# How to stop dog from chewing wires



## Shygal

My dog has chewed through 3 expensive outdoor power cords, and tonight I went out and my christmas lights that I JUST put up on the porch yesterday, have the plug chewed off them :grump:
Luckily for him, none of these cords were plugged in at the time, but one day they will be. I don't know why he does that, or what I can do to stop him. I don't want to reenact the scene in Christmas Vacation with the cat under the chair :stars:


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## NickieL

some dogs just like to chew cords for some reason! I've had to replace a lamp cord and repair my vac cord (twice) and a fan cord.:ashamed: All I could do was make sure cords were tucked out of reach of this pup. She had plenty of toys to chew on. She liked to chew on plastic pop bottles, seemed to keep her busy enough from the cords for the most part. I know some people put foil wrapped around thier cords when they have pets like rabbits and rats that like to chew cords.


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## beccachow

Can you coat the outside of the wires with something icky, like hot sauce? Some dogs just seem to like to flirt with danger.


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## farmmom

I'm with Becca. Hot sauce, bitter apple paste, vicks vaporub, etc. Anything that the dog can't stand the taste of. While it is ideal to keep all cords out of the way, sometimes it's not feasible. You might also try running the cord through short lengths of flexible PVC with just the plugs poking out the end. It would make the cord a lot stiffer, but it might work if the dog didn't chew the pipe. You could also wrap wire - like a spring- around it, or even small cage wire. Again, it would make it stiff, but it would be hard for the dog to chew through.


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## deaconjim

Shygal said:


> Luckily for him, none of these cords were plugged in at the time, but one day they will be.


That probably wasn't luck. Dogs seem to be able to tell if cords are plugged in. We had a dog once that chewed every cord I had, unless it was plugged in. The only way I could keep the cords was to leave them plugged in even if they weren't in use.

Of course, I could be wrong and you could end up with some very interesting Christmas stories to tell years from now. :shrug:


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## Shygal

Hmm...he DIDNT bother them the one night I had them plugged in. But I'm not sure I want to test out that theory


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## Mickie3

My solution is to take some flexible conduit (example: http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1vZ1xj7/R-100559873/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053) and place it around the wiring that I want to protect from chewing. While flexible, none of our cats or our dog seems to want to try to chew through it. Its available in lots of colors and sizes and have bought some that already had slice in side so could more easily place around wires, otherwise, just slice to desired length and down the side and place around the wire to be protected. 

Cheaper and less frustrating than rewiring lamps on a semi-regular basis.


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## badlander

Drs Foster and Smith used to carry a product called Bitter Apple in a pump spray bottle. Really nasty stuff when you taste it. I used it on my own little wire cord chewer. One taste and he was broken.

Well, not completely, biting into one that was hot and hadn't been treated actually broke him. Once the burns in the corners of his mouth healed up and he tasted the bitter apple spray, is was sworn off cords for life.


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## NickieL

lol bitter apple didn't faze my chewer at all!


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## Mickie3

NickieL said:


> lol bitter apple didn't faze my chewer at all!


Same here, any of that kind of stuff was like giving her a delicacy, but then again, may have the only dog in the world who likes all veggies, raw or cooked, salsa, pasta, most anything. She was eating green maters and figs this summer, so bitter is not a big turnoff to her.


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## NickieL

Mickie3 said:


> Same here, any of that kind of stuff was like giving her a delicacy, but then again, may have the only dog in the world who likes all veggies, raw or cooked, salsa, pasta, most anything. She was eating green maters and figs this summer, so bitter is not a big turnoff to her.


Naw, mine loves his veggies and fruits too LOL!


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## oregon woodsmok

Dawn dish washing detergent, the original blue color.

Spread it on all the wires. 

You will probably have to renew the application every 7-10 days.

Make sure there is something that is a permitted chew available at all times: bully stick or something else that is a hard chew. Trade when the dog chews the wrong item. Simply say, "No, not that. Here, chew this. Good dog." It works. Dogs learn what is a good dog chew and what isn't.

If the dog doesn't chew rawhide, try soaking the end in warm water for a couple of hours before giving it. Never buy the rawhide with knots on the end. They are a choking hazard.

Dogs WILL chew hot cords and if it doesn't kill them it burns the bejeebers out of their mouth and results in extremely expensive vet bills.


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## mekasmom

We had 4 LGDs growing up here at once. The male, and sometimes the females, chewed everything. At one point they actually pulled the telephone box off the house, chewed up the wires and pulled some of the wires out of the house. They ate the hose. They destroyed our computer lines more than I can even count.
Simple answer....... Green hot sauce. It only takes a couple of bottles sprinkled on anything they want to chew but shouldn't. This is what we used, but any should work. The red didn't stop them, but the green did.
http://www.tastethefear.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/11/elyucgreenttf.jpg

Thank God they all outgrew the chewing. But this did stop them. You only have to apply drops of the stuff sprinkled over things a few times to stop them. You would not believe how much damage 150lb dogs can do when they want to chew and tear up wiring.


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## texican

They can't tell... they're just lucky if they don't get bit back. One came in the Vet ER room last month, severe burning inside the mouth.

I use a habanero hot sauce... get a plastic bag, pour it on the bag and slather it down the length... I use plastic in case it's already been nicked and I hadn't noticed... otherwise, I get a 'bite'.

We have puppies in the house, and they love nibbling on the fan cord... I put some of my favorite habanero sauce on it, they come back and nibble, but they nibble only once, and they won't nothing else to do with it.

Also works on my sandals... 

I'd rather em hurt for a while instead of getting an emergency trip to the overnight vet clinic, or going "to visit the fig tree". I bury my furbuds when they depart, in cypress boxes under the fig trees.


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## Rodeo's Bud

Are you going to spam every dog post?


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## Wolf mom

Yup - hot sauce....! If you mix it in with a little toothpaste, it'll stick better.


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## muleskinner2

I use positive enforcement. I spank their butts and tell them no.


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