Help! My Golden Is Destroying My Garden

[Mobi]

My 10 month old Golden is a real menace in the garden. She has chewed/dug her way through several flower beds, and yesterday I had them all replanted. Came out this morning, and she has already uprooted two of the new plants.

Goldens are very intelligent, but unless I can catch her actually digging the plants up, it is hard to train her not to do it. It's no use after the event as she doen't understand. And of course it only happens in the middle of the night.

Any suggestions anyone? Is there a way to train her? Or is there something I can spray the plants with that will keep her away?

The other problem I have is her urinating on the grass. I have huge dead patches of grass where she has been urinating, and will have to get the grass replaced. Any suggestions on this. How can I get her to urinate off the grass?

Thanks for any suggestions.

Edited June 24, 2006 by Mobi D'Ark

[Jai Dee]

You could try some Tabasco sauce on your plants... if she does continue chewing and digging them out you could rub her nose in a plant that has been "Tabascoed" and she'll lick it off... eventually.

I had a golden retriever once and this worked for me.

No suggestions for the grass though... I just gave up in the end.

[nonthaburial]

You are right, Goldens are very intelligent, however they are also prone to boredom, and your garden is now showing signs of such boredom.

Perhaps she needs a few more toys to keep her occupied, and rotate them so she doesnt get bored with those also

[penzman]

We tried red pepper and all it's derivatives and the dogs kept digging. The only thing that stopped them from digging was to lay out some plastic chicken wire you can buy in rolls at most hardware stores. Lay it out flat and cut out slits and holes for your plants and small trees to go through and then cover it with a few inches of soil. I watched a soi dog trying to dig in and he just went nowhere. Also a good idea to use a few metal pegs (like for a tent) here and there hold it down

[SamSipEt]

My 10 month old Golden is a real menace in the garden. She has chewed/dug her way through several flower beds, and yesterday I had them all replanted. Came out this morning, and she has already uprooted two of the new plants.

Goldens are very intelligent, but unless I can catch her actually digging the plants up, it is hard to train her not to do it. It's no use after the event as she doen't understand. And of course it only happens in the middle of the night.

Any suggestions anyone? Is there a way to train her? Or is there something I can spray the plants with that will keep her away?

The other problem I have is her urinating on the grass. I have huge dead patches of grass where she has been urinating, and will have to get the grass replaced. Any suggestions on this. How can I get her to urinate off the grass?

Thanks for any suggestions.

Keep her in the house?

[Mobi]

Jai Dee, thanks for the tabasco tip - I'll try it and see how it goes. I have a stock for my virgin Mary's I wonder if it'll work on the speaker wires, which she also loves to bite?

Nothaburial, I'm aware of the boredom factor, but I think my golden has more attention than most dogs. I have play sessions with her mornings and evenings, she usually spend a couple of hours in my office with me, and in any case I am home most days. Then my step son, and various visitors usually play with her, and she is rarely alone on our covered terrace. She also has loads of toys.

Its just at night when her teeth get 'itchy'. She gnawed great chunks out of my beautiful patio furniture, has destroyed about 50 shoes, bitten through my speaker wires more times than I care to remember - need I go on? All at the dead of night. If could catch her at it, I'd have a fighting chance of teaching her not to do it, but no such luck. Just wake up in the morning and find plants all over the driveway! Never mind, we still love her.

Penzman, thanks for the tip. Next time we re-plant I'll try it. If there is a next time

[Mobi]

Keep her in the house?

What! And have my hand carved Italian Style furniture chewed to pieces?

No thanks, I'd rather repalce the flower beds once a quarter

[albert dickinson]

Moby Go to tomorrows meeting of Pattaya expats club.One of the speakers is giving e talk on how to train dogs

Albert

[SamSipEt]

Keep her in the house?

What! And have my hand carved Italian Style furniture chewed to pieces?

No thanks, I'd rather repalce the flower beds once a quarter

Just a silly thought Pleased that the furniture is more valuable than the garden but Italian Style in Thailand up to you . You could always chain her up to a kennel at night to reduce the radius of her damage.

Edited June 24, 2006 by SamSipEt

[Heng]

I may have some hard up ants around here... but I've found just about every kind of ground up pepper I try, the ants cart away as food. It does repel the dogs from plants and grass for a couple days though.

[Mobi]

Keep her in the house?

What! And have my hand carved Italian Style furniture chewed to pieces?

No thanks, I'd rather repalce the flower beds once a quarter

Just a silly thought Pleased that the furniture is more valuable than the garden but Italian Style in Thailand up to you . You could always chain her up to a kennel at night to reduce the radius of her damage.

The furniture was made lovingly here in Pattaya by Thai master craftsmen out of dark teak wood.. Believe it or not, it blends in beautifully in a Thai setting, on a huge, polished makahm floor. (it is reproduction antique - not modern, and not unlike Thai antiques )

Appreciate the suggestion on chaining her up, but that's something I'd never do.

Edited June 24, 2006 by Mobi D'Ark

[bina]

if u search, i think i once wrote suggestions for somebody else w/same problem....

but: try crating at night (u have to train her to do this, not just throw her in and leave her for the night)

close off the trees etc to prevent access

when she is outside, use a running cable so she is limited to certain areas UNLESS she is playing with u in a structured form (frisbee, ball, toy etc)

keep her leashed with u unless same as above; when she goes to dig or eat a tree (or indoors, a chair) tug the leash , NO!, THEN, give her a toy and say, PLAY BALL? (or similar) and do this every single time... soon she'll learn that playing is more fun then chewing bad things;t each her to bring u toys from a toy box... hide toys and teach her to search for them (goldies love this)

teach her WEE WEE : when she pees outside, say WEE WEEW (or whatever word u want) she'll learn to pee on command; then take her to the same area (with sand is a good idea, my bitch only pees on sand or in bushes, NEVER on grasssy areas like childrens play areas) each time, and say 'wee wee', as she pees, and a treat.... she;ll pee on command in the same area

ONLY IF U ARE CONSISTENT AND MAKE IT FUN FUN FUN.... IT WORKS!

[SamSipEt]

Keep her in the house?

What! And have my hand carved Italian Style furniture chewed to pieces?

No thanks, I'd rather repalce the flower beds once a quarter

Just a silly thought Pleased that the furniture is more valuable than the garden but Italian Style in Thailand up to you . You could always chain her up to a kennel at night to reduce the radius of her damage.

The furniture was made lovingly here in Pattaya by Thai master craftsmen out of dark teak wood.. Believe it or not, it blends in beautifully in a Thai setting, on a huge, polished makahm floor. (it is reproduction antique - not modern, and not unlike Thai antiques )

Completely off topic but the furniture sounds great – care to post a photo or 2 ?

[Mobi]

You are right, Goldens are very intelligent, however they are also prone to boredom, and your garden is now showing signs of such boredom.

Perhaps she needs a few more toys to keep her occupied, and rotate them so she doesnt get bored with those also

Just a PS on the subject of toys. Just about every toy I have given her, with the exception of the balls with the built in whistles, get destroyed in a few minutes, and often eaten - if I am not quick to take them away. So I am restricted to balls, and even then she likes one more than the others ,and the harder balls she 's not interested in. After several weeks she finally succeeded in removing the embedded whistle from her favourite ball, and was half way through eating the rest when I grabbed it. She's got a rubber bone, but shows no interest in it. So right now she's just got a smallish green ball which looks like it might succumb any day and a slightly larger red ball, which she doesn't like as much.

Any ideas on "golden proof' toys?

(she loves plants - especially newly planted ones )

[Mobi]

Completely off topic but the furniture sounds great – care to post a photo or 2 ?

Well here's a few I took last year. Not great pics, but I think you can see why I don't want to let my golden loose on them.

My step son put a Doraemon sticker on an armchair last night

I wasn't best pleased

Edited June 25, 2006 by Mobi D'Ark

[The Dan Sai Kid]

My parents had a lab and they got round that problem by putting up fences round the grass and giving her an area of the garden to excavate as she pleased.

[Old Man River]

You are right, Goldens are very intelligent, however they are also prone to boredom, and your garden is now showing signs of such boredom.

Perhaps she needs a few more toys to keep her occupied, and rotate them so she doesnt get bored with those also

Just a PS on the subject of toys. Just about every toy I have given her, with the exception of the balls with the built in whistles, get destroyed in a few minutes, and often eaten - if I am not quick to take them away. So I am restricted to balls, and even then she likes one more than the others ,and the harder balls she 's not interested in. After several weeks she finally succeeded in removing the embedded whistle from her favourite ball, and was half way through eating the rest when I grabbed it. She's got a rubber bone, but shows no interest in it. So right now she's just got a smallish green ball which looks like it might succumb any day and a slightly larger red ball, which she doesn't like as much.

Any ideas on "golden proof' toys?

(she loves plants - especially newly planted ones )

On destroying the garden, you can get harmless sprays from your local pet shop (ask, they will have several brands). Of course, in the rainy season it will take several applications until your Golden moves on and seeks something else to chew.

On the toys, we give ours old tennis balls. She does bite them and they need to be replaced periodically, but they are inexpensive even when new. With the rain and mud, they aren't recognizable after a few hours, but the dog loves playing with the tennis balls and for some reason she doesn't chew them up as quickly as she does everything else.

[stuxv]

As an owner of retreivers i have some good news and bad.

Bad is they are a royal pain in the arse for chewing as pups, they do stop eventually if you keep telling them. Rubbing ginger on cables usually works.

At about three years old they calm down, at four they become rugs.

The toilet thing, bitches are worse for pee, it is very acidic. Train her by chosing a piece of garden you don't use much and keep her indoors [if housetrained] until pee time, take her to the spot and give her a treat each time they do it there. If you see her peeing anywhere else take her to the spot you choose and give her another treat. They soon learn.

Bad news for this though is it stinks after a while, keep it watered so it sinks down.

Good luck

[stuxv]

Sorry forgot the toys!

I bought ours a little mongrel, he chews on him for hours !

[The Skipper]

.

My dog was smart but just could not resist digging up the yard when I was out.

I could see the look on his face when I got home if he had been digging.

He knew I would find his handiwork and be upset.

One day, I burried his dog crap in a hole he had dug and covered it up.

I guess he went digging there again cause he never, ever dug another hole after that.

[kayo]

I grew up with a golden, a rottweiler, and now with an Akita.

The golden, was by far the most playful. On an introductory note, if a dog is like his owner, than this story speaks good for your brownie points...

All, the three types of dog however, are medium large sized and extremely, almost irritatingly playful.

In the garden, yeah, TRAIN HARD that your dog, aside from relieving herself on walks, would be to set aside one patch of the garden, specifically for her urination.... Contain the damage.

What the dog knows are important parts of the garden to you, she will learn to to relieve herself on.

Tabasco on plants etc is brilliant. Positively Brilliant.

What we did with our old golden, was to actually take her for a good walk always before bedtime, and then we would keep her in a sort of closed off area. Space to roam around, Her playpen, as such. Only at night, never locking her in during the day.

Funnily enough, during rainy seasons, he would always retire there to nap, instead of the garden. But that´s irrelevant.

Also remember that as a ten month old, she will eventually outgrow the worst of the annoyances. As a teenager eventually does by their late twenties, as will she in her dog years.

Train. Be harsh, but fair. (and obviously no cruelty) There must be discipline, and I´m a HUGE One man and his dog fan. My dogs since that first one are always almost perfect. No leashes necessary.

They translated or adopted my aura??

Actually, I´m the one who usually needs a leash.

Edited June 29, 2006 by kayo

[Mobi]

Thanks for all the advice guys. I'm trying to assimilate it and take somne appropriate steps to save the garden.

One question - can those who recommended putting tabasco on the plants tell me if I have to sauce the plants every day, once a week or just one time.

I don't want to put my golden on a lead, or restrict her access to parts of the garden at night. It would be pretty hard to do anyway, as it is just grass, plants, trees and flower beds surrounding a

large pool, with a long, tiled driveway, and more flower beds, trees and grass bordering the property. It would be a major task to try and 'dog proof' sections.

I just replaced some of the worst dead patches of grass, and caught her digging up the new grass and having great fun. I jumped on her (not literally) and was very angry, and she was so scared of me, she ran into the house and wet herself. I didn't touch her - I was just angry. Well she hasn't touched the grass again - touch wood - but last night she dug up one of my new plants. So I'll try the tabasco. If only I could catch her at it, I reckon I could train her not to do it. She used to bark a lot at night, (when she saw street dogs outside), but I stopped her doing this by coming out and being really angry at her one time, and she has never barked again.

I don't have the patience to train her properly, but I think the one man one dog concept seems to work fairly well. She certainly obeys me most of the time, and always if I raise my voice at her. She doen't take much notice of anyone else though

[The Skipper]

The best way, is to have the dog decide himself. No need to yell or whack.

I had a dog that would lay down in the flower beds,,, untill I put a lot of small, sharp sticks in there.

He decided to stay away.

.

A friends dog used to jump up on me to say hello.

I just grabbed a paw and would not let him down, held him up untill he yelped. Never jumped on me again.

[bina]

dont have patience to train....

well, therein lies your answers....

bina

[Nienke]

Problem behavior:

A. digging up garden plants

B. chewing on garden plants, furniture and speaker wires

C. Urination on the grass

Suggestions to solve the problems:

Chewing and digging

1. Spray tabasco or red pepper over plants

2. Rubbing ginger on wires

3. Put plastic chicken wire just under the soil surface of the plant-beds

4. Fence of the plant-beds

5. Give her more toys to deal with her possible boredom

6. Keep her in the house or otherwise restrict her freedom at night

7. Train your dog

Urination on grass:

Give her toilet training

Your reaction on above mentioned:

Chewing and digging:

1. Tabasco, ginger and plastic chicken wire idea well received.

2. Boredom issue acknowledged. During the day have lots of play and interaction. However, the problem occurs mainly at night when nobody’s around.

3. No option, keeping in house loose because of furniture

4. No option, chaining up or restrict her in any other way at night

5. No option, leaving toys no option, unless they are ‘Golden’-proof.

6. No option, fencing of plant-beds

7. No option, provide your own dog with sufficient guidelines in a dog-friendly way, meaning giving her a dog-friendly education

Urination on grass:

Toilet training no option

My reaction:

If you are not willing to put any effort in a proper and dog-friendly education of your dog, why bother having one. In stead, you prefer to scream at your dog and scare the hel_l out of her, thinking that’s proper education. What your dog really learns it that you are unpredictable and not to be trusted and when you are around it means danger. And, in all her doggy’s might, she tries to stop your aggression by running, hiding and sub-missive pee-ing. (the rest of her body language you don’t mention, but it’s not difficult to imagine that. Poor dog …) Your outbursts certainly has not stop her digging, chewing or pee-ing on the grass, as she continues showing these behaviors when the coast is clear, meaning when you are not in sight.

My advice:

change your attitude or re-home your dog (for your dog's sake)

[bina]

nienke,

we both agree.... but i must admit that it is hard to advise and train over the 'net.... and most people are not fanatical dog people but basic dog owners....

most people do not read dog body language as u or i do, and most people try to do some things and then lose patience .... i spend much time counselling and helping people with their problem dogs and it works for a bit then the people dont have time, kids are sick, too much work, and hup!! problem again...

most people will put up with 'bad'dog behavior for the most part because of this; if they are willing to put in some energy, they dont neccesarily need to re-home their dog....

so, i still maintain crating is best for night problems; reducing /minimizing access to areas; more play time and some basic training....

even my well trained boxers take over my sofa at night (and watch bollywood movies on the tv) when im not around....

moby.... start a little at a time.... work on one thing only, dont plant any more new plants for a while, keep her leashed more with u near her, etc etc

good luck

bina

[Mobi]

Problem behavior:

A. digging up garden plants

B. chewing on garden plants, furniture and speaker wires

C. Urination on the grass

Suggestions to solve the problems:

Chewing and digging

1. Spray tabasco or red pepper over plants

2. Rubbing ginger on wires

3. Put plastic chicken wire just under the soil surface of the plant-beds

4. Fence of the plant-beds

5. Give her more toys to deal with her possible boredom

6. Keep her in the house or otherwise restrict her freedom at night

7. Train your dog

Urination on grass:

Give her toilet training

Your reaction on above mentioned:

Chewing and digging:

1. Tabasco, ginger and plastic chicken wire idea well received.

2. Boredom issue acknowledged. During the day have lots of play and interaction. However, the problem occurs mainly at night when nobody’s around.

3. No option, keeping in house loose because of furniture

4. No option, chaining up or restrict her in any other way at night

5. No option, leaving toys no option, unless they are ‘Golden’-proof.

6. No option, fencing of plant-beds

7. No option, provide your own dog with sufficient guidelines in a dog-friendly way, meaning giving her a dog-friendly education

Urination on grass:

Toilet training no option

My reaction:

If you are not willing to put any effort in a proper and dog-friendly education of your dog, why bother having one. In stead, you prefer to scream at your dog and scare the hel_l out of her, thinking that’s proper education. What your dog really learns it that you are unpredictable and not to be trusted and when you are around it means danger. And, in all her doggy’s might, she tries to stop your aggression by running, hiding and sub-missive pee-ing. (the rest of her body language you don’t mention, but it’s not difficult to imagine that. Poor dog …) Your outbursts certainly has not stop her digging, chewing or pee-ing on the grass, as she continues showing these behaviors when the coast is clear, meaning when you are not in sight.

My advice:

change your attitude or re-home your dog (for your dog's sake)

With respect, I think it is your attitude and your advice stink to high heaven.

I have a wonderful dog, who is a wonderful pet and a has a loving family around her who she makes a fuss of, as we do of her, from early morning to late evening.

She is very well taken care of, played with, groomed and all the things one should do with a pet who is part of the family. Most days, when I am home I take her for a long walk, mornings and evenings, play with her for several sessions a day, personally feed her, check and clean her ears etc, groom her and generally make a fuss of her. I have never hit her, or treated her badly in any way wahatsoever. I don't believe a raised voice at a dog when she is doing something you don't want her to do can be consisdered cruelty, or the mark of a bad owner.

I have tried to train her and have already said I'm not good at it. However, she obeys me, and will sit and come and do a few basic things, so she is not completely untrained.

She has the run of my garden, and I am not prepared to chain her, or restrict her in any way. She is happy as she is.

I think we have a great inter- action with our dog and I resent in the most extreme way possible your aspersions that I am not a good loving dog owner and should consider having her re-homed.

I was just looking for a bit of advice on how to save my garden from her worst habits, but at the end of the day it is no big deal.

I would have thought pet lovers would be above the kind of insinuations you have made here, when I was just seeking help in all innocence, and trying to discuss my problems with fellow dog owners.

If you can';t be constructive and polite, why don't you but out and save your invective for some of the more confrontational threads?

[Mobi]

.....moby.... start a little at a time.... work on one thing only, dont plant any more new plants for a while, keep her leashed more with u near her, etc etc

good luck

bina

bina,

Thank you for your good sense response.

It made my blood boil to be accused of being an unfit owner. We love our Cookie to bits, and if she chews up every plant we ever put in the garden, then it's not the end of the world.

I have recveived some great suggestions on this thread, but as I have tried to explain, many are simply not practicable in my situation. But even many posters have admitted, that at least to some extent, my problems are not unique, and for some other folk, they are also insoluble.

Obviously better training is the key, but as I have also tried to explain, training is not my forte. I have tried, but can't seem to make much progress. All the rest of my family are Thai, and training dogs seems to be a bit of an alien concept to them. I will take your advice though, and try again

I am also reluctant to crate or restrict Cookie at night, simply because it is the coolest time for her, and I know she loves to wander round and explore and enjoy herself - and get up to mischief of course - but I feel it would be a shame to curtail her enjoyment, when there is no one is around to play with. Am I wrong?

I know I'm not the greatest dog owner in the world, but I reckon I'm far from the worst, and didn't deserve the arrogant crap that this guy nienke meted out.

[Old Man River]

.....moby.... start a little at a time.... work on one thing only, dont plant any more new plants for a while, keep her leashed more with u near her, etc etc

good luck

bina

bina,

Thank you for your good sense response.

It made my blood boil to be accused of being an unfit owner. We love our Cookie to bits, and if she chews up every plant we ever put in the garden, then it's not the end of the world.

I have recveived some great suggestions on this thread, but as I have tried to explain, many are simply not practicable in my situation. But even many posters have admitted, that at least to some extent, my problems are not unique, and for some other folk, they are also insoluble.

Obviously better training is the key, but as I have also tried to explain, training is not my forte. I have tried, but can't seem to make much progress. All the rest of my family are Thai, and training dogs seems to be a bit of an alien concept to them. I will take your advice though, and try again

I am also reluctant to crate or restrict Cookie at night, simply because it is the coolest time for her, and I know she loves to wander round and explore and enjoy herself - and get up to mischief of course - but I feel it would be a shame to curtail her enjoyment, when there is no one is around to play with. Am I wrong?

I know I'm not the greatest dog owner in the world, but I reckon I'm far from the worst, and didn't deserve the arrogant crap that this guy nienke meted out.

Mobi, apologies, but I have not been keeping up with this forum and when I read the offending message you are referring to, I shuddered. I know some people mean well, but ......

In any event, since Cookie seems to be playing in the garden at night, may I suggest you get a doghouse? This is what I did. There is a company called Global Pets, for which I, nor my family, has any affiliation. We have purchased four dog houses from them and one of my friends with 3 Goldens has bought 3. They are not cheap, costing in the neighborhood of THB 12,000 or so. They are wire meshed to protect at night against mosquitos. I keep my Golden Retriever in the yard during the day, and she gets plenty of attention similar to Cookie. When I go to sleep, I put the dogs in their dog houses, which I keep on a balcony of our house. I don't know the layout of your house, although you have included pictures and do have a yard, so I would imagine you would have an area to put the dog(s) at night. I think it best to locate the doghouses over a concrete area. The dog houses also have a roof to protect the dog. Putting Cookie in a doghouse would protect your garden from Cookie and also protect Cookie from things at night.

Good luck.

[Mobi]

....... may I suggest you get a doghouse? This is what I did. There is a company called Global Pets, for which I, nor my family, has any affiliation. We have purchased four dog houses from them and one of my friends with 3 Goldens has bought 3. ......

Thanks Old Man River,

It looks like I may have to seriously consider the doghouse solution.

I have looked at the Global Pets website - which is mainly in Thai. They have a variety of doghouses - which one did you get - what are the approximate dimensions of your one?

Did you have any problems putting your dog in the house in the first place? Or did he/she accept it straight away?

Thanks

Mobi