Doggy Digging Advice?

My puppy loves to dig in the yard we tried chicken wire but she gets into that. My boyfriend and I do not want to use any chemicals because 1. bad for dogs I am sure and 2. we are going to try and grow the grass and a lot of the chemicals kill the nutrients in the soil . We are purely afraid if we grow the grass she is going to dig it up again. She has three favorite spots to dig (they were dirt when we moved in) we think because she loves dirt to roll in it, eat it, and dig in it. One of the spots we probably will not be able to grow grass because the water from rain pools up and its all shaded. She is also beagle and we love to be outside she usually goes and dig if we go in side for 30 minutes or more. When she is outside the screen door is the only thing closed and we are only in side to either clean, or cook. There is always someone with her playing, with her walking, her going to the dog park, and we have another dog she plays with so I do not think its boredom I think it simply because she likes the dirt I personally do not mind just means she needs to be hosed down but my landlord says we need to fix it. Even though he rented the house to us with the dirt patches and weeds as a yard (No grass) the lease states up keep but I do not know if that mean renovations but any how we moved to the house for the dogs and do not want to get kicked out for stupidity we only have 6 months left. Any suggestions?Doggy Digging Advice?
Chigirl is right, some dogs just dig in order to dig. Beagles tend to be one of those breeds.



It will take some training from you, but your best option is to give her a spot to dig and then teach her to leave other places alone.



Get her or build her a large box that can be filled with dirt for her to dig. Encourage her to dig there and reward her when she does.



For the first week or so watch her like a hawk and if she attempts to dig anywhere else. Make a loud sharp no to get her attention and then bring her to her box and encourage play and dig there. It might even help to put the box on one of her favorate digging spots.



For the rest of the yard plant fast growning grass and keep her off until it's grown in.



Good luck.Doggy Digging Advice?
Fact of life: Dogs dig. Some say it is out of boredom which I'm sure sometimes it is, but the truth is, it's instinct. They dig to create dens, keep cool, bury food, drain energy...etc...



My suggestion is to either spend more time exercising your dog or don't leave him unattended in the yard to dig.



I think it's funny how TD is so easily passed out by the ones who haven't a better answer.
our siberian husky loves to dig also and we got a sand box for her to dig in and she loves it. she now only digs in the sand box. You could try that.
A good starting point is managing things within our power to hinder destructive dog digging. Deal with the basics.Most times this behavior is a sign of underlying problems that we can solve through a little common sense.



Ask yourself, when was the last time your dogs need for physical activity was met? More often than not a dog that has penned up energy will release in the form of digging or other behaviors. Increasing its exercise time and frequency can eliminate desires for digging.



Social anxieties may also be the culprit. A dog that can't interact with its human pack or other dogs gets a sense of insecurity. Again, get your dog out for interactive walks to meet new people and dogs. This can ease both its needs for socialization and physical exercise.



Mental exercise in the form of training and games. Keeping you dogs mind active and fresh will help ease boredom and facilitate a better bond between you and your pet.

Providing good chew toys for your pet when outside can relieve a little boredom and deter urges to dig .



The Ultimate Answer:



Dr. Ian Dunbar (a world renowned expert in dog behavior) came up with an excellent solution. His answer, let them dig!



Dr. Dundar prescribes that it's a losing battle to change an inherent behavior in a dog, and it's not going help if a dogs chances for success are minimal to say the least.



We want our pet to succeed.



Instead, provide an appropriate place for your canine to dig in the form of a sandbox, or dig-box.



Rather than fighting dog digging, ';a basic instinct';, convert it into a training exercise. Much as we used a dogs natural tendency to den in dog crate training , we can use the same basic techniques to show a dog where to dig. This idea is probably best for insistent diggers like Terriers, although I'm sure it can work with any breed.

A simple solution that meets the needs of both party's involved. Your pet with have a place to be dog, and you have control over the area in which to do it.