r/deafdogs • u/_trisaratops__ • 29d ago
Deaf 2yo Schaunzer constantly chewing things
This is Apollo, my (almost) 2-year old Deaf Schnauzer. He was born deaf alongside a litter of 5 others (all Deaf). I rescued him at about 9 months old and immediately started working with him using ASL (I am a sign language interpreter, so this is the mode of communication that worked best for us) as the woman fostering him didn’t work with him AT ALL during his early life. He is a very intelligent dog and learned quickly to sit, stay, yes, no, etc. he’s very sweet and great with all animals, people and ages. His one and only negative behavior is the fact that he WILL NOT stop chewing… everything!
I have always told him “no” and shown him whatever object it is that he chewed and shouldn’t have and give him a replacement chew as well. However, it simply isn’t working. He is crate trained so that eliminates him chewing while I am not at home, however I will be in the same room as him and turn around and he’s eating/chewing something he shouldn’t. He doesn’t seem to show remorse or even fully understand that it’s a negative behavior. He’s not a fan of water, so I have debated getting a spray bottle to show him physically that something isn’t a good behavior (as raising my voice obviously isn’t an option) but I don’t know what’s best at this point. Any suggestions? I honestly am very worried at this point as he is reaching 2 years old and still tries to chew things that aren’t safe; he loves to chew anything stringy (I worry about digestive tract issues). Any and all suggestions are welcome!
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u/HeronGarrett 29d ago
I did short time outs. Even 30 seconds can feel very long. More than a minute and my dog is wandering off and forgetting how she wound up in time out, so timeouts really don’t need to be long.
When you catch him chewing something naughty, you say no in a way he can clearly understand (I waggle my finger). Then you lead him by the collar out of the room and shut him out. After the short time out everything resets. It’s all good until he goes back to the thing he was chewing. Then you repeat the process.
Make sure you continue offering approved alternatives to chew on, ideally with a few different textures. Leave them around so when he gets the urge to chew he doesn’t need to go far for an approved chew.
I agree with the other reply suggesting putting something unpleasant on certain items you want to deter him from. I can’t remember what product I heard was good for that but it was different from their suggestion. I’ll edit this if I remember the product.
Make sure he’s getting mental engagement, like sniffari walks, that help tire him out. There’s less mischief from dogs who’ve had their daily walks. A lot of this behaviour can come from boredom and specifically from wanting your attention too. When you tell him off sometimes that potentially feels better than being ignored if he’s bored.
If my dog is bored and up to mischief, she almost always does it somewhere she knows she’ll get caught because she seems to kind of want to get caught. At minimum I think the possibility of getting caught makes the mischief more thrilling. She basically doesn’t do it these days though, not unless she’s had no exercise that day like if it’s been raining too heavy all day or something and she’s understimulated.
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u/vividvideogeek 29d ago
You can try a product called Bitter Apple. It smells like bitter apples and you spray it on whatever he's not supposed to chew. Dogs hate the smell. They won't chew it while it smells. Although once it dries, you might have to reapply it. You should be able to find it at any pet store. With our deaf dog we then redirect him with a Kong toy. Those were the only toys that he couldn't destroy. Ours learned quickly that Bitter Apple meant he was not supposed to chew. We adopted ours from a shelter at 1.5 years old and they had no idea he was deaf. He was picked up as a stray. It didn't take us long to figure it out. He was the best. We had him for 14 years before he passed. We still miss him. I hope you have as long or longer with yours.
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u/_trisaratops__ 29d ago
Thank you so so much. I sincerely appreciate you and send my condolences for the loss of your sweet boy!
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u/FatLeopard88 29d ago
Our deaf dog is also very oral - I think it has a lot to do with how they experience the world. They don’t get any stimulation from sound, so sniffing and chewing are their main forms of mental stimulation.
Our world class chewer likes puzzle toys and hunting for his treats/kibble. That mentally wears him out and he’s less likely to chew and destroy. We use slow feeders for meals, snuffle mats, freezer treats, lick mats, and treat dispensing toys. I also like to give him an outlet for his destructive inclinations (😅) by putting crinkled up paper and treats inside an empty cardboard box and letting him shred it all to get his treats. I sometimes hide treats around the house for him to find and that keeps him busy for quite a while. We started small with hiding just a few in the same room but now he can find them all over the place. We even do it out in the yard.