We have had Mia, our 18 month old GSD, for a year now. She came to us as a bit of a chewer but she was only six months old and not had a very good start in life so we put it down to her puppyhood. However, we still have the problem. It's not very bad, some days she doesn't chew anything at all if I leave her. I don't work so am with our dogs nearly all day, apart from the shopping run. I guess I've introduced this separation anxiety because I hardly ever leave her. We are unfortunate enough to have open plan kitchen, dining room and living room so it's difficult for me to keep her in one room whilst I am out. She has our other dog for company but it would seem it's me she wants. I have to make sure I put EVERYTHING away, including the telephone. I have made the decision of buying her a dog crate, but I'm not sure I've made the right decision for her. She has been in a crate before as when our dog minder looks after her she travels in a crate and he also crates her when he goes out. I've had shepherds for the last 20 years and never used one before. My thoughts are that they are OK if introduced as a puppy but other than that, I'm not really keen to use one. I would appreciate your thoughts on the use of them. I have tried leaving Mia with an item of mine when I go out and leaving her with a stuffed Kong but she will still find something to rip to pieces, even if it's a magazine. She never chews 'multiple objects' she just does the one item and then, it seems, she's happy! Thanks for listening, I had to get that one off my chest as I feel quite bad about it!

Hi June
I am a firm believer in crates :)
We are the same as you -all open plan and although Murph is not particularly destructive he has bit through the odd cable :rolleyes:
We don't leave him alone much and he settles in the crate really well -infact we tried to wean him off it but he was so stressed on our return that we'll just have to live with it now !!
So I would say give it a go and don't feel bad about it :)
Liz

Even if you left her in one room she would find something to chew, so the crate is the best idea for now.

However, you can buy puppy pen panels and fence off a room. The panels come in all heights and are not just for puppies. They are used to set up mini exercise areas at show sites as well. You can fold them away easily when they are not in use.

I have an open plan house as well. When I was housetraining my pup I used the panels to fence off my living room so I could keep an eye on my pup. Now, I use a smaller number of panels to fence of the stairs to my first floor as well as keep my pup from dashing out the front door every time someone comes into the house. In the summer I will use the remainder to fence off the doors in my living room that open onto the garden, as I can't trust her not to dash off when she is off lead.

Stacey

Hi I have just read your post and the puppy pen panels sound like a good idea, Can you give me some more info like width, height etc of each panel and also where can you purchase them from.
Thanks

Puppy panels can be obtained from "Croft Engineering" phone 01942 497677. (I think that's accurate, but I haven't bought from them since 1994!)

They come in a range of sizes so there's bound to be something suitable. I've found them a godsend for fencing off ponds etc when they're not being used as a pen.

Hope this helps.

I had been shopping today and when I got home not a thing had been chewed (the crate doesn't arrive until tomorrow) so I felt awful, then I logged in to the forum and feel a whole lot better again. Puppy panels sound like a good idea as our kitchen worktops are fairly clear and the dining room just houses the table and chairs so if I could just keep her out the living room that would be fine. I will search the web for some puppy panels. Thanks also Liz, I have read about Murph on past posts and it was a relief to hear a positive response on crating. My intention is to put Mia's bed in it and some toys and treats and leave the door open so she doesn't feel forced into it. It has also been suggested to me that I should feed her in there a few times. Oh well, as they say nothing ventured etc. etc.!

Thanks Stacey, after reading your post I looked into puppy pen panels. The people I ordered the dog crate from do them so they have put a stop on delivery of the crate and changed the order to the panels. They also come with a gate between them and will be ideal for my kitchen/dining room. The problem I was having was that one of my dogs would be crated and the other had the run of the house which made me feel bad. Now, this way, they will both be together and not jumping around on my sofa when someone walks passed!