Chew your way through

My dogs only liked to chew on things they were not supposed to chew on. I've bought them all sorts of toys, from the basic to the more sophisticated ones in the hope of diverting attention away from my shoes, computer cables or table legs. They don't chew my stuff as much now that they're adults but getting them interested in a chewing toy was still a problem. This was until Ricky Yeo, the only Jann Fennell certified dog trainer in Singapore, introduced me to these seemingly super basic chew bones. When he first showed me to one I didn't believe my dogs would chew on it - I thought he was just trying to make money but I bought one to be polite. I couldn't have been more wrong and the bone was chewed in only a few weeks. Ironically these chew bones are actually really difficult to find in normal pet stores and I have to ask him for some whenever I need more.

Chewing is actually a very normal thing to do for dogs and it helps them relax. We should encourage dogs to chew (as long as it's something they're allowed to chew on!). Earlier, when I left the house for a few hours I would come back to discover all sorts of things had been chewed up. I only now understand that the dogs were trying to find a way to relax, to evacuate the stress related to my absence. It's funny to thing of the hundreds of various pet toys companies have come up with - yet my dogs just stick to these simple ones. Back to basics.