dog behaviour

Behavioral problems can only be changed through correction. praise the positive behavior. Don’t yell at the dog after the fact. you have to catch him in the act. You’ll want to get a big bone for him to chew on. he likes to chew, so get him something appropriate… I have had lots of good luck with the huge cow leg bones. they last a long time and are usually less than 10 dollars. (5 pounds I guess) if you catch him chewing on something he’s not supposed to chew on, startle him by shouting his name and then correct the behavior by giving him the bone. he will learn to chew only on the things that are appropriate. also, animal repellant works well in combination with this sort of training. you can get it at pet stores. spray it on the things you don’t want them to chew, and they will stay away from it.

You need to do some research on your breed. Daily walks to release engery are good. If you are not home crated training is wonderful for you and the dog. You need to keep your feelings and emotions calm, I know this is hard but a dog feeds off of your feelings. I personally think bitter apple spray is a waste of money. You need to correct the dog when it is doing something wrong at that moment. To me it sounds like the dog is board and does not know what it’s job is. I read a lot of ceaser milan books and watch him on the discovery channel. He gives a lot of great information. I don’t mean this in a bad way but a dog reflects it’s owner. Just relax and take control.

Sometimes if a dog hasn’t been fixed it can cause them to act out hence the chewing everything. If the dog doesn’t get enough attention or is very spoiled that can also play a part. Usually after a year or so they will grow out of it, you should ask your vet on their opinion of it. There is also some sprays like bitter apple you can use to spray things the dog tends to chew on, the taste of it is unappealing so they tend to stop chewing on it. You can find it at your local pet stores or at the vets office.

Oh yeah and staffy’s are an energetic loyal and loving breed.. pay him a lot of attention. keep him busy with toys. I have had a couple american pit mixes, which are close to staffys, and they’re a great dog if you can train them.

Staffy’s are chewers of the most intense nature.. I have one that is currently 11 months old and what we do is divert her attention.. if she starts to chew on something that she’s not allowed to chew on, we simply say “NO” in a harsh tone.. she stops, then we give her something she IS allowed to chew on, such as a toy.. although I’ve found she chews through most toys and rawhides in 2.5 seconds lol.. so we get her the large size edible bones for powerful chewers.. yeah, they’ll set you back 6 bucks a bone.. and they’ll likely only last a few weeks, but it saves furniture and everything else the dog can get its teeth on.. mine also likes rope toys.. but be careful.. they rip to shreds, and you have to watch them to make sure they don’t swallow the strings.. I had Static at the vets office when she was 4 months old because she refused to eat and kept vomiting with a diarreah.. turned out she’d swallowed things like small rocks and plastic shards, and the’d caused a blockage.. so definately be careful, but give her things she can chew on that aren’t furniture and phones :)

I’ve had many dogs over the years, and the best way I’ve found to keep them from chewing is to provide a literal “toy box” available in my living room. In it I have different textures (wood, rubber, rope, several varieties of balls…different shapes and sizes)…When the dog picks up something it’s not supposed to have, I “trade”…let them see me take something out of the box, and offer it…most dogs LOVE to trade (what YOU have has to be better)…Those black Kongs are expensive, but they hold up to Bully type breeds impressive jaw power…

Again, this is a vigilence thing, until the dog knows EVERYTHING in the box is his…anything OUT of the box is not. It helps too, to keep your possessions picked up, until the dog knows the difference.

Of course we know that Staffies aren’t necessarily aggressive at all…however they are very active and very smart…and chewing is a way to burn off energy.

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