A question for you...

Recently Troy has been staying at my Moms while I go to work. Troy is in the living room with the door closed and my brothers dog Bison is in the kitchen.

Bison is a labrador and is around 8 months old. He is a big chewer..has chewed my brothers wallet, will try chew table legs, rips things off the line, chews his lead when trying to walk him etc..basically will try and chew everything.

Recently they have been trusting him and leaving him out of his crate for longer periods and doesn't seem to have chewed anything. Last week Troy stayed at my Moms and Bison never chewed anything.

So today Bison has ripped up the lino in the kitchen and made a right mess and just as expected my brother has said 'its because of Troy. He can smell him and is getting frustrated'.

Well, is it possible that Bison is so frustrated he went on a rampage? Or would this probably of happened regardless...did he just get bored and go nuts?

Just because he was been fine for a few weeks, does this mean it must of been because Troy was there? Why didn't he do it last week if that is the case?

I don't think this would have made him rip up the lino, its more likely he got bored being shut in the kitchen. Have you attempted to have troy and bison together yet?

It may be it may not lol who knows! He might just be a bit of a nightmare, kaos was right up till a week before he was 2. I couldnt leave him alone even for 2 minutes, we would destory stuff. I wouldnt trust him now to be honest for longer than half hour. Ty on the other hand was trustworthy completley for any length of time from 6 months. It could well be the smell and sound of Troy making him worse or it may not lol like i said who knows!

Hayley wrote:I don't think this would have made him rip up the lino, its more likely he got bored being shut in the kitchen. Have you attempted to have troy and bison together yet?

No, because I woundn't trust them together. They play fight and jump all over the place all of the time and would probably make a right mess!

It seems here that it is not recommended to leave two dogs together when one if a Staff in case of a fight?

We got my old dog, Zac, when he was about two or three. The owners before us said that whenever he was locked away because he was excitable, he'd want to meet the people/dogs so much that he'd scratch/chew through the door and completely wreck it. So it's possible, but in your case, I don't think it's down to Troy. The labrador is still learning not to chew by the sounds of it, and dogs have their good days and bad days too. I'd think it's more that he just had a bad day.

Bison is at that teenage stage and I think may be totally bored and acting out. It is all too convenient for your brother to blame Troy.

I just wrote a reply thats got lost somewhere.

basically i said that is a stereotypical point of view, why get a staff if you think it is an unreliable fighting machine? its just a dog like any other.

i would leave him at home and see how he copes, the only option left to you is to rehome and you say you dont want to do that.

Hayley wrote:I just wrote a reply thats got lost somewhere.

basically i said that is a stereotypical point of view, why get a staff if you think it is an unreliable fighting machine? its just a dog like any other.

i would leave him at home and see how he copes, the only option left to you is to rehome and you say you dont want to do that.

Think you edited my message rather than quoting it...

I agree with Lynne and Hayley. Probably more boredome than anything else. And you're right, loads of people here have more than one dog, and even more than one breed. When introduced correctly, there is no reason why two dogs cannot be left alone.
I leave my two together...

Sorry! I was watching TV and typing lol sorry..

Or maybe Bison was better before because Troy was there and then the novelty wore off so he carried on with his normal behaviour!

Sounds like your brothers trying to wriggle out of paying for your mums replacement Lino

Only kidding!

It's not yours or Troys fault Bison is a chewer. If I was your mum, I'd be looking to get some repellent for the kitchen.

Okay thanks.

I guess a bit of reassurance is always nice..everyone thinks they are a dog whisperer and try looking for psychological reasoning rather than the fundamentals.

A puppy + known chewer + locked away + bored = potential disaster.

Well I don't know what to do now....guess I'll keep you all updated

The window cleaner used to set maisy on a chew fest or I think someone must have knocked at the door, it could have been anything..

Well him and his GF have it in their head it's all down to Troy and that's that, as far as they are concerned.

Next time troys naughty blame it on their dog teaching him bad habits!

Tell him to get his own house and pay for your poor mothers lino what HIS dog destroyed.

Are they walked together or separately, do they have chance to play together? It could be they are getting a bit frustrated knowing each other are there and not being able to play together ?

I wouldn't leave them together either. If they're constantly full on rough play, then you don't know what could happen. It only takes a wrong move & one of them gets a little irritable.

If they've been left in the house, in seperate rooms, all the time, then I don't see why it should suddenly make such a difference. I'd say your brother's dog just got a bit bored & decided to be a hooligan!

I think some people will only see what they want to see despite the evidence. Your brother's dog chewed up the floor and Troy had nothing to do with it. If he never chewed before, I might buy that he was trying to get to Troy, but I honestly think Caryll hit the nail on the head.

Hayley wrote:Tell him to get his own house and pay for your poor mothers lino what HIS dog destroyed.

Bit harsh..he is only 21 and is in university and has got a year placement. He did walk Troy Monday to Friday before the change of circumstance.

kathytake2 wrote:Are they walked together or separately, do they have chance to play together? It could be they are getting a bit frustrated knowing each other are there and not being able to play together ?

Possibly, I wouldn't say so with Troy though. I try to wear him out on a morning. When I get back in after his morning work and I am getting ready for work, he is trying to go back to sleep! But it was a point I neglected with Bison though. He is a high energy dog that is not exercised on a morning. He is only let out in the back garden and isn't walked until I finish work which is around 4pm. So if anything, Bison has a lot of energy stored up he can't get rid of and this was bound to happen IMO.

Due to his age he only needs 40 min a day and I have told my brother to split it so he gets 20 minutes in the morning and 20 in the afternoon rather than the whole 40 in the afternoon.

Caryll wrote:I wouldn't leave them together either. If they're constantly full on rough play, then you don't know what could happen. It only takes a wrong move & one of them gets a little irritable.

If they've been left in the house, in separate rooms, all the time, then I don't see why it should suddenly make such a difference. I'd say your brother's dog just got a bit bored & decided to be a hooligan!

Yeah they do play pretty rough and Bison bounces around everywhere lol. He is a big dog and the TV would probably be on the floor upon my return!

bbimson wrote:I think some people will only see what they want to see despite the evidence. Your brother's dog chewed up the floor and Troy had nothing to do with it. If he never chewed before, I might buy that he was trying to get to Troy, but I honestly think Caryll hit the nail on the head.

Oh no, he is definitely a chewer. He hasn't gone this mad but I don't see Troy as the cause but something that was bound to happen with what I mentioned above also.