Abigail Needs to Chew
We've had Abigail a month now. At 14
weeks she seems to be exploring her world, like an 8 month old baby, through
her mouth. Every new object she encounters has to be investigated orally.
The two things I seem to be saying to her most often are "No!!" and
"What do you have in your mouth?" This could be a tiny bit of dust
that she's chewing on or the bathmat that she's dragged down the hallway. Most
of the things she picks up are pretty harmless but it's important to be always
vigilant and never leave her unattended. I've had to cut back my ivy and
philodendron that used to trail on the floor because they are poisonous to
dogs. My bathroom and kittchen cupboards still have baby locks on them from my
grandson's infancy and I'm using them again to keep Abigail from the harmful
cleaning products.
Abigail loves to chew and this will become
more important to her this month when she begins to lose her baby teeth and
her adult teeth start to come in. She will be in pain and chewing will sooth
her. What I have to do is make sure she has objects around her that I want her
to chew. She already has a variety of toys - a rope toy, a cuddly plush toy, a
rubber ball, a nylabone and a kong. The last two items are indestructable and
even more valuable if they've been in the freezer - the cold toys will help
her painful gums. Whenever I find Abigail chewing on something I don't want
her to have - a slipper, my knitting etc. I reprimand her gently and then give
her something she is allowed to chew on.
When I raised my Husky and Lab together
(!!!) they pretty well had full reign of the house. When we were away,
they'd be barred in the back porch. But there they managed to chew up all the
flooring, the built-in bench and the door frames. One night while everyone
slept, Lola the Lab chewed a hole in the center of our new couch. And on our
first trip away from them, while my son was away for the day, they chewed a
hole in the livingroom wall. So I know alot about destructive chewing. It will
be different this time. If we are not with her, Abigail is in her crate. This
crate training is working beautifully. When I'm away from her, I know my house
is safe and she is safe. She can't be poisoning herself. She can't be
electrocuting herself by chewing on a lamp cord. I always put a couple of her
sturdiest toys in the crate with her (no soft plastic that she can chew up and
swallow in small pieces). The kong will be even more appealing soon
when I can put a little peanut butter in it to keep her busy.
And speaking of chew toys... at the
shelter lately we've had alot of puppies, and we're desperately in need of
good quality chew toys for them to have in their cages when we're not around.
We also need climbing apparatus for all the cats and kittens. Any donations
would be appreciated and can be dropped off at the shelter any day from 11 -
12 or phone us at 785-2747 for pick-up.