Blanket Chewing

[GizmoPennyMom]

I did look around to see if this question had already been asked, so hopefully I didn't miss it. (Sorry if it's already been addressed!)

My puppy Gizmo (who's 11 months now) has, within the last 3 months, started chewing her blanket in her crate. I know it's because she's anxious. She doesn't just go in her crate when we leave, but she can hear when we leave, and by the time we get back, she's ripped another part of her blanket to shreds. I finally threw them away today; even though there's no evidence she's eating it, I still don't want to risk it.

Is there away to get her to stop ripping up her blankets so she can still have a comfy crate, or is this something she's going to be stuck with forever?

Thanks!

 

[Saeleofu]

I've found dogs are less likely to chew on fleece blankets. If it's really from stress/anxiety, the dog will probably still chew. Logan chews blankets because he loves to chew things, especially fabric things.

For safety's sake, though, if your dog EATS the blankets, do not give the dog blankets. We've had many, many dog come through the clinic that needed surgery to remove blankets.

If it's anxiety, work on ways to make your dog more comfortable with the situation that makes her do it. We can probably give you better advice in this area if we knew more about the situation.

 

[k9krazee]

Not sure how to help, but I would take blankets away for awhile and try offering something else to have while she's in her crate (like a stuffed, frozen kong). The blanket shredding could be something she grows out of!

Kind of off topic -- Any night that K & I are watching TV/sitting around in the evening, Crossbone will go into his room, pull his blanket off of his chair, drag it into the livingroom and chew on the edges. It's the CUTEST thing, but I've wondered why he does it.

 

[Saeleofu]

Any night that K & I are watching TV/sitting around in the evening, Crossbone will go into his room, pull his blanket off of his chair, drag it into the livingroom and chew on the edges. It's the CUTEST thing, but I've wondered why he does it.

Logan does this exact thing, and it's ADORABLE. He'll go get a couch cushion first (our couch is old, he can chew on it for all I care), then he'll go get a blanket. Then when he's done he lays on the floor with his head on the cushion (because collies NEED pillows lol) and the blanket half draped over him <3

 

[kaykay21]

Logan does this exact thing, and it's ADORABLE. He'll go get a couch cushion first (our couch is old, he can chew on it for all I care), then he'll go get a blanket. Then when he's done he lays on the floor with his head on the cushion (because collies NEED pillows lol) and the blanket half draped over him <3

we need pictures of this!

 

[GizmoPennyMom]

The two blankets we gave Gizmo that she shredded were both fleece, so I guess most blankets are out then. I'm pretty sure she suffers from separation anxiety because when we adopted her (at 4 1/2 months), she'd already been adopted and returned twice . She gets really worked up whenever we leave, and we know she barks a lot when we leave because the bottom of her crate gets puddles of her spit (yes, it's definitely not pee). The kong idea is a good one; we'll try that since her other toys aren't working to distract her.