my dog wreaks havoc on my life!

Question
Hi, Bill.  I have raised my bichon frise/maltese mix since she was 7 weeks old and she is ten months old now.  Her behavior has increasingly gotten worse and worse and I have no idea how to correct the mistakes I obviously must have made early on.  She chews EVERYTHING IN SIGHT! Books, shoes, combs, brushes, cases, boxes, paper, electrical cords, whatever.  If she can reach it, she'll chew it.  I constantly buy her bones to chew, which she does, but also chews everything else.  She doesn't like many dog toys because most are made of rubber or nylon, and she won't put it in her mouth because I think she doesn't like the smell, and stuffed toys she ruins too quickly to keep buying.  I've tried painting rubber toys with dog food broth, and even putting them inside my socks (which she LOVES to chew) but no luck. I have had to replace five pair of shoes and a leather cell phone case, just to name a few.  I have tried putting things out of her reach but she jumps up to the dining table and counters to get things!  Three times she has pulled my leftovers off the counter, and I don't even feed her table scraps, so I don't know how she even has a taste for it.  I was only gone for an hour today, and when I came home I found two destroyed products and my leftovers (that were in styrofoam and pushed back on the dining table) on the ground.  I'll notice her watching me leave the room, and as soon as she thinks I'm gone, she'll rush to get into the trash!  It used to be a daily occurence that I would come home to knocked over trash.  Now I hide the trash can in the closet.  She doesn't come when I call her and when she doesn't get her way she barks and growls at me.  She has no respect for me.  She won't perform tricks (basic "sit" and "down") without a treat. If she wants me to play with her and I don't, she will show her teeth and growl, bark, and sometimes even lash at me with her paws.  She still goes in the house, but I know that's my fault.  She was housebroken until I started a new job working in retail long hours, so I don't expect her to be able to hold it for 8 1/2 hrs.  A friend recently suggested confining her to a bathroom when I'm gone, which I'll start tomorrow, but I want her to behave when she's OUT of the bathroom.  And I don't want her to chew through the plumbing on the toilet!  She won't hold still when I brush her daily, which she should be used to by now, and bathtime (every week) is an absolute nightmare everytime.  If I brush her and she doesn't want me to, she'll bite me on my hand.  Not hard, but still.  She jumps on me and guests, and attempts to hang from my shirt sleeves and drag herself from my pant cuffs, ruining my clothing.  It's gotten to the point where it's almost not worth having her because it's becoming too expensive to keep replacing my things.  When I discover she's done something wrong, I raise my voice at her, and she'll lay on the ground, often rolling onto her back, and if I approach her, she runs away.  A lot of the time she'll try to provoke me to chase her, like she thinks it's a game.  I don't know how to discipline her if she thinks I'm just playing with her.  If I confine her to the balcony or bathroom, she will NOT stop barking until she's released.  Once I put her on the balcony for punishment and she barked for an hour and a half straight.  You don't have to tell me I've done a terrible job with her.  I already know that.  I'd just like to know where to go from here, how to fix this mess!  Please Help!  I look forward to your response; thanks in advance.  brandie

Answer
The bichons do not do well home alone all day.  They get back at you.  Soiling in the house, destroying stuff.

She is also dysfuctional from being placed at 7 weeks instead of 12 weeks.  Also being a mix, who knows what they were breeding.  Bad temperments should never be breed.  Bichons should never growl or show their teeth.  It's just not the breed.

She is not really a dog you can place either.