digging up carpet

Comments

• JessicaRabbit

  May 2009 edited November -1

  First thing I would suggest is DOUBLE that exercise schedule. When Moto was 8 months he went on 3 three mile walks A DAY. Your little guys needs WAY more exercise.
• starry

  May 2009 edited November -1

  I was thinking that, but once or twice a week we go on a 2 hour walk which is way more than 3 miles and he would come home and dig up the carpet.
  He gets at least 2 miles in a day, except those days he just runs around the house, then he probably gets more, we like laser tag and frisbee
  plus i heard you aren't suppose to overdo the activity, someone told me its the dog's age x 5 min, not like I listen to that
  maybe its just one of those phases, like his chewing the wall phase, he got over that by the way, it just took a week and some bitter lime. i wish i could figure out a way to teach him to stop, he probably just doesn't realize its bad.
• Calia

  May 2009 edited November -1

  Personally, when it comes to giving a room for a dog, I would line the floor with carpet. I know it looks nice and can be comfortable to lay on; but any messes permanently remain in the carpet fibers (no matter how hard you try to clean it) and any fibers ingested by your pups can be hazardous for his health.
  
  Once we get situated in a house, we too will dedicate a room just for the dogs (if not for them, than to at least keep most of their stuff in one place). We will reline the floor with a sheet of linoleum flooring, or something else non-absorbent, won't look too pretty but it's easy to clean and you can see everything they did on it.
  
  How long, do you think, it takes him to start ripping up the carpet? Sometimes boredom can cause them to be destructive. Even after a long walk, playing at the dog park, and a game of 'catch and tug'; Tikaani will still get bored of being in the crate within an hour, making anything in his reach fair game to becoming confetti.
• starry

  May 2009 edited November -1

  sometimes it only takes him a couple hours, i think he is bored/lonely, it is only me and him here
  the house came with carpet and luckily there hasn't been any messes but I really wanted some sort of linoleum or wood cause it is easy to clean and the dog hair doesn't get suck everywhere.
  But I don't know the first step in putting in linoleum and I don't really want to hire someone...do you happen to know how to do it or a quick fix without pulling up the carpet, not like that's hard since toki did most the work for me
• lindsayt

  May 2009 edited November -1

  Let's see a picture of his home remodeling, maybe all you need to do is finish ripping the carpet up.
• starry

  May 2009 edited November -1

  well he pulls the entire carpet up off the floor so you see the padding and wood underneath, but does little damage to the actual carpet. does lots of damage to that soft padding.
  I just put the carpet back down and nail it down each time...i just bought bigger nails
  it doesn't happen that often once or twice a week, its tolerable
  he is doing well with crating though, better than i thought, just a naughty pup
  i'm trying to find a dog to petsit off of craigslist for a bit and see if he is more happy having a friend
• tjbart17

  May 2009 edited November -1

  I would section off a part of the room with an x pen and put linoleum underneath it. You can buy extra sheets from your local floor person. My house is all carpet and hardwood floors. Koda will be in the dining room and put in an x pen (who needs a table when you have a puppy lol). I purchased a 10X15 sheet of linoleum from a local store that was scrap for practically nothing. It's not the prettiest thing in the world, but it will keep him from ruining the floors. The ends will be weighed down outside of the pen.
  
  I would watch out for larger nails. You would be surprised what dogs can dig out. I would just make sure he is 100% safe. Even the carpet tack board nails can hurt.
• starry

  May 2009 edited November -1

  hey great idea, if they cut it to size i could probably do the whole room and tuck it under the molding right ontop the carpet. : )
  i wish I could borrow someone's dog for a week and see if he is happier, it always makes me sad when I see him chasing his tail makes me think he wants another furry friend
• lindsayt

  May 2009 edited November -1

  How about doggy daycare for a day or 2 a week? He can make some furry friends that way without the added stress of another dog at home and burn off some of his extra energy. Just a thought.
• dlroberts

  May 2009 edited November -1

  In my experience, under-exercising a dog is a cumulative effect. It's like sleep deprivation. If you sleep 12 hours one day, it doesn't make it any easier to only sleep 4 hours per night the next two nights. If you exercise him for 1 hour daily, you will see a better effect on his boredom than if you exercise him for 2 hours every other day.
  
  That being said, I think you can attack the issue from multiple fronts. Daycare as Lindsay suggested is a great idea. Aside from draining his energy, it will provide him mental stimulation that he doesn't normally get. Also, the linoleum idea is a great one. Romi posted instructions on how she made a playpen here.
• starry

  May 2009 edited November -1

  that makes sense, cumulative effect.
  I work at night, so daycare is out
  but because I work at night I can walk him everyday...I just need to motivate myself to not go to sleep when I come home after being awake and on my feet all through the night
  i'll keep you posted on how things go
  thanks for all the good ideas
• lindsayt

  May 2009 edited November -1

  One of the good things I found with day care when working nights, was that it allowed me to sleep during the day while my pup was having a good time. I didn't make it an everyday routine, and I had to do drop offs and pick ups by certain hours, so I definately lost sleep, but it was a god send those 1 or 2 days a week. Not an option for everybody, though, given times and erratic schedules. Sounds like you're working on it, keep us updated.
• jenna

  May 2009 edited November -1

  I echo the "more exercise" sentiment. When Snickers was young we spent well over an hour outside EVERY morning before I went to work plus two shorter (30 minutes or so) walks each evening. He also went to doggy daycare - at first 3 times a week and then twice a week and then when he was older I transitioned to using a dog walker twice a week instead and reserve doggy daycare for special occasions.
  
  I am a firm believe in Better Behavior Through Exhaustion. :)