot sauce before he leaned to leave the edges of the rugs alone!
> 
> ...


The old "hot sauce trick" I never would have thought to use that. I do worry about him chewing cords. He likes to get behind the couch and there are lamp cords back there I have started just not letting him go back there because I can't see what he is doing back there anyway but he has recently taken interest in getting behind the TV by accessing the open bottom shelf on the TV stand. How did you put the hot sauce on cords? Just wipe it on with paper towel?

I'm having second thoughts about using a wicker basket seems like he might just like that as much as a shoe. Glad to hear that the chewing is most likely a phase.


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## Clara (Dec 14, 2013)

Ruthiec said:


> All good advice but I also think it's worth introducing a "correction" word. It doesn't matter what Charlie is doing, he now understands that "ah ah" said in a particular tone means that he should stop whatever he is doing because he shouldn't be doing it. That doesn't mean he always stops, but he definitely understands what "ah ah" means.


This is a good idea. I think they teach that in an obedience class. It's kind of like a halt command.


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## Clara (Dec 14, 2013)

Celesthav said:


> Buddha is sooo cute! I hope it's a phase. My little girl is 6 mos old. She loves our shoes. We keep the shoes out of the room Maggie is in or out of her reach. If you have a puppy, they are teething and want lots of chews. Maggie says, "Yum yum nice merrells suede feel so good on my gums" as she runs off into her crate with one of my husband's merrells. It doesn't help that we laugh so much!  But she's so darn cute. We do take the shoe away and give her a chew toy. Oh, shoes strings are also a favorite, too.
> Jeanne & Maggie


Yep the expensive shoes always taste better.


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## Karen Collins (Mar 21, 2013)

I have a really good trick for shoes. It always works. I trade a better chew toy for the shoe and as I'm walking away, I scold the shoe. It sounds silly, but my dogs Never bother shoes. Now I need to figure out how to scold the rocking chair leg. I can never catch anyone chewing on it, but it gets suspiciously smaller every year. :wink:


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## Clara (Dec 14, 2013)

Karen Collins said:


> I have a really good trick for shoes. It always works. I trade a better chew toy for the shoe and as I'm walking away, I scold the shoe. It sounds silly, but my dogs Never bother shoes.


lol that sounds like it might work all the doggie knows is that someone got in trouble.



> Now I need to figure out how to scold the rocking chair leg. I can never catch anyone chewing on it, but it gets suspiciously smaller every year. :wink:


Have you tried hot sauce?


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## Suzi (Oct 27, 2010)

I have a pair of good shoes I wore the other day. I love them so much. Stupid me forgot and just slipped them off. Their red swede with a pretty rose on it. Well the rose is gone.


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## emichel (May 3, 2012)

Clara said:


> ... I wasn't sure if putting the shoes out of his reach was just postponing the problem. It does make sense to just avoid a pile of trouble if possible.


That's about it. For a while there I thought I was going to have to just suspend everything I owned from the ceiling -- shoes, items for recycling, groceries just bought in from the car, you name it, my dog was interested in it. Now that he's a little older (a year and 3/4) and doesn't have that puppy chewing thing going on, it seems like he is mostly interested in his toys as an interactive thing. He will pick up a cow ear lying around to chew on, but most of the time leaves even his toys alone unless I am throwing them or trying to engage him with them. This means that he is also not trying to play with shoes and whatnot, what a relief. But yes, it is only fair to the dog to keep things out of his or her way, rather than leading him to temptation and contributing to confusion about what is or is not OK to play with or chew. OTOH, paper will probably be a lifelong thing. If I am dumb enough to leave a roll of paper towels or box of Kleenex within his reach and he decides to shred them, all I can do is laugh and clean it up, and remember to put them up out of his way next time!


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## Clara (Dec 14, 2013)

Suzi said:


> I have a pair of good shoes I wore the other day. I love them so much. Stupid me forgot and just slipped them off. Their red swede with a pretty rose on it. Well the rose is gone.


Darn! I know my daughter in law had her lab puppy chew up his first pair of shoes at the worst time. She was interviewing for her first job after graduating college she is a Speech Pathologist the night before the interview she laid out exactly what she wanted to wear to the interview was feeing very confident in what she had chosen, woke up to a shoe with an all new texture.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Clara said:


> The old "hot sauce trick" I never would have thought to use that. I do worry about him chewing cords. He likes to get behind the couch and there are lamp cords back there I have started just not letting him go back there because I can't see what he is doing back there anyway but he has recently taken interest in getting behind the TV by accessing the open bottom shelf on the TV stand. How did you put the hot sauce on cords? Just wipe it on with paper towel?
> 
> I'm having second thoughts about using a wicker basket seems like he might just like that as much as a shoe. Glad to hear that the chewing is most likely a phase.


Yes, Kodi targeted cords any time he saw them. He chewed through a couple of expensive laptop cords. (not plugged in, the kids had left them around, but they were still costly to replace!) I had to watch him like a HAWK when he wasn't in his pen to make sure he didn't get at cords&#8230; they were like a magnet to him!!! So yes, I just wiped a small amount of hot sauce on the cords with a paper towel. Then I purposely DIDN'T stop him getting to a few strategically placed, not-plugged-in cords.

I felt a LITTLE bad because one taste and he was whimpering and trying to wipe his mouth on the floor to get rid of it. It obviously hurt. OTOH, it was MUCH less hurt than getting electrocuted by a live cord! And ONE SINGLE TASTE was all he needed. From that point on, a whiff of hot sauce on ANYTHING would keep him away from it.

I was having the same thoughts about the wicker basket idea&#8230; Kodi never chewed wooden furniture, but he DID do some damage to the legs of a couple of wicker chairs on the porch!


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Suzi said:


> I have a pair of good shoes I wore the other day. I love them so much. Stupid me forgot and just slipped them off. Their red swede with a pretty rose on it. Well the rose is gone.


Oops! Looked like a chew toy to SOMEBODY!!!

They WERE pretty shoes, Suzi!


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## Clara (Dec 14, 2013)

I do worry a lot about cords. He hasn't bothered the Christmas tree too much. I watch that like a hawk and he gets a firm NO when he tries to go under it. I also didn't decorate the bottom third of it. I definitely will be trying the hot sauce if I see any signs of him being interested in cords.


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## MarinaGirl (Mar 25, 2012)

Here's some good info from Emmie's dog training school.

*Inappropriate Chewing:*
Puppies chew when they are teething. Most dogs enjoy chewing. Some dogs chew when they are bored. Always provide breed and age appropriate bones and toys. When you catch your dog in the act of chewing on something he shouldn't, quietly take the wrong object away and replace it with one of his toys. Be sure your house is properly dog proofed. When leaving your dog home alone, be sure he cannot access inappropriate items. If supervision and redirection do not fully resolve the problem, consider using one of the bitter sprays to make the object less appealing.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

MarinaGirl said:


> Here's some good info from Emmie's dog training school.
> 
> *Inappropriate Chewing:*
> Puppies chew when they are teething. Most dogs enjoy chewing. Some dogs chew when they are bored. Always provide breed and age appropriate bones and toys. When you catch your dog in the act of chewing on something he shouldn't, quietly take the wrong object away and replace it with one of his toys. Be sure your house is properly dog proofed. When leaving your dog home alone, be sure he cannot access inappropriate items. If supervision and redirection do not fully resolve the problem, consider using one of the bitter sprays to make the object less appealing.


Sounds like you found yourself a good dog school, Marina!


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## MarinaGirl (Mar 25, 2012)

Karen: I think so too.  I drive quite a ways to take Emmie there and this coming weekend she's going to start Rally and Agility classes, in addition to the Competition Obedience classes she's currently attending. I've learned a lot but have so much more to learn so I appreciate your wisdom in all your posts. -Jeanne-


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

MarinaGirl said:


> Karen: I think so too.  I drive quite a ways to take Emmie there and this coming weekend she's going to start Rally and Agility classes, in addition to the Competition Obedience classes she's currently attending. I've learned a lot but have so much more to learn so I appreciate your wisdom in all your posts. -Jeanne-


!!!YAY!!! Another performance Hav on the forum!!!:cheer2::cheer2:


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## MarinaGirl (Mar 25, 2012)

We'll see if we ever make it into the ring... :fear:


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

MarinaGirl said:


> We'll see if we ever make it into the ring... :fear:


I'm sure you will if you want to!!! . I'd also urge you to look into CDSP Obedience and WC rally if these venues are available in your area. They are much less formal and more user-friendly than AKC, and everyone is SO supportive of the "new kids on the block". They are great venues to get started in. I've heard the same about CPE Agility, though we've never tried that one.


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