puppy eats everything

by kim
(pgh)

i have a 5 and a half month old rottie, his name is jezzy. and he chews everything and he likes to eat rocks. he eats his food and i feed him the right way. i bought him different toys and chew things and i rotate them so he doesn't get bored with them but he still chews up my floors, the corners of my walls and when i put him outside in my yard he eats rocks.

even when i walk him he's trying to pick up rocks and eat them of course i don't let him, i take them from him but there's times that i can't just sit there all day and make sure he doesn't eat them and i don't have a crate for him so putting him outside is my only option right now.

could you please give me any advice on how to stop him from eating rocks and to also stop chewing at my carpets, tile floors, and the corners of my walls. any advice would be very much appreciated

thank you jezzys mommy:)







Hi Kim
That expression says it all, he's way too cute :o)

Chewing is a very natural puppy behavior, but some pups are way more serious and stubborn about it than others. Jezzy sure seems to be one of them. Also, Rottweilers have very strong jaws (as you've found out) and can do a LOT more damage than many breeds.

The destruction he's causing around your home can be significantly reduced by crating him when you can't be supervising her. Since you don't have a crate I'd recommend that you go out and buy one right away and start getting him familiar with it. Get a sturdy one, and if he's pretty reliable about housetraining by now then you can get one that's a little more roomy that what is suggested for the early weeks.

Having lots of toys, constant supervision when he's not crated, and consistent corrections are really all you can do at this point. Puppies do eventually grow out of the chewing stage and it peaks around the 4 - 6 month age group, so you're probably dealing with the worst of it now.

As for the rock-eating, that's a bit more tricky and is obviously dangerous as if Jezzy ingests stones/rocks of any appreciable size they can cause an internal obstruction or damage. Don't allow him access to areas with rocks and stones unless he's being supervised and keep him leashed and close to you when out walking. Again consistent supervision is very important. If you can use a dog pen or fence off an area of your back yard that is a rock-free zone you can let him play and exercise there for short periods unsupervised, but obviously not in extreme weather or for too long. If he's a great chewer he can probably do some damage to a dog pen too!!

Hope this helps some. I wish you the best of luck with that gorgeous boy of yours.