Question:

My almost 5 year old Doberman must still sleep on a hard floor because he chews any type of bed or bedding material provided him. He bunches it up between his front paws and sucks and/or chews. I wouldn’t mind that except he often ends up eating some; therefore, I end up taking it away. I’ve commanded him “no chew” and used clicker to mark the right behavior; I’ve used biscuits; I’ve used sprays. Nothing works other than for the moment, then he goes right back to chewing.

Very frustrating since I was a trainer for over 30 years and never encountered a problem I could not fix.

‘He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog. You are his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours–faithful and true–to the last beat of his heart. You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion.’
— Author Unknown

‘Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.’

ANSWER:

Let me start out first by saying that your dog doesn’t need a blanket or pillow. He will be just fine without one and will be plenty comfortable on the floor.

I understand, however, that you would like your dog to have a pillow. The problem you are running into is that you want a verbally commanded dog. The issue is, though, that dogs are not verbal learners. You and I can sit in a classroom and soak up information but a dog will never be able to learn like that. For that reason, when you say “no chew” it has no meaning to the dog because they are just background words to the dog.

Let me backtrack a bit here; dogs aren’t verbal learners but we can train them to be verbally commanded by using methods that make sense to them. Dogs are physical learners. If you want them to understand any command there must be a physical component to that command. By using the physical component paired with a verbal word for a long enough period of time that allows us to eliminate the physical piece of the equation and just say the command.

For example, if you want your dog to understand what ‘good boy’ means then you say good boy, pat his head, give him a treat, etc. After a time, all you have to say is good boy and you don’t need the physical helps. If you want your dog to know what ’sit’ means perhaps you say the command as you guide his rear end with your hand into the sitting position. After a time you no longer need the physical aspect of the command and can just say the verbal ’sit’ with the desired response.

If all you do is say “no chew”, there is no physical component and the dog is left with no clue about your intent.

What I recommend doing is using a leash and giving a light correction as he chews. Every command needs to have a physical attachment but don’t get me wrong – physical doesn’t need to mean harsh or cruel. What it does is act as a simple deterrent for undesired behavior. As he stops chewing, immediately reward and show him in a more desirable way to be around his blanket.

Ty Brown is an expert dog trainer, author, and speaker who specializes in obedience training, behavior modification, protection dog training, and narcotics dogs. To learn more about Ty and the dog training services he offers, visit www.dogbehavioronline.com