Our dog Cleo

[Aliantha]

Some of you may remember that we got a puppy about a year ago who is now quite a large dog. She's a bitza whose breeding include, great dane, ridgeback, mastiff and bull arab, so yeah, a big dog, but as lovely as you could ever hope for. She is a big sook. If I sit in the yard to play with Max, she literally tries to sit on my lap, and when you stand outside, if you're not paying attention to her, she'll come and stand so that your hand is resting on her head. She follows Max around constantly and plays silly chasey games with him and just generally keeps him company whenever she's with him. In short, we got just what we wanted in her when we picked her. She's a beautiful animal.

BUT...

She chews her dog house at night! Every morning when we get up, there's a smallish pile of wooden bits and splinters of wood around the doorway to the dog box.

SO...

Last night, we painted hot chilli sauce around the opening (which is where she chews).

This morning there were a few new teeth marks, but no pile of chewed up dog box bits!

Yay!

[Aliantha]

Here's a quick snap of Max, Cleo and Sally.

[Pico and ME]

She is awfully cute, Ali!

[Aliantha]

She's beautiful Pico. Our old dog Sheba died last year, and she was just as lovely, so we (I) looked for the same qualities in a puppy as we found in Sheba as a pup.

We are so fortunate to have lucked in twice in a row with our choice of big dogs.

[Griff]

Cute!

[SamIam]

Very nice dogs! If you ever run out of chili sauce, something called "bitter orange," sold in pet stores also works great.

[Aliantha]

I've tried the bitter sprays from the pet shop Sam. Hence the change to chilli sauce. It seems to have done the trick. The bitter spray didn't even slow her down. lol

eta: I do use the bitter spray on a mat that the cats seem to like peeing on for some reason. They don't do it on any others. Just this one round red one I have in the kids room. Anyway, it works on cats.

[classicman]

I had a rug in the bathroom that my male cat kept peeing on. I figured it was either the cat or the rug.
I love that stupid cat way too much. I threw the damn rug out. Problem solved.

[Aliantha]

Yeah I know what you mean Classic. This mat has been washed a multitude of times. I've had it laying out in the sun for a few weeks and I've brought it in for one last try. I've laid it in the doorway and sprayed it with the bitter spray. Once it's dry I'll put it in the room again and see how we go. If it gets peed on again, I'll clean it then give it away. That'll be a shame though. It's a really nice rug.

[Nirvana]

Know any local butchers? Get that sweet doggie a cow femur!

[Aliantha]

She gets those every week. They call them dinosour bones over here. She loves them, but she still chews the box. I think it's just a puppy thing. She's only just over 12 months so still a pup really. I think she just gets bored when she's lying in her box at night and since her head is near the doorway, she just chews on it. A bit like how people chew their nails or something.

She doesn't take bones in the box because we have the two dogs as you can see, and they keep to their corners where food is concerned, particularly bones. lol

[Nirvana]

When horses and cows "crib" [chew wood] its a mineral deficiency I dunno about dogs! Maybe the house is tastier!

[Nirvana]

I forgot to add my ACD wood chew tin cans. Since he is 6 he has dropped that habit and I don't really buy anything in tin cans anymore. He would get them out of the garbage can.

[Aliantha]

Cattle dogs are crazy. lol

I'm pretty sure it's just a puppy boredom thing. hopefully she'll grow out of it.