Outside during the day, how soon is too soon?

Hello friends! I have been blessed with a beautiful fur baby by the name of Hiccup who is currently 8 months old and a handful. Most of it seems to be general dog/staffy traits which we can deal with however her most recent one is crossing a line we just cant live with... Shes starting to chew walls.

We just built a brand new house last december, right before we took on Hiccup. All the chewing happens while me and my partner at work (we keep her inside during the day, she has free roam of the living/dining area with the halls blocked off). Ive kept her inside while we are away for several reasons-

She cries when left alone, seeing us actually leave the house seems to stop this. I fear if we just lock her out she might think we are just hiding inside and continue to whine.

Shes a purebred blue english staffy and with the sicko world we live in, all it takes is one loser to look over my fence and see dollar signs (i would be CRUSHED if this happened).

Ive supplied her with countless toys but at this point shes destroying one a day. Shes walked daily, played with regularly. Is my only option to leave her outside during the day? Is it ok to be left outside at this age? I need some reassurance .

Hi &

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Hi and welcome

First of all, could I say what a beautiful dog with a brilliant name! I love it

The problem of separation anxiety (which is what this is) is a common one. Dogs in general are sociable animals and staffies in particular thrive on (human) company. Some cope well on their own from the word go, some need help and learn, others don't ever really like being on their own.

The ideal is to restart training but it's time consuming and you need to be consistent, and would probably mean you needing to take time off work so it might not be an option.

I personally don't see that leaving her outside would help at all, it may even make matters worse as her routine would be upset. She could take to barking all day long, which doesn't tend to go down well with the neighbours!

I think I'd try to look at getting her company somehow, at least for part of the day. Dog walkers are usually not too hard to find and if you find a good one they will take your dog for an hour or so, often together with others, which would tire her as well as stimulate her and provide respite from being alone.

Another idea is to think about getting another dog to keep her company. If that is even an outside option, maybe consider taking rescue dog on foster to see how it goes. It might be that it's all she needs. You could of course find that it doesn't help but you won't know unless you try, hence fostering. On second thoughts, you might find it tricky as many rescues won't rehome/foster to homes where you both work because of the dog's need for company. You never know, you might find one.

Other than that, the best advice is to take her a long walk before you leave so she's tired, and keep buying the toys - without them she'd probably turn to the furniture.

Wow what a little stunner great name too

I'm guessing you're in Aus? I'm not in favour of leaving dogs outside all day either due to the risk of a) being stolen b) escape c) barking.

I know it's not always practical but the old saying "a tired dog is a good dog" is very true so if you could give a damn good walk before leaving hiccup should mean she sleeps and if you can get someone to pop in later in the day then that would be ace. In time she will settle down into a routine but it's tough getting there.

Nearly forgot... Hi & Welcome to the Forum from Flo and me

Thanks so much for the replies. She does get walked daily but longer walks arent really an option. Hiccup was born with her rear left leg turned out (hence the name). It was strapped straight away and thankfully after many many visits to the vet there doesnt seem to be any significant long term damage besides a bubblegum walk (very wriggly!). The vet has advised us to take it easy on the walks though to lessen any risk of arthritis in the future.

Ive considered getting her a friend, probably a older more "well adjusted" friend. We dont have a huge backyard but it would be suitable for two smaller dogs (Hiccup is a little girl). I guess we havent done that for fear Hiccup would corrupt the new arrival and we would have two dogs chewing up the place lol. We adopted a second cat a year or so ago to help our exsisting one with her social issues and now we have two anti social cats lol.

Ill look into someone visiting her during the day. Thats probably the most realistic option at this point. Thanks again!

Chewing is predominantly a puppy thing and I'm guessing that Hiccup's chewing is also driven in part by the separation - she's taking out her frustration on the toys. I'd say it's unlikely that an older dog would learn chewing from her, although it might encourage a puppy.

However, if you do think about another dog, you might want to discuss it with your vet first as it might make her too active for her legs.