Do You Have A Chewer In Your Midst?

"I'm just a lazy boy...no chewing for me anymore! "

Back in March of '05, I talked my husband into letting me get Chance, my yellow Lab. I already had Kallee, my Aussie Shepherd/Smooth Collie mix, whom had been at my side for 14 yrs. And when I say, "at my side," that is a literal statement. She went to work with me everyday and when home, she was constantly by my side. Chance was about 4 mo. old and a bundle of energy. If you looked out in the yard, he would be hanging onto Kallee's ear as she cruised around. When she got tired of him hanging onto her ear, she would shoo him away with a grump and growl (as I liked to put it). When she passed away on May 15 of that year, Chance was sitting by her head. She had passed away very peacefully in her sleep. He (Chance) had tried to wake her up by doing what he had done for those 2 months he was with her, chewing on her ear.

Little did I know that the chewing was not over. For one solid year, he chewed everything he could get his little teeth on. We had wood lattice work around our porch, he totally destroyed that. Then on to the tire cover on my spare tire. He chewed the bottom completely off it. Then he moved on to the mud flaps on my car. I have 2 Japanese Dwarf Maple trees that he chewed down to stumps. (luckily, they came back). Do you see a pattern emerging. My personal opinion is he was missing Kallee.

Why do dogs practice this behavior? Dogs are very oral. They don't have hands, so they use their mouths to investigate things. They chew for many reasons, really: entertainment, boredom, teeth cleaning and to strengthen their jaw muscles. Labs are notorious chewers the first year of their lives, too. And, they chew on their owners things, such as socks or shirts, because the odor reminds them of their owners.

You have to be very aware if you have a chewer. Swallowing objects is very dangerous. It can cause the blood supply to be cut off from the intestines if the object doesn't move on through them. This in turn means sometimes risky and very invasive and expensive surgery. Here are a few tips: 1. Know your pet. Pay attention to what your pet is particularly interested in chewing. 2. Keep a clean environment. This is self-explanatory. 3. Supervise. Keep a check on the toys to make sure they have not deteriorated, and supervise your puppy when he/she is playing with toys. 4. Train. Dogs sometimes chew due to boredom or anxiety. Certain commands are very useful, such as "drop it," or "leave it."

Here are the signs that might indicate your dog has something lodged in their stomach: diarrhea, drooling, lethargy, persistent vomiting or dry heaving, refusal to eat and restlessness. If your pet is exhibiting any of these behaviors, call your vet immediately.