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Teaching Your Shih Tzu To Chew Appropriate Items

29 13:55:28

Your puppy is so adorable and affectionate it is hard to believe
there would be times when her behavior would truly try your
patience to no end. Try to understand her needs. If you will
apply a few practical training techniques you will probably be
able to reduce many of the problems that try your patience and
some problem behaviors you can eliminate altogether.

Chewing is one of the first problems a puppy may present to you.
Chewing is very typical in puppies and a natural, necessary
behavior. It does not mean the puppy has severe behavior
problems or will end up a “biter,” or end up destroying
everything in your house. It just means your puppy is very, very
normal. You need to learn how to teach your puppy to chew on
appropriate items.

Puppies may start chewing a lot at about four months of age
because that is usually when they start teething and it will
take several months for this process to complete itself.
Teething makes their gums sore, so try to understand your puppy
is probably in pain during this time and trying to eliminate
that pain. Try to help your puppy by giving him objects he can
chew on and that will help him through this teething process.

We are not going to assume at this point in time that the puppy
is exhibiting separation anxiety. Just start with treating the
problem as a natural period of your puppy’s life that you and he
both can get through safely by introducing appropriate chewing
objects.

First of all, try to eliminate as many opportunities as you most
possibly can for your puppy to chew on things you don’t want
chewed on. Don’t let the bad habits start. Get several bottles
of spray Grannick’s bitter apple taste deterrent and training
aid for dogs and keep them handy where you and puppy will be.
Try to spray the stuff on things before puppy has the
opportunity to find them, like the legs of tables, and furniture
around the floor where puppy would have access to start a
chewing game. Once you spray that stuff on the area (and it
normally does not stain anything) puppy will run from the spot
and over time may never bother the spot at all or again. If you
catch him chewing on something, run for the bitter apple spray
(or have a bottle handy as I mentioned before in every location
where puppy might be) and spray, spray, spray. You will need to
do this at least every 48 hours. Repeated behaviors is a big
learning experience for puppies and dogs. If the experience of
chewing on the leg of your favorite end table taste terrible he
will eventually learn to stay away from that spot. He may never
return. But then again, he might, so still keep your eyes open
to areas your puppy or dog might chew on even months down the
road after he has avoided the spot, he might return and if the
place does not taste awful, he might chew even after his
teething period. Always keep Grannick’s bitter apple taste
deterrent and training aid for dogs within reach in households
where puppies and dog live. If you catch puppy or dog in the act
of chewing on an inappropriate item just spraying the stuff is
enough, you don’t even have to say a harsh word to him.

If you can remove items where puppy or you do will be, then this
is also an option, but a person can’t remove all their furniture
just because puppy and dog lives with them. Some items can be
stored in other places, however. This is called puppy proofing a
room much like baby proofing rooms before the arrival of a baby
or before babies begin to crawl and walk and discover their
environment.

Provide your puppy with Nylabones. These come in edible flavors
as well as well as the hard plastic or whatever material they
are made out of. These are excellent and come in petite sizes
for the smallest of the Shih Tzu. Buy toys that say they are
good to be chewed on and keep not more than 3 or 4 out at a
time, then rotate them with new ones to provide variety. Puppies
find a change in chewing objects interesting.

When you are home you can interact with your puppy by sitting on
the floor, casually place something tempting beside of you, such
as your shoe or a pencil or an object puppy has shown interest
in to chew on. Just as the puppy approches the object, give a
firm “NO,” but provide her with an appropriate chewing object
instead like one of the toys mentioned above or a Nylabone. And
remember repetition is the key to training your puppy. Do this
over and over again and you will teach your puppy how to teeth
and chew on appropriate items rather than inappropriate items.
It takes time and patience on your part, but will be well worth
it, and these training sessions can create an extra bonding time
for you and puppy.