My wonderful, beautiful 10 month old boy emerges from his crate each morning with joyful enthusiasm, kissing and wagging every inch of his body. Behind him, the crate sits, full of the debris of expensive bed mats and crate liners. A mountain of foam chunks interlaced with the colorful pieces of shredded cloth are all that remain. His chew toys are buried in the mess.
Last night, I just gave up, and let him go into his crate full of crap. It looked almost the same when he emerged this morning, except the pieces may have been slightly smaller. Should we just let him lie in that pile of foam and rags? I assume he simply enjoys tearing it up, but what if he eats some of it? Is it dangerous? If it’s OK, perhaps I should just get more foam, let him enjoy making his own bed with it, and forget about the cloth.
With a dog that loves to chew and tear up his bed, what is the best bedding material to use in his crate? When he first arrived as a baby, he was lying in a crate of shredded newspapers. Some people say that shredded paper works, but I worry about the ink – he most certainly would chew it, and probably even swallow some.
Then I read about straw:
Long-stem grass hay is the best natural type of doghouse bedding that is available in most regions. Some dog owners think that grass hay and straw are the same, but the only thing they really share is that they are both plant material. Straw is the stem of individual wheat plants. It is hollow and, because of its structure, much more brittle than grass hay. Straw breaks down quickly under a dog, creating a pile of straw dust. Indeed, it is better than nothing, but if used, it should be changed every few days.
Conversely, grass hay will retain its structure much longer than straw, creating much less dust. The best grass hay suitable for dog bedding comes from warm season grasses such as Big Bluestem and Indian grass. Cool season grasses such as Smooth Brome and Timothy also work very well. Each one of these varieties makes a very nice nest that will surround the dog, allowing him to hunker down with comfort in the coldest of weather. Straw will do this, too, but for a much shorter time while exposing your dog to far more dust.
I’M SURE I’M NOT THE ONLY ONE WITH A DOG THAT DESTROYS HIS BED. I LOOK FORWARD TO SOME HELPFUL ADVICE! THANKS SO MUCH! Beverly
Hi Bev,
Dan and I had the same problem with Oso – no bedding was safe in his crate. Our trainer recommended the kind of padding they put in horse stalls. We bought some at the Tractor Farm and Fleet. It is heavy duty rubber and can be cut to fit any size crate. It is indestructable but keeps Oso from getting pressure points. Easily hoses down too.
That or nothing at all.
Julie, I’ve considered the bare bottom, but Dutch had an injury to his elbow about 2 months ago, so we want him to lie on a soft surface. He was playing with friends, jumped and fell on his elbow onto the stone floor in the kitchen. Poor baby cried for a couple of minutes, then seemed fine. The next day, we noticed a very soft fluid-filled sac (hematoma) had appeared on the olecranon process of his elbow. We took him to our vet, who examined him, and said it probably started as a small compression fracture of the olecranon. She did not want to drain or invade it because of the risk of infection. It has now consolidated into a firm mass. It looks and feels almost the same to me: firmer than a “nerf” ball, but softer than a tennis ball, and still about the size of a ping pong ball. If it doesn’t go away, I’m hoping that it can be surgically removed. Have you had any experience like this?
I’ll go check out TSC (Tractor Supply Co.). They have supplies for horses, dogs, etc., so perhaps they’ll have indestructible mats.
Tractor Supply does carry the stall mats—in two different sizes.
We had the same problem with Fenris. Our solution was a 4×6, 100lb cow mat (same thing you’re talking about). James cut it to size for both of Fenris’s crates using a jigsaw.
The issue with straw or hay is mites. Sometimes called “straw itch mites.”
Eeeeeooooowwww! That’s disgusting!!! There will be no straw in this house!
I use crate pads that are sold by the guy who sells Simple Clean. I don’t think he has them on his web site but maybe you can contact him. I get them at the big dog shows at the K-zoo fairgrounds, he’s usually a vendor there but I did not see him at the Premier this year. The crate mats are cheap (mine have always been $15 a piece). What makes them different is that they are not stuffed but have upholstery batting inside. This stuff doesn’t pull apart like regular stuffing, so it’s just not fun for the dog like stufficide. My dogs have chewed a corner on a few of the mats and then left them alone. They are machine washable and dryable. There’s always a softer side and a tougher side.
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5040/7229157298_3cb69a60ab_z.jpg
Dutch LOVES to tear up upholstery fabric. Remember, he “ate” our antique sofa, pulling all the batting out and shredding it. I need something tough, but soft. Impossible, right?
Does he actually eat bedding or just shred? I have some heavier duty blankets I get as rejects from second hand stores (my mom volunteers at a store like Goodwill) because they already have a small stain or hole. I don’t really care of the dogs tear them as long as they aren’t actually eating the bedding. Most of my dog bedding has holes and chunks missing. After a while I tear it down into smaller rags which eventually get used in some nasty mess and tossed for good but since I get the bedding for free to begin with I don’t really care. I find the more I spend, the more likely it is that the dog is going to shred it, and the faster they go at it! Grrr! Nikon spent the weekend at a cabin with me but since I invited myself last minute and my aunt is allergic to pets Nikon sleeps in a large kennel in my van. Since he was the only dog in the van and it was freezing over night he had a bunch of old blankets and an old mattress topper for warmth, which he likes to shred into chunks but he doesn’t ever eat them. He kind of makes a nest of foam chunks and torn blankets.
I don’t think he’s eating the foam chunks or shredded cloth. He seems to just love tearing it up. If a napkin hits the floor, he instantly goes for it and rips it up. His crate now looks exactly like the nest of foam chunks and torn blankets that Nikon created in your van. I’m going to check out those barn mats, but for now I’ll let him enjoy his mess!
Batman has destroyed at least 4 beds. The only one he didn’t destroy was the one he got from Camp Kayla — a Midwest faux shearling mat with a bumper around it. He outgrew it long ago. One thing that helps improve the longevity of fabric products, I’ve found, is to remove ALL tags. Not sure if it’s just Batman, be he LOVES ripping out tags, and that first rip leads to all kinds of bigger rips and destruction.
Now he has no bedding in his crate, and a very nice standalone “deep dish” memory foam dog bed from Orvis (does not fit in the crate). He has not been tempted to eat it… yet – it’s a pretty heavy, solid bed. I’d like one for myself, personally!
Here’s a link to the bed. It took him a month or two to start using it. He still prefers the cool hardwood floor, but will curl up on the bed for naps once in a while, especially if it’s cold out.
http://www.orvis.com/store/product.aspx?pf_id=1K0L&dir_id=1633&group_id=1634&cat_id=21984&subcat_id=21985
When he’s in the crate, he gets no padding. I’d like to add a crate mat (Lies, if the Simple Clean guy is at NASS, I’ll definitely pick up one of those mats!), but not sure if he’s ready yet. It’s becoming a very expensive series of experiments!
Of course my baby boy isn’t going to eat his Camp Kayla mat! He outgrew it? Tell that to Kayla! She still uses his original baby mat. When Batman went home, Kayla took to his mat. And actually, the Big Z borrows it when we go to O-Town for her, “go to your mat” exercises. Of course she doesn’t fit on it either, but she doesn’t care—it gets the job done.
As for tags—I remove ALL tags from beds or toys because the Camp Kayla kids say that there is something on there that just doesn’t belong!
The chunks in Dutch’s crate are all that remain of the nice memory foam orthopedic bed mat that had fit so perfectly in his crate. It survived undisturbed for 3 weeks. On the morning he destroyed it, we had left him in there a little bit later than usual. He was so quiet, it was a dreary morning, and I didn’t want to get out of bed, so I just assumed Dutch was sleeping in, too. Apparently, he found a way to deal with the boredom, and the bed is no more. If he’s only tearing it up and not eating it, I guess I should just let him indulge in his natural nesting instinct.
Beverly, I do not believe he is ingesting the bedding just shedding it, so maybe just leaving the shredded pieces is the best solution.
I also have had luck with the faux shear-ling mat that Jennie mentioned.
I also used to have very expensive dog beds all over my house, but Funny put an end to that.
Have you tried letting him sleep by your bed? No crate, just bed placed next to your bed?
Koda is actually in DEEP DEEP &$%^ right now that he might sleep next to the trash can.
Yes, he enjoyed the freedom of freely sleeping next to our bed for 1 1/2 months. Then, suddenly, we discovered that he decided to chew on one side of our rare antique oriental rug, so he was back in the crate the next night. Poor Dutch has more freedom at the lake cottage than at home!
What has poor Koda done?
Ziva never touched her crate beading-I still think that is so weird. Ms. Libby on the other hand…… The upstairs crate is in our bedroom and if I heard chewing, I got up and pulled it out of the crate and let her sleep on the bare bottom. The downstairs crate was also bare where she was during the day. When she was about 7 months old, she was leaving the nitetime bed alone so I tested the water with a bath towel downstairs-she ended up spending another 6 weeks w/no mat down there, then she left stuff alone and slept on a faux sheepskin mat.
I am intrigued by all the comments about the “faux” sheepskin for bedding. That sounds like something he’d love.
I’ve never had a dog that didn’t chew his/her bed. Removing the tags is good advice and also any zippers. The fleece type beds/mats seem to be the least tempting. The good news is that they do eventually outgrow the behavior!
Here’s the Midwest fleece shearling bed I mentioned: http://www.amazon.com/Midwest-40224-24-By-18-Inch-Quiet-Time/dp/B00063KG3M/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1349137002&sr=8-1&keywords=midwest+bed
We never upgraded his Camp Kayla bed because the next size up (42″x26″) would not fit in our apartment’s washing machine. And not being able to wash his bed was a deal breaker for us. I agree, no more expensive beds until Mr. Dutch gets over this phase. Luckily, the Midwest one is very reasonably priced.
I just came upon this discussion and thought I’d chirp in.
I have a wooden bottom for my XL veri kennel. I purchased this many moons ago at a Schutzhund National event. Not sure if they are still being made, but if not and you know someone handy with wood working….it would be easy to make. I think the wood is oak, bc it has lasted a very long time. All I do is oil it down every year or so. The wooden slats are about 1 x 3 with 2 braces across the bottom.
When DuKe moves into this kennel (probably by Summer), he’ll use it also. So far, I’ve been fortunate that he doesn’t chew up his beds. Fingers crossed.
DuKes’ Ma, Terri
I have that same XL VariKennel for Dutch, so if we can still get that wood base it might work for him, too. I ended up buying a 6 x 4 rubber horse stall mat, and cut it to fit. It’s hard, so I still have to put blankets and sheets in there, which, of course, are quickly shredded to bits. I sew, so I’m always making mat covers for his big soft bed in the kitchen. I end up throwing a fleece blanket over them, which catches a lot of the loose hair, which always flies around the kitchen and onto our counters and tables, etc. I am constantly with Dutch, so when I catch him starting to chew the bed, I stop him immediately. Then, he chases his tail, or chews his nails in OCD frustration!