What if he likes them? Our last cavalier was unaffected by vinegar, citrus, and bitter apple. She’d lick them like they were a treat. Given how much he loves food I’m worried he will be the same. H thinks we should try something spicy but I feel really bad doing that.
Oh my. Did you interrupt his nap or what?
Oh, and pulling carpet threads is soooooo appealing for animals including little humans! It makes a sound that nothing else does, it has texture that is different than a lot of toys, and it’s very satisfying to tease out a thread and feel the tension as you pull. A tactile dream.
We made carpet boards for our cats. And then the kid. Haha
Spicy doesn’t physically hurt them. Unless you’re smearing ghost pepper seeds all over, that would suck.
That’s why I let him shred the giant tubes my fabric comes on, he loves the sound. But he’s really good at shredding the carpet and then if I’m not vigilant Bobbin tries to eat it too because he gets pieces everywhere. So I worry if I make him a carpet toy he will think that all carpet is fair game to gnaw.
He’s good at only doing it when I’m distracted (like the other night when I was giving Bobbin a bath) and he’s fairly quiet so I don’t realize it’s happening until it’s too late and there’s a pile of carpet on the floor
I mean, it isn’t really going to hurt him. Bonus if he does not see you putting it down (so he doesn’t have any association of it with you). Ground chili pepper (or any kind really, but especially very hot ones like cayenne) is often suggested to be used in the garden because all mammals can taste heat and (usually) do not like it. You can even put it in your birdseed to deter squirrels, because birds lack that receptor so don’t register it. I would think it would only take one time (or maybe a few, depending on how persistent the pup is) to stop the behavior.
OMG yeah, that would really suck!
@CalBal & @katscratch that’s good to know. I was worried it would be borderline abusive if I used something spicy. But you’re right, it wouldn’t take too many exposures for him to get it. I’ll give it a try
He had his regular food (prescription extrasenior dog food) with a sprinkle of cat food. I moved his bowl to the middle of the room and he lost his mind with excitement! It was awesome.
New Pup was so mad that her meal wasn’t Fancy like his, she moved her own bowl to middle of her kennel space then kept huffing at me while she was eating
Does he distinguish between his own toys and Bobbin’s? If so, then he ought to be able to distinguish between Good Carpet Toy and Not A Carpet Toy. In theory anyway. And +1 to bitter spray of some sort, it’s worth a try at least.
Hahahaha Nope! I had a dream that he would, and we try really hard to drive that point home but anytime he can get her toys he does.
Update: sprayed it on the steps and in another place where he’s chewed the carpet as it meets the tile. He went over after I did it (he was crated and couldn’t see me do it) and licked the tile next to the spot. He’s now acting like he has a bad taste in his mouth but is also still sniffing all around since he can tell I did something.
Hopefully this will deter him! Thanks all!!
How did you know my needs??
That was exactly what I needed today. Thank you for being so accommodating.
Always, thank you
I wanna smoosh my face into his side.