Diane Joslin Webboard User Reg: 01-09-2007
Posts: 368
Loc: Las Vegas, NV
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My dog Nickie still wants to chew on any soft thing in his crate - whether it is a soft toy, a towel, or most recently, a crate pad that I made for him. He is 10 1/2 months old. Is this something that he will outgrow?
I'm beginning to wonder if his "allergies" are caused by his contact with the plastic of his crate. I made him (and Roxie) a crate pad out of flannel filled with quilt batting (just enough to be about a half-inch thick). Roxie loves hers but Nickie immediately bunched up his crate pad and started munching on it! So it is back to him just lying on the plastic bottom of the crate. He has a large Kong bone in there at all times which he very rarely chews.
He loved to chew on rawhide (until I found out a few months that it was bad for him). He also loved to chew on raw knuckle bones (until I found out that he could possibly fracture one of his teeth on it). So, what is the alternative? Any thoughts on this?
Michael West Webboard User Reg: 05-23-2007
Posts: 551
Loc: Washington, USA
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If you think he has Allergies to plastic i would sudjest getting a new create. If you are just looking for something to put him on then try the "Cedar Comfort Portable Kennel Inserts" from RayAllen.com It fits right in the Vari Kennels
Kristel Smart Webboard User Reg: 10-03-2006
Posts: 1548
Loc: Vermont
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My "destructo-pinsch" Doberman is the same way. I have a rubber stall-mat that I pulled out of my horse barn and cut to size in the bottom of my dog's crate. Ed recommends 'cow mats' that appear to be roughly the same thing, though maybe a little less expensive(?). As my dog got older, at about ten months or so, I tentatively added one of Leerburg's faux fleece dog beds on top of the rubber mat. So far so good. For my guy at least, this seems to be the ideal combination. The rubber mat has more give than the hard plastic crate-floor, and better traction. The fleece bed is tough enough to handle a little abuse, has no stuffing inside which discourages him from really digging into it, but offers a little softness to lay down on. He will still, at 14 months, utterly destroy anything with any kind if filling at all, but doesn't mess with his fleece or try to chew the rubber mat.
Diane Joslin Webboard User Reg: 01-09-2007
Posts: 368
Loc: Las Vegas, NV
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Thanks for the suggestions! Actually, Kristel, now that you mention it - the fake lambs wool that I used in his crate when he was a little puppy worked out pretty well (it had been used for our cats when we had them). I had taken it out of his crate when it started getting warm this spring and had substituted a towel for him to lay on. That is when he started chewing on the towel and I removed all but the Kong bone. Like Mike Schoonbrood said, let him do without until he is a lot older! (I just feel a little sorry for him not to have a nice cozy bed to lay on when he sleeps!)
Since I couldn't find any "barn mats" in San Francisco, I got some GREAT indestructible, solid rubber doormats at Target (cheap!) that fit right in my Akita-Gator's crate -- She's 2.5 years old & will still mince any bedding in no time flat...
At 80 pounds, I don't want her sleeping on a hard surface (bad for the joints, IMHO) so these easy-clean doormats have just enough "give" to be the perfect solution -- and they're as non-chewable as a Kong <:-)
LOL, just be sure to get the THICK heavy-duty, all rubber ones -- Mine work great, with NO chewing (and believe me, my Akita is Dr.Destructo!) ha-ha <;-)
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