How to Train Your Dog to Stop Chewing on Things

Hello Kien, First of all, when you crate him put a Kong stuffed with dog food in the crate with him. Only having one option to chew and making that chew toy interesting with his dog food will help him learn to like that toy in general. Other good chew toys for hard chewers are deer and elk antlers, cow sterile white bones (which are hollow and can be filled with dog food that has been soaked in water and mixed with a bit of peanut butter (avoid Xylitol sweetener in peanut butter though - it's toxic to dogs!), cow hoofs, and flavored nylabones (not all dogs like these but many like the meat or peanut butter flavored ones). If he likes branches, then deer or elk antlers are good things to try. The key is to stuff hollow chew toys with his dog food and to give these to him when he is confined in a crate, exercise pen, or staying on his bed. Making that toy exciting and giving it to him when there are no other options to chew helps him form a habit of chewing those toys so that he will think to look for them when he does have other options. You can stuff a regular large Kong by placing dog food inside and putting a larger treat across half of the opening so that only a couple of pieces of food spill out at a time. You can also put his dog food in a bowl, cover it with water, let it sit out until the food turns to wet mush. Once it's mushy, mix a little peanut butter or liver paste into the food mush where, loosely stuff the Kong (don't pack it too tightly or the food won't come back out), then freeze the Kong overnight. You can make several of these at once for the week if you have multiple Kong's or hollow chew toys to stuff. Because these are frozen and filled with food, they should keep his interested for longer and also relieve any sore jaws that are developing right now. Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden

Hello, I think that training Cookie to not eat the roach bait will be a challenge since Cookie does it mainly when you are not present. Cookie most likely knows the behavior isn't correct. The simplest thing to do is put them where Cookie cannot reach, such as in a cupboard or closet. I would be concerned about her getting a blockage from eating the bait container. However, you can try and teach her the Leave It command, although it's hard to reinforce it when you are not there. Take a look here: https://wagwalking.com/training/leave-it-1. Choose a method that you think will work for Cookie. Practice every day for 10-20 minutes. Once you feel Cookie has the command down pat, start practicing when you see her approach or even sniff a roach bait. Good luck!