Stop Puppy Digging for Good

If you have a new puppy that is digging in your house, backyard, gardens or other areas, it’s important to do something about this problem. While digging comes naturally to your puppy and is a perfectly healthy thing, it can be a real problem when done in the wrong places and the wrong ways.

Part of your job to stop puppy digging is to find your puppy a safe place that he can dig instead. She won’t be able to just stop digging altogether because this is a natural function for dogs, especially in puppies.

However, you don’t want your puppy digging up your yard, your garden or flowers or digging under the fence and trying to “escape” as this can be very dangerous. A great solution to stop puppy digging is to give your puppy an appropriate place to dig and then teaching her when and how to use it.

First you will need to set up a digging pit for your puppy. Here your puppy can have a safe place to dig and not worry about bothering anyone or anything. You can choose a spot in your yard that’s just for your puppy. When you have a place with protection and shade from the weather, this will be the best option.

You can help with drainage in the pit you dug by adding some sand to it. This will prevent your digging pit from becoming a big hole of mud. If your puppy tries to help while you are digging the pit, encourage her and explain that this will be hers.

Once the pit is complete, introduce it to her and say “dig in your pit”. Show her that it is safe and good and that this is her special place. Then be sure to reward her for using her new pit. It’s nice to have some of her favorite toys around because it can make her feel more secure.

It can take as little as a few days of training for your puppy to learn that this is the proper place for her to dig. And then teach her not to dig in the wrong places. Set boundaries to help your puppy know when and where to go. When she is digging in a wrong place, you can scold her right away so that she understands to stop.

You can then take her to the digging pit where she is allowed to dig and explain to her that this is the place for digging. Be sure to reward her for doing it correctly. You might need to spend a little time each and every day in training your puppy to stop digging in the wrong places but once you get it down, it will be much healthier for you and your pup.

This is only one of the ways you can stop puppy digging. If you have a serious problem with puppy digging and you can’t stop it on your own, it might be a good time to contact a specialist in training puppies and dogs with these types of behavior problems.