# digging!



## chloe920 (Apr 5, 2009)

after getting some advise earlier today about chewing...now...i'm onto digging!

Chloe is 11 weeks and has just started digging. She is never unattended, but she will run the far end of the yard and start feverishly digging until I can run to her yelling like a shrew to stop!:doh:

She's not bored, I think she finds this whole scene quite funny. Since this is a new behavior for her, I was hoping for some advise on how to stop it before it gets any worse.

thanks
L.


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## SoGolden (Jul 17, 2008)

Oh the joys of puppyhood! I have no advice, other than they are worth every ounce of trouble.:doh:


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## Debles (Sep 6, 2007)

I'd take her out on a leash for awhile till she gets past this new thrill for digging. It (the digging) gets attention!!!


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## California Blonde (Mar 13, 2009)

When my girl was a puppy I would plant the flowers and my Golden puppy was
6 feet behind me DIGGING up the same flower I just planted.
I guess it was a dog thing .
I think goldens love to SWIM and DIG


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## Roxysmom (Feb 27, 2009)

Is she digging in the same spot? If so, put a pile of her poop into the hole (I read this in a Golden training book) Dogs don't like to dig where they poop. Hope it helps - it did for my little monster.


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## Muddypaws (Apr 20, 2009)

Darby taught Kirby to dig when she was very little, he stopped but she has become a professional excavator. :doh: We have holes all over the yard, we've tried everything and she still digs. After reading from the experts I have decided that I am building her a sand box (if you can't beat them give them a place to dig). I am digging the dirt out of one of hubby's tomato gardens and filling it with sand. I may do the same with the other garden and put their pool on it (no killing grass that way).

Kirby thinks this is a delightful idea, hubby not so much.... oh-well!!


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## RummysMum (Jan 9, 2009)

Rummy is a digger, but it has gotten MUCH better. Every single time Rummy would dig, he would get crated and left alone for a bit. He is watched like a hawk so there are no digging without us seeing. Second, and what I feel really helps the most... is that he has a nice sized bone in the back yard, so the two have worked VERY well. He doesn't want to be crated alone for digging and he loves his bone. Now, if he even starts to dig, a firm no then a redirection to his bone or other toys is all it takes.

Still cannot leave him alone out there without watching through the window, I notice a huge improvement.


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## Bock (Jun 23, 2008)

An idea that may or may not work. Get an empty coke can to put a small handful of rocks or pennies and tape the top shut. Whenever pup is digging throw the can and aim about a foot or two away from her. The trick is to not let her see you do it though. Also do not say anything or show up after the can has been thrown or she will associate you with the can. It needs to be like Whoa, when I dig a loud scary thing come from out of nowhere! 

Also, when she does something besides digging make sure you are praising her. That way not only does something negative happen whens he digs, BUT something positive happens when she does something you want to be appropriate. This should always be happening. I still praise my 2 year old for going potty outside and for sitting to be petted. It's all about positive reinforcement in my opinion. Goodluck! I feel that if you start out praising dogs for doing appropriate things there is usually no need for a negative reaction, because dog is already doing things he/she knows pleases you. This plus a good amount of exercise will really help prevent many of the problems most people see.


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## yvettelovesgoldens (Mar 30, 2009)

When Shadow was a pup she used to grab my flowers and run. So I sprinkled them with cayenne pepper. Solved the problem immediately! Sounds pretty harsh, but she lost interest in my flowers


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## Noey (Feb 26, 2009)

when Noah was a pup he liked to dig. One night he decided to dig next to the tub, which I thought the bathroom was pretty puppy proof. The tub had a strip along the floor to prevent leaks. I awoke to digging, see Noah in the dark walking toward the bed oddly...like a cat with tape on it's feet (which I have ever done that to a cat)... turn on the light and he has what looks like he stepped in stucco/plaster on all his paws. He dug the rubber strip along the tub into a soft mess on his feet. :doh:I cried! His cute little puppy feet all in ruins. 

After initial panic of "oh my god I hope he did not eat this stuff, how do I fix him" we spent the next 4 hours dipping feet in warm water cleaning off the stucco, cutting fut off in order to prevent sticky stuff remaining on him.

They dig, and your going to be surprised what sorts of trouble they get into.


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## Maxs Mom (Mar 22, 2008)

We had luck teaching our dogs to not dig where we did not want them to by burying their poop in the holes they dug. Our dogs never went back to that spot. They really did not move to a new one right away. It really does seem to work, don't know why. 

When we bought our house, Max was 2 we bought it from a family who had kids so there was a swing set and sandbox in the back yard. We gave away the swing set, and DH removed the sand box. He had plans for the sand, so he made a nice pile to get to it when he needed it. Maxine went into the back yard leaped into the pile, and spewed it EVERYWHERE!!!! It really was funny. Even DH laughed, he knew he should have not put the pile in her play area if he didn't want her to do it.


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## Bradh2238 (Apr 5, 2009)

I use a squirt bottle or a water gun. Every time Bentley starts digging (he loves pulling the liners under our wood chips), I'll squirt him once (at the head) and say no. I can't say he stopped digging totally, but he doesn't dig as much and he stops on the first "No!" now. I only had to squirt him three times. After that "No!" got the job done. For a guy that loves the hose, who would've thought that a tiny water spray would annoy him so much? I haven't used the squirt bottle in a week. I'll never figure out how a dog can be so good inside the house (no chewing), and so bad outside (a goat would chew less).


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## asiacat (Jan 30, 2009)

maddison is a digger....she has been since she figured out how to do it....i am home all day with her she gets walked at 8:30am, 11am, and 3pm, and then around 8 or 9 at night so lots of excercise and trips to the dog park....but she always has enough energy to dig no matter how tired she is.....my garden is well lets just say i say to the kids maddison is gardening again digging the holes for the plants she only digs in the dirt we discourage her but will have to try some of these suggestions.....


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