My puppy will find something to do that she shouldn't when I leave her, eg I take my daughter to work and I'm gone for maybe 20 mins and when I go I always give her a treat as I leave but when I get back she will get a leaflet off the table and shred it, she's pulled a catalogue off the table and shredded pages of that, she's pinched other things off the table and shredded them, if nothing to get then her water bowl goes through it and she will empty it. The non spill one is better but it's light so easy for her to knock around the floor.  Someone said today aaarrrrr she's got separation anxiety but I've never come across it.  Could that be what it is or is she just a monkey and a puppy.

That sounds like perfectly normal 'bored puppy' behaviour to me, and not separation anxiety at all. They can't read a book or watch TV when they're alone, and they're not tired, so they find something else to do, and tearing paper (in particular) makes a lovely noise! She just needs to be left somewhere without access to things that she can destroy. :-)

How old is she?

Sounds like she's just being a youngster ;-) I'd leave her with a nice, tasty filled kong. I'm assuming she doesn't use a crate? I know some people hate them, me? I LOVE CRATES ... and so do my dogs! If she's not used to one then you have to put in the time getting her used to one. Alternatively you could confine her to a room where you know she wont get at anything - the old adage, if you don't want it chewed then don't leave it lying around :-D

If you have a crate, and she's used and happy with it, then put her there for short times (I'll leave mine in them for up to 4 hours ... depends on the dog, age, etc. But put her in the crate with something nice - kongs are really good. all sorts of good fillings, frozen meats are good as takes them some time to get through.

But, don't leave her behind a 'dog/child gate' ... can get very bad injuries if trying to jump when you're not in :-(

My breeder friend and mentor has rehomed hundreds of rescue dogs. She uses a baked beans can for separation anxiety ... dog in crate, can of beans (could be peas ... ) out on work top where dog can see it when she leaves. Comes back, can goes back in cupboard. Dog then associates when the can is left on work top, that means she will be returning. I think the last count on re-homing was just over 500 ... she has used this tactic very successfully with a fair number.

Sure there'll be others with more tips for you :-)

She's nearly six months old and now we know what she does we leave nothing to chance lol. I left her with a treat and a kong yesterday so didn't think for a min she would bother with leaflet on table but she must have downed  the treat in one ignored the kong and headed straight for the leaflet lol.  She has got a crate which is her bed but although she's had it from the start we've hardly ever shut her in it, she's not left very often.  Might see what she's like now if we close the gate for a few mins then let her out ( give her a kong while she's in there)

I would never leave a young puppy uncrated if no one were home.  Too many opportunities for them to teach themselves to access all kinds of rewards which I'd rather they didn't learn were possible.  Once a dog has learned it is possible and fun to [eat the skirting board/nick scraps off counters/destroy tissues etc], they will continue to do so and try even harder because the behaviour will have a reward history.

I have a 14 month old that I wouldn't leave loose in the house yet. He is crated when there is no-one at home. I also have to crate his sister (2 1/2 years old) from time to time as she goes throught spells of being unreliable. I've only recently started leaving him out if I am just nipping to a neighbours house for a cuppa and know I will only be about half an hour. So far so good. He has other doggy company but would still destroy things if left any longer. I'm slowly working up the time I can leave him. ;-)

Destruction is pups favourite play (they are an animal so digging chewing etc is what they do) they should not be left with anything in reach that is not for them to chew and left with plenty of legitimate items.

I would not be leaving a pup free in the living-room while I am out at all, somewhere where everything is out of reach and a washable floor, so normally the kitchen, utility room, or large downstairs bathroom.  If your home is too open plan for pet/baby gates then a crate can be useful for short periods, but not my preference.

> She's nearly six months old

Lord I wouldn't leave my 6 month old anywhere in the house other than the kitchen without constant supervison.  Even there she has managed to chew the laminated corner of a kitchen unit link board.

I would never leave a young puppy uncrated if no one were home.  Too many opportunities for them to teach themselves to access all kinds of rewards which I'd rather they didn't learn were possible.

By caging them all you do is remove the opportunity, so instead it takes them years longer to grow out of puppy behaviours -or you have to use a cage for life. I have never in my life caged a large breed pup and never will. Not one of them have grown up to chew things they shouldn't. I only cage the toy dogs for their own safety as I have larger dogs around and don't want accidents caused by size difference when nobody is at home to supervise play.

>By caging them all you do is remove the opportunity, so instead it takes them years longer to grow out of puppy behaviours -or you have to use a cage for life.

Not at all, no more than putting them in a puppy-proofed playpen or kennel does. As long as crates are large enough to give the pup plenty of room to move there's no problem in keeping them safe.

>By caging them all you do is remove the opportunity, so instead it takes them years longer to grow out of puppy behaviours -or you have to use a cage for life.

What does this mean??  What 'puppy behaviours' take 'years longer' for crate trained dogs to grow out of!?

Sorry but what you say makes little to no behavioural sense.  Dogs do what works.  If it 'works' (ie is rewarding) to eat your skirting boards, and destroy your house, then THOSE are the behaviours which it will take years for dogs to stop (if ever) - because they then have a reward history.

Prevention is a massive part of reward-based training.  Preventing dogs from learning that certain things are rewarding is key to training.  Whether that's stopping them from learning that they can chase bikes or skateboarders, or stopping them from destroying the house in your absence, prevention means that the wrong things are not learned.  Even when the opportunity is then provided, at a later point in time, dogs don't usually attempt it - because it has been conditioned that they don't eat skirting boards/chase bikes - it has been consistently prevented, to the point that the behaviour has extinguished.

She is restricted to where she can go when we leave her and its not often and she's always got toys she can get. I was just curious when someone said "aarrr seperation anxiety" and I suddenly thought I had got it wrong lol and as I've never come across it I thought I would just check. 

It may well be very mild separation anxiety. I think the problem is that sometimes a normal learning curve becomes labelled as a problem. Any normal pup will be very mildly stressed when it is left on its own for the first time. Mild stress often helps animals to learn more quickly and is not 'bad', it's part of life.

It sounds like your pup has learned quickly that various activities she has discovered for herself in your absence pass time quickly and in a way she finds enjoyable, so the environment (your absence) has prompted her to explore and find a new game/pastime that is intensely rewarding to her- another dog might not have made this discovery. It is probably a puppy thing but could over time becomes more entrenched- so much depends on the individual pup.

I don't know if you've actively trained her to be left alone by building up time minute by minute? I know it's not easy if you have other things to do but for a curious, active dog like her it sounds like you may have to put a little extra time into teaching her how to occupy herself in your absence. The crate may help with this but I do take goldmali's point too and, of course, some dogs can experience enormous frustration at being crated, which increases anxiety.... again much depends on the individual dog.

She sounds clever and inquisitive, I'd suggest that you build the crate up by only minutes at a time and ensure she has something safe but enjoyable to chew on. The chewing is vital in getting her to relax and redirecting the mild stress/need to do something into a suitable outlet. Be very careful what you leave her with to chew for any time on her own.

Not at all, no more than putting them in a puppy-proofed playpen or kennel does. As long as crates are large enough to give the pup plenty of room to move there's no problem in keeping them safe.

Have you tried? I have! For 2 months kept a pup out of the way (as in outdoors -had no choice due to a disabled visitor), when she came in she was a total nightmare as she wasn't used to being around all temptations. They learn far quicker by being around things so you can actively train them. My current pup is 4 ½ months old and hyper hyper active (THE most active pup I have ever had) due to being half working lines, and she knows to leave things alone already. There's no need for cages (let's call a spade a spade -it's no different to a hamster's cage), all you need is a safe room to leave pup in when not supervised.

>Have you tried?

Yes, of course, or I wouldn't say so. :-) As I said, As long as crates are large enough to give the pup plenty of room to move there's no difference between a crate and a safe room.
Daisy is the first puppy I've ever had a crate for (she slept in it with the door open and the utility room door shut for several months, and the door was closed when we had workmen in), and she's no more destructive when loose than any of the others have been.

>They learn far quicker by being around things so you can actively train them.

But a pup that sleeps in a crate or is in a large crate when unattended cannot be 'actively trained' any more than a pup shut in a safe room, and of course not everyone can make a room totally safe for an unattended pup, which is where the crate is a godsend. :-) The rest of the time they're out of the crate as usual.

JG is completely right:

>But a pup that sleeps in a crate or is in a large crate when unattended cannot be 'actively trained' any more than a pup shut in a safe room, and of course not everyone can make a room totally safe for an unattended pup, which is where the crate is a godsend.  The rest of the time they're out of the crate as usual.

No one can supervise a puppy 24/7 to actively teach them what is ok and what not... The crate (or the safe puppy proofed area), is for those times when supervision is not possible.  As in this instance, when the owner is going out and leaving their puppy, which is then tearing up tissues and paper...

Of course the puppy isn't living in there 24/7 (!) that would be cruel, and all the time it is out of the crate, it is learning what is ok and what not - just like any other puppy.

Besides which, puppies feel safer and 'contained' in a small, den-like area (preferably dark, with a blanket chucked over the top), than rattling around the whole house, or even several rooms of the house.

Buster loved to shred things as a youngster. Whenever left, I'd leave him a cardboard box with a couple of treats hidden in it, he'd love to rip the box open and once the treats were eaten he'd enjoy shredding the box into confetti. It's something he still enjoys now, but not with the same passion he had as a baby!

I must add, that due to this, he thinks any cardboard box that is left on the floor is 'fair game', but it gave him a suitable outlet for his need to shred (apart from the time he got hold of the argos catalouge and tattered the entire thing in 2 mins)

> eg I take my daughter to work and I'm gone for maybe 20 mins

I too use a crate and for all the reasons others have mentioned, it means "nothing going on - time for a kip" to all of mine :)  Do make sure though that your dog is ready for a sleep and all her other other needs have been met, exercise, wee etc.

However as you have only one dog there's no reason of course that she can't come for a ride in the car.  Lots of dogs like a trip out and it's good for a youngsters continued development to experience the world moving past the window.

Would you believe I took her with me this morning just for a little ride and tomorrow I have to go out at lunch time so her lunch will be in a kong as she can't come to hairdressers lol, I will see what happens then. We have been very lucky with her , I did expect more chewed things and I do think if we leave it where she can get it then its our fault. But I have had lots of helpful advice from you all on here. I just had a gggle when I read the post about the Argos book being shredded as that was her first chew but she only managed the back few pages lol

My dogs have now trained me to be tidy !!!
I now rush about putting slippers, paper any anything else in draws and cupboards before I go out. I have to remember to put the bolt on the kitchen door as one of mine can open the fridge and would empty it given the chance !!!
But apart from the odd cushion when they were puppies they have never really chewed very much.

I have had crates in the car and I did try one of mine in a crate years ago but she hated it, never went in it despite feeding her in it, putting toys in there, would just drag them and any bedding out. If we put her in it when we went out, the whole neighbourhood could hear her, and as I live next door to an Enviromental Health Inspector we decided letting her howl was not an option.

I used crates when they were young.  I just found them to be so useful and also it was their own space where they could chill rather than chew!!  I always managed to walk or play with them before I left them so they were generally knackered before they went in with their treats.

I leave my pup in the 'dog room', a small-medium sized room with a washable floor which only has dog beds, toys etc in it .There is simply nothing to damage. Works well. :)

Willow - 4 months - goes in the crate when we're not there to make sure she's not getting into mischief. As soon as we put her in ther she's ' Ok sleep time ' You can leave all the toys/chews etc you like , but she goes self employed as soon as your back's turned - isn t that just some puppies - I wouldn t even think it's possible to 'train' her out of it. I think she'll grow out of it as she gets older. But I'm not an expert, so maybe I'm wrong.