Chewing on toys

[Tizzy]

This is really starting to get to me, probably because now our dog is spending a LOT more time in contact with the kids.
He used to casually grab a small toy on his way through a room then chew it, thankfully that has stopped.
But now he is often behind a baby gate in his own "space" which works well - except when the toddler gives him a toy or like today, a book. Then instead of leaving it laying on the other side of the gate, he chews it. If they don't put their toys away in the yard, he'll chew them too. It DRIVES ME NUTS!

Because I cannot watch everyone constantly, I often resort to just shutting the door so he's not accessible to the toddler, BUT the toddler is learning to use doorknobs and won't stop giving toys, just like the dog won't stop chewing them.

The dog has his own things to chew on, he gets bones outside, has a kong that I fill for him every day too.

Any suggestions?

[Ola_]

How old is the dog? How many different dog toys does he have and what types?

I'd suggest some hard toys (i.e. the strong nylabones), some soft stuffie-type toys, and some rubber toys (Kongs or those good/bad Cuz things). Also it sounds like he may be bored, so I'd up the training time (just giving simple commands that he knows many times throughout the day) and exercise time. Boredom turns to stress and excessive chewing in many dogs (one of mine included). But I ask how old he is because up to a certain age it's just a matter of keeping things you don't want chewed out of reach.

[Tizzy]

He's a 2.5yr old springer spaniel. We got him when he was 1 and I was hoping he'd outgrow this by now
He has a kong, a nylabone, a rubber bone (that has pockets for treats if necessary), a rubber disc thing and he gets raw cow leg bones outside. Stuffies last for about 5 minutes and he has chewed two *really nice* dog beds. Now he has a few random blankets that he chews but doesn't destroy, it's like he's teething on them.

Sometimes I think him and the toddler are conspiring against me because they both listen just as well to what I tell them

[Oubliette8]

I wonder if maybe you need to train the toddler. My dogs understand that they should not chew household things. But if you GIVE them something, they understand it is theirs to do with as they wish. It must be very confusing to the dog. If you give him a bone, or a toy, you WANT him to chew it. But if a person gives him a book, you expect him to leave it alone. It doesn't sound as though he is ripping them off your bookshelves, he's being given the books. Of course he thinks they're fair game. Toy in the yard represent a similar issue- in most households, any toys in the yard are dog toys. Now suddenly there are kid toys in the yard, but if he's learned that stuff in the yard is fair game, he'll need help to make the connection that not all toys in the yard are his.

I would work on a few things- first, keep the toddler from giving him things that should not be chewed. This is also a safety issue- what if one day the toddler gives him something dangerous, like a chocolate bar, or material that causes an intestinal obstruction? Sharing is a nice skill, but sharing with the dog unsupervised is not safe.

Next, try working with your dog on the "leave it" command. If you see your kid give him something unsafe from across the room, "leave it" will have him leave the object alone long enough for you to retrieve it. and after enough repetitions, many dogs learn to generalize certain objects are just not for them. If he is told leave it every time he is given a book, he may eventually realize that even when given a book, he should ignore it. It should also work for toys in the yard. Also, make sure he has his own toys and that he is praised for using them.

Finally, I would try to prevent situations where he has a chance to misbehave. If you cannot supervise your toddler close enough to know when he's slipping things through the baby gate, put the dog someplace inaccessible. Try to keep the toys you dont want chewed cleaned up out of the yard.