# Chewing on wood



## 3 goldens (Sep 30, 2005)

I have never heard that and i am not sure i would take it seriously. I have never known a puppy that didn't chew on sticks, wooden toys, furniture. My 6 and 4 year old goldens still like to chew up sticks, and occasionly my 11 year old golden does aslo.

Now I have given my opinion on that, i see this is your first post. That is a handsome puppy, and i assume it is Bo. Be sure to tell us a little about yourself and you baby. Oh, and does your sign name by any chance stand for Gone Fishing? I live on the Texas coast and am an avid fisherman and that looked to me like you may also be a fisherman. I catch most of my own bait, catch and clean the fish (redfish, speckled and sand trout, flounder, sheephead, black drum, etc) but i don't eat them. Cook some for hubby, give a lot away and cook a lot for my goldens.

As i said, we have 3 goldens, Buck who will be 11 next Wedneday,KayCee who turned 6 last Aug. and Honey, our adopted golcen mix who turned 4 lin Dec. Welcome to the board.


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## RickGibbs (Dec 16, 2005)

First, I wanted to say welcome to the forums, Gnfishin.

I hope that's not what wood chewing means, or a lot of our dogs are deficient. I have never heard of that....and I've done A LOT of reading before and after getting Samson.

By the way, Bo is the name I plan for my next dog....

Rick


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## RickGibbs (Dec 16, 2005)

And I love your avatar....it seems like only yesterday, Samson looked like that. They grow up so fast......just like all my kids....

Rick


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## Goldndust (Jul 30, 2005)

To my knowledge there is no scientific evidence out there to prove what was told too you. 

Lots of reasons for dogs chewing on wood, but none of them are do to deficencys.


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## Rockin' Nerd (May 26, 2005)

My Maple does that...she eats the right kibble( like a horse! ) and we even give her vitamins(sometimes, I guess) so, I just guess they like wood. Thats one of the reasons her name is Maple!


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## krbshappy71 (Dec 30, 2005)

"A vitamin or mineral deficiency may also cause a dog to chew (or actually eat) inappropriate items. This is especially true if your pet constantly chews on paper, matches and wood." http://warreneckstein.com/pettips_chew.html

"Rock chewing, wood chewing, plant and dirt eating is usually a sign of a lack of trace minerals in the dog's diet." http://www.vaxa.com/pet-dog-health-tips.cfm

Sounds like its a thought that floats out there, but I haven't found anything concrete. Most sites I found pointed to increasing their exercise, and this really helps with our puppy. The days we're home to play fetch we don't have any chewing issues. Don't forget good ol' Bitter Apple, IT WORKS.


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## PeggyK (Apr 16, 2005)

Sounds Like It's Time For Some Bitter Apple. I Think Almost Every Golden Is A Chewer!!!! Oakley Ate The Door Of My Kitchen Cabinet And When We Put A New Kitchen In The Next Year I Was Determined Not To Have The New Cabinets Eaten. Before We Brought Our Coach Home I Sprayed The Cabinets Table Legs And Chair Legs. It Worked Like A Dream. Of Course, I Never Thought About The New Wallpaper And The Puppy Ripped About A 12in By 15in Piece Off The Wall.


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## DEE (Jan 17, 2006)

If It's True, Clyde Will Be One Healthy Dog


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## greg bell (May 24, 2005)

well, they don't have hands so they chew on stuff.. especially puppies..
about all I have ever known to do was to get them their own stuff to chew on and watch em when they are out..


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## AquaClaraCanines (Mar 5, 2006)

Hi! What a cute pup!

I doubt this is true of a pup chewing the coffee table. I suppose it COULD have some truth to a dog that actually eats wood, but I've never heard it. Just make sure he's eating a balanced food and he should be fine.


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## GoldenSadie (Mar 24, 2006)

Hi there...in my experience, I have never witnessed a golden retriever that doesn't like to chew on sticks of wood. You (in my uneducated opinion) have nothing to worry about. i have also found that some advice given to us as dog owners has been invalid and bogus as far as we're concerned...I guarantee that it is completely normal. Although! I do recommend taking away any type of wood that is prone to splintering. Try replacing the stick with poplar or alder as opposed to splintering woods like maple and pines. best of luck with your puppy!


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## GoldenSadie (Mar 24, 2006)

Also... we have found that with our golden that bitter apple doesn't work *at **all*...this isn't the case for all goldens, but golden retrievers (for some reason) sometimes aren't affected by foul tastes...seeing as they are a breed that has been bred to retrieve dead birds and i don't imagine that tastes all that great... we tried using the sour apple and cosulted our breeder and got the same speal. we used an alternative method of distraction.... there is no reason why a dog can't be distracted from doing something that an owner finds annoying or negative. Another approach is taking the stick away and replacing it with a toy...they pick up on these things...give them time and you will recieve your reward! Just remember...there are two types of training...positive reinforcement and negative reinforcement...decide which is right for you.


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## LaurJen (Aug 10, 2006)

GoldenSadie said:


> Also... we have found that with our golden that bitter apple doesn't work *at **all*...


Doesn't work with Augie, either. He loves the stuff. Tried _Bitter Yuck_, too, and he sat there and licked it.


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## krbshappy71 (Dec 30, 2005)

Ok so my chewer started eating drywall, literally chewed a hole in the wall. The trainer told us to use Mentholatum, its a GREAT deterrant! Um. PLEASE do not smear this on your wall, call me stupid but I tried it out of desperation and now I have a huge grease spot all over the wall. :doh: SHEESH. hole vs nasty yellow grease spot...hmmm...

On a brighter note Doggy DayCare twice a week is making a tremendous difference for us. She is crated on the off days with a break at lunch time, (and shifted hours so they aren't in it 8 hrs total anyhow) and Tues/Thurs are daycare so they have "hangovers" on Wed and Fridays where they are just completely exhausted and mellow, its wonderful! Expensive but oh well, it works. I was exercising her in the mornings and just couldn't reach the level of exhaustion/relaxation that doggy daycare does. (talk about stamina!)


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## Goldndust (Jul 30, 2005)

Gnfishin said:


> I recently had someone tell me that when a dog chews on wood a lot, it could be a sign of some sort of vitamin deficency. My 10 week old "Bo" loves to chew on anything wooden (particularly the coffee table). Puppies chew, that's what they do best. So I've not really thought anything of it. Has anybody else heard of this? Is there any truth to it? Thanks!


Never heard of that one before, and I personally wouldn't hold anything too it. Puppies love to chew on anything, right down to furniture and clothing. Actually, anything they can get there teeth into. As time goes by you most likely will notice they also love to carry things in there mouth, I believe that goes back to what they were originally bred to do and that is retrieving birds.


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## Dog (Sep 26, 2006)

What a cute puppy indeed!!!

Amber loves chewing on wooden things and sticks/twigs too!! The only thing she wouldn't touch is my kitchen rolling pin (which is now still sitting in her toy box).

I cannot complain as our darling puppy has not chewed any of my furniture yet (supervised visit in the lounge) and my kitchen cabinets are still intact. That is probably because from day one she was allowed to only chew on our not too new kitchen stools and of course they are plenty of wood in the garden.


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## Jman515 (Oct 1, 2006)

My Samson loves a hard stick because its a challenge for him to chew it. If I give him something soft to chew he hates it. He loves raw hide bones! and keeps his teeth shiney.


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## Samwise (May 15, 2006)

Ruby is an opportunistic wood chewer but a true paper eater. Samwise usually follows her lead so I have to be really diligent about paper not being available to them. 

I've just subscribed to The Whole Dog Journal, haven't received my first issue yet but they supposedly explain why your dog eats paper or wood in that first copy. If I ever actually get it, I'll post what they say.


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## mommyang1 (Jun 25, 2012)

My puppy, Murray, is almost 7 months old, and he still chews a lot of things, but he has gotten better in the last month or 2. He used to completely destroy the drywall if left alone (have 4 patched holes currently), and would eat a roll of toilet paper if within his reach. He ignores the toilet paper now, but has started biting off chunks of the lattice siding on our deck. He also eats the green fuzz off tennis balls if left unsupervised with them. Rawhides are the ultimate cure for us--he will drop ANYTHING for a rawhide. The compressed rawhides are our favorite, they last a long time, will keep him occupied for hours!


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