Aust terrier 13 months digs holes distroys plants toys 2 pet baskets 3 kennels 1 timber 2 moulded plastic?
September 292009
has a large yard for play with plenty of pet toys goes on walks each week is inside with us each afternoon a beautiful dog but we have issues with so much destroyed yet treated with TLC.
One kennel large was of T&G hardwood flooring the whole front is gone.
We have two Australian terriers. They are true working dogs. They were design to kill snacks, rats and other small animals. This translates into a dog that is design to think on its own. Don’t be fooled by the small size, they are extremely smart. When Aussie are left to entertain them self, they will come up with some clever stuff. This brings on a bigger problem is once they learn something; to teach them to un-learn it is difficult. My female will push chars away from a table, and then jump on the char to get on top of the dinner table. We had a case last year where part of our fence fell down and the dogs got out. After fixing the fence, for several weeks they check out that spot in the fence.
It sounds like you have two problems. First – having a smart bored dog and second – the dog has learned something that you do not want them to know.
Is the dog getting enough people time? This breed does not do well when left alone for long periods of time.
Exercise – I use to take my dogs to dog parks when they are younger. I highly recommend Dog Parks as long as they have a separate area for small dogs. This is a fence in area where dogs would run around and play with other dogs. 60 minutes a day at that age should do it. Check you cities park services to see if one is available near you. There are web sites that list them.
Dog like to chew toys. If the dog is destroying its toys, then buy stronger toys.
Your second problem is more difficult and that is how to teach them to unlearn the stuff. Spray product like bitter apple work well on furniture. You can find them at any pet store. Some products work better than other.
If the dog is doing big time destruction, then this can be a problem. You may want to hire a trainer to come into your house and work with you. We hired a trainer with our first dog.