Big-time behavioral problem with chaquita

[Formula86]

omg i am so mad! i don't know what to do. maybe someone here can help me.
my dog chaquita (chihuahua/skipperke) is about 9 months old. i just got her from a humane society in oklahoma about 1 month ago. for the past 2 weeks or so she has been doing this behavior when i leave sometimes. she even does it when i'm in the shower for a couple of hours. this is what she does:
she is ripping the carpet up, but only carpet that's right by the baseboards. in other words, the perimeter of the carpet. she even rips up the little boards holding the carpet down (i live in an apt...its cheaply put together). tonight she even ripped the nails up with it too. first of all, i am worried for her health (nails, etc), but also for my apt! i can't have her doing this. i tried spraying "bitter apple" spray along the baseboards where she was ripping up the carpet in the beginning. she moved to my bedroom after that. i don't know what to do besides spray the entire perimeter of the apt. i know a lot of you will say to crate her, but i've tried that to aid with potty training and she FREAKS OUT. she poopies all over herself and is really scared.
please help me. i'm at my wit's end.
-jane

[Becki]

If the spray worked in one room, by all means spray the whole apartment! There is another product out there similar to bitter apple called fooey that is supposed to be good too. That's all I've got, I'm sorry. If it makes any difference, she will probably grow out of it. My dog was a monster and would tear up the house when we left, but then all of the sudden she stopped I know that doesn't help you right now, but there is hope!

[Formula86]

i was hoping you would say that she would grow out of it. my yorkie used to eat holes in the wall and then she just stopped. i hope that this is the same thing. i just hope she didn't do this before and people let her get away with it. she IS 3 months younger than penny, so maybe i'll just have to wait it out. oh well. at least the potty training has somewhat improved. wish me luck!
btw...if i close my bedroom door she won't do it in the living room. i don't know. keep all of your fingers, toes, legs and arms crossed!
-jane.

[Becki]

I definetly feel your frustration! I almost killed my Scrappy before she grew out of it! She was a stray so I had no idea if she would ever quit or not Thank goodness she did when she went into heat the first time. She came out a different dog! I'll keep everything crossed that it works out the same with your Chaquita!

[Deja]

Another option if you can't crate her is confining her to a small *safe* area - like an area of the kitchen or a bathroom.
Use baby gates or an ex-pen that can be made into any shape you need it. You can get down on the floor and make sure there is nothing in her space that would be dangerous to her or your apartment.
Give her some soft bedding, her water, food, safe toys. Enough room to move around in but not as confining as a crate.
Do you think it may be some kind of separation anxiety?
Sometimes starting out slow with the dog in her *safe* place and you home just leaving her in there for a few minutes at a time - letting her whine or fuss - then letting her out as her reward for being quiet or settled...and working up slowly to where you can leave her there when you are gone works wonders.
If she has "accidents" while in her confined area she'd have room enough not to lay in it... and it would be easy to clean up because it would be in a room without carpet.
Just my suggestion.
I know it's worked wonders for me - I've used the method with all the dogs I've trained and it's prevented any unwanted destruction and saved my sanity! (I put their crates in their confined space with the crate door opened so they can go in and out on their own and they actually start liking their crate, taking naps in there and chewing their bones and treats, etc... and then make their world bigger as they learn and progress- but I know you aren't using a crate - the concept works the same with or without one)
It so great that you rescued her. Is there any way of finding out what her prior situation was like? If you could, that may give you some clues as to what may be causing her to act out the way she does.
It must be so frustrating for you! I'm so sorry you are having this problem... I wish I could come up with a magic solution...
unfortunately it usually takes time and baby steps... and learning to creatively kind of out-smart them by figuring out what triggers the behavior, then removing the trigger and replacing it with something acceptable.
Good Luck!! I hope you find something that works for you

[Formula86]

she doesn't do it when i close my bedroom door. today was the first day that i came home from school and found NOTHING wrong!! no potty accidents and nothing chewed/destroyed. i was beyoooond happy. i think that confining chaquita would make our potty training process go backwards. i think it is a little seperation anxiety cause she used to pee when i got home and pet her (doesn't anymore). but at the same time, she did the carpet thing when i was in the shower for a couple of hrs. she kept coming in there every 30 min or so to "ck" on me, so i don't think that that was seperation anxiety. i think its a combo of seperation anxiety and just being a puppy (9 months old). penny used to try and chew the walls while i was looking right at her. i hope chaquita will grow out of it. meanwhile, i'm going to try and have my friend fix the carpet. thanks for the advice guys.

deja-btw, she is from oklahoma. from what i heard she was just running around and they found her. she'd been there at the shelter for a month or so. i think she might have been owned, though, because she loves toys and wasn't emaciated when they got her. who knows though. she is the sweetest thing though...would never hurt a fly. well, maybe an actual fly.

thanks,
jane

[Deja]

awww she sounds so sweet! She's so lucky you have each other now. I'm soooo glad you had a good day and things are getting better! It sure is frustrating to deal with something like that.

Yay!! Sounds like she's going to do just fine!!
LOL - you should see my Brittany jump and catch moths out of the air! It's hillarious... speaking of hurting a fly

[Jodi]

Quote: Originally posted by formula86 when i was in the shower for a couple of hrs. she kept coming in there every 30 min or so to "ck" on me,

Wow! That's a long shower!!!!

(sorry Jane ! )

[Formula86]

that's so funny that you mention my shower! haha. i was seriously sitting here waiting for someone to catch on to that. i know...i take showers like other people take baths. i sit in there and read for hours. congrats to JGawana for being the first person to notice! i just got my friend jennifer addicted to pawtalk and she read that post and said she couldn't wait till someone noticed my 2 hr. long showers.

btw-we're having another day without mishaps here (as long as i shut my bedroom door) so i hope this continues!

thanks all,
jane

[Formula86]

well, she did it again. i left for a few hours and she ripped up the carpet BEHIND the couch. i can't spray there! so...i think i'm going to have to keep her in the bathroom when i leave. i don't know how long i'll have to do this. and i can't imagine how much this will cost. any suggestions? or should i just do the bathroom thing?
-jane

[Becki]

Ugh, I had to put my dog in the bathroom once, it was NOT pretty. She shredded the door, and the paint around the door. She pooped on the floor and then smeared it all over the walls, from the floor to about face level (not to mention all over herself, so a bath was then added to the trauma) If you have to leave her in there, make sure there's nothing she can hurt herself on, glass she can break etc. I wouldn't suggest it, but then again, i don't know any better answers, mine luckily quit just before I was going to kill her! If your dog feels anything like mine about confinement, it would be easier to risk the carpet.

[Formula86]

no kidding. i tried the crate (don't know if you read that post) and she poopied all over herself and freaked out. i was thinking maybe just putting both of them in the kitchen with a gate. today i went to eat for about an hr and sprayed the baseboard/carpet area with Bitter Apple in the whole apt, and nothing happened. do they make a pasty kind of stuff? i'd like to discourage her and not have to wait months for her to outgrow it. what do you think about the idea of putting them both in the kitchen with a gate? my kitchen i kinda small...like 10 ft by 4 or 5 ft. ????????? any suggestions appreciated!!
-jane

[Jodi]

How about an x-pen?

I tried my shepherd in our bathroom once and it was a disaster just like Becki said. BUT I can leave my Chihuahua in our second bathroom (smaller) and never had a problem. So it will probably depend on the dog.

The kitchen might be better...?? Just make sure there is nothing he can get in to. Crates really are the best way to go but if you can't do that than an x-pen works well too.

Good luck!

[Formula86]

well, my friend was last to leave my house today and he accidentely left my bedroom door open...buuuuut...nothing happened. i had told him how to do the spray thingy with the bitter apple and he did it. and she didn't do anything to the carpet! i think this is working, but the spray dissolves or evaporates too quickly so i think i'm going to make a paste out of it. i'm going to ask the vet how. does anyone know if they make a paste-like substance? i doubt that they would cause i don't know who would want to put paste all over their house...except me. =) thanks guys.
-jane