Problem solved!

Danny is a good boy on walks, thanks to Lance from Shiloh Dog School. Danny will sit immediately and wait when you offer him food or a toy, thanks to Angela from PuppyLove. He does not mind having his food taken away from him while he is eating (heck, you can shove your whole hand in there and he will step away). And you can wiggle his toes as much as you please.

But despite having two trainers (who have both seperately labelled him as a naughty, stubborn dog) with two very different training methods, Danny still loves grabbing and chewing on things.

Angela's solution was to ignore him when he grabs something. The idea is that Danny wants attention so when he doesn't get it by being naughty, he'll stop. Problem: When he doesn't get attention, he's more than happy to entertain himself by ripping up whatever he grabbed.

Lance's solution was to say "leave" in a firm tone and smack him upside the chin if he still goes for it. Problem: Danny's a masochist. Plus, it only works when he is put on a leash and watched like a hawk. Once he's loose, you'll have to catch him to smack him, and he relishes the chase.

We were really at out wits' ends. Then, suddenly, in the middle of the night, I hit on the solution. You see, with both trainers, it was about giving him the option of being naughty or good. However, Danny kept opting for naughty.

So I decided to forget about options. Having a mouth is a privilege...

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The first time it went on, it worked like a charm. He shot about the living and dining areas heading for his usual favourites. He tried to grab cushions, floor cloths, dad's shoes, but to no avail. He eventually lay down on the floor and glared up at us.

One frustrated dog? Totally. One happy owner? You bet!

The muzzle fixed 95% of the problem. Why 95%? Well, when he realised that he couldn't bite anything, he shot upstairs, jumped on my bed and sat there waiting for me. When I appeared, he immediately jumped off and headed back down. I think that was the doggy version of "You ain't the boss of me".

The muzzle is only reserved for times when he is acting up. I also hope that he'll eventually find other avenues of fun and it'll break his habit. I chose the cage muzzle so that he can still pant, bark and even drink water. It's also only on him when we're around and even then for a max of 30 minutes.

Hopefully it works cos I'm all out of ideas!