dogs chew up furniturre....

Question
hi..we have 2 new dogs about 6 months old and one is a part daschund mixed with beagle and the other one is a spitz.  the beagle is the head trouble maker; she wants to eat things like our blanket on the bed, the big pillows on the living room couch, etc.  before we go spent more money on these type things, how can we get them to both stop eating everything they can find...we give them big dog bones and they chew them up and then back to the furniture. how can we get them to stop that behavior? thank you!!

Answer
Are they destructive when you are around, or when you are not? If you are there, supervise carefully and interrupt any interest in objects they shouldn't have. (and give them an alternate activity) Close doors, use baby gates so they are constantly in sight. Tether them to you if necessary. When you are away, or sleeping, they need to be managed where they can't get in trouble until they learn the rules. Crate training is very useful. You can't correct behavior you don't see happening. Freedom is an earned priviledge. Sandy Case MEd CPDT www.positivelycanine.com