How to Stop a Labrador Retriever Chewing
Now that you have finally brought your new puppy home, you have probably realized that your home is not as puppy proof as you once thought. There are many things that can be removed from the reach of the puppy in order to protect it all from damage. However, unless you are willing to remove every single piece of furniture, you are in for some chewing trouble. Even if you did empty out a room, your puppy might just find the door, the carpet, or even the drywall to be tempting enough for chewing. Basically, you want to correct the problem instead of preventing or hiding it.
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The first thing you will want to do is to figure out just what is causing the chewing behavior. Is your puppy teething? If that is the case then you want to provide your puppy with something that is approved for chewing, such as a doggie toy. There are also special treats that are designed for puppies that need to chew extra because they are teething. Just as you might do for a baby, you will want to take the chew toy and freeze it for a couple of hours. This will help your puppy deal with the pain that comes with the teething. It is also a great way to make sure that your little puppy is distracted from chewing on everything else in your house.
If you find that the chewing is because of loneliness, stress or boredom, you will need to address those issues. Are you playing with your dog enough? Is he being walked every day? If you allow your puppy to get enough exercise throughout the day, he will be less likely to chew up everything in the house out of boredom. The fact is, he will simply be too tired to even think about tearing into your couch.
For those that feel that the chewing is linked to separation anxiety, you will want to change the way you leave the house. Try to make your exit very quietly. Keep it low key so that the puppy barely has a chance to get himself all worked up about you walking out the door. Also, make sure that he has plenty of toys to keep him entertained while you are out of the house. You will want to make sure that the toys you are leaving for your puppy are meant for puppies to ensure safety.
You may find that it will take a couple of days or a couple of weeks to completely stop the chewing. This is normal and to be expected. The key is to make sure that you are being consistent. Do not hit the dog as a form of punishment. This will only make matters worse and possibly create new problems to deal with later down the road.
Read as much as you can about helping your puppy with his chewing problem and make sure that you are seeking the help from a vet if the chewing results in your dog swallowing something he should not.

