# Help - my cockapoo in the garden



## Jhunter_83 (Jun 11, 2012)

I brought my cockapoo home last Friday and have been training him quite successfully to use the garden to go to the toilet. 

The only thing is, he has an obsession with jumping into the flowers. I know he is only young and he will get better but i am worried that he will become ill eating the plants. 

His favourite plant at the minute is the heather we have. He jumps into it and starts chewing on it before i can drag him off. I say no to him and even tried tapping his nose but he must think its a game. 

Has anyone got any top tips for him to stay out of the plants? there is plenty of grass for him to play on. 

Help please !!


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## tessybear (May 1, 2011)

Dexter ate everything - plants, grass, sticks the lot! I think it's just their age, I had to keep an eye on him in the garden and take everything out of his mouth or distract him with toys, good luck!


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## Jhunter_83 (Jun 11, 2012)

haha, thanks. so do you think it is just a case of stick with it and he will learn? 

He also picks up leaves, it is just a game for him. He picks up a leaf, looks at me then runs round the garden with me chasing after him.

Neighbours must think i'm mad, running after him shouting no.


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## Beth Watkins (Jun 11, 2012)

This sounds so familiar haha! 

Minnie can't leave the plants alone she tugs at the plants and eats the flowers petals!! Hopefully they'll grow out of it soon! She does the same she runs from me if I tell her No! 
I feel like I'm going mad sometimes haha x


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## Broughty (Jan 30, 2012)

Hi - we had the same problem with Alfie. When we first got him he ate gravel and his favourite plants were lavendar and worst of all the rose bush  He used to literally chew the thorns on it which had us very worried.

Our dog trainer showed us a method which some may not agree with to stop him chewing the rose bush but we went with it because it really was quite dangerous for him to be chewing thorns! We filled a tin can up with stones and threw it out of the bedroom window when he was chewing it. He clearly thought oh my god when I chew this that thing falls out of the sky and he never chewed it again!

He still continued to chew the rest of the plants though! He is 7.5 months old now and I would say he has just about stopped chewing the plants. He does occasionally just sit in the middle of one and squash it and has now moved on to digging holes in the lawn instead


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## Jhunter_83 (Jun 11, 2012)

I might try the throwing something out of the window trick, i clap my hands loud and it sometimes stops him but he is used to that now. 

Crazy world of cockapoo ownership


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## animal lover (Jul 18, 2012)

my biggest tip is no dogs in the garden ever have you tried using pee stone. that is make an area where you put small stone which is smooth for potty purposes. pee stone is just normal smooth stone works wonder and soo easy to clean. hope this helps


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## anndante (Oct 26, 2011)

Polly used to eat and dig up plants as well! She got better though, thank heavens. She still chases leaves and it's like having a kite on a lead when walking her in the wind!


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## designsbyisis (Dec 27, 2011)

I eventually bought some cheap wire garden fence & put that around the beds as Dexter liked to run into them all the time. 

I also bought some Bitter Apple Spray and squirted the stones as he was always eating them. I guess you could spray it on the plants too. 


Sent from my iPhone 
Lisa - mum of 3 boys, Dexter Cockapoo & 4 hens !


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## colpa110 (Jul 5, 2011)

I have come to the conclusion that Cockapoos and gardens are not a good combination....I used to have a pretty woodland garden now it resembles something more like a war zone


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## Jhunter_83 (Jun 11, 2012)

i have just ordered some bitter apple spray to se if i can stop him from chewing the plants, it is the same couple of plants everytime. 

I'll keep you updated


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## wilfiboy (Sep 18, 2010)

I'd get a really exciting squeeky toy that only comes out in the garden, when he's about to start chewing use the toy to distract him, doubt he'll be able to resist x


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## Janev1000 (Oct 4, 2011)

I used the bitter spray and it did the trick! x


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## wellerfeller (Jul 12, 2011)

Our dog ate all plants in our garden for the first year, including fencing and anything else. He has grown up massively now and all digging, eating and chewing of garden things has stopped.


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## Jhunter_83 (Jun 11, 2012)

I have tonight put some crate that plants come in over the plants he is obsessed with.

It seems to be doing the trick so far


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## Rufini (Sep 9, 2011)

No more flowers for us! (although frankly my gardening skills are pretty low...........)


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## Fiver (Nov 26, 2011)

What is it with cockerpoos and gardening.
Milo from the day we had him has attacked /chewed shrubs, my beautiful climbing roses, jumped amongst and flattened lavender and herbaceous plants.He digs holes in the lawn and his latest pastime is to pull plants out of pots scattering compost every where and struggles to bring empty pots into the house. I've given up on gardening this year what with all the rain and Milos obsession.


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## mairi1 (Mar 12, 2012)

Fiver said:


> What is it with cockerpoos and gardening.
> Milo from the day we had him has attacked /chewed shrubs, my beautiful climbing roses, jumped amongst and flattened lavender and herbaceous plants.He digs holes in the lawn and his latest pastime is to pull plants out of pots scattering compost every where and struggles to bring empty pots into the house. I've given up on gardening this year what with all the rain and Milos obsession.


Would love to see an updated photo of Milo, love his colouring 
X


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## 2ndhandgal (Aug 29, 2011)

Distraction and covering vulnerable plants is definitely the way to go.

The problem with using a method like throwing something to startle the puppy is they may associate the scare with the garden and decide they are no longer happy out there at all - which will give you a whole bigger problem than a few chewed plants!


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## Pollypiglet (Oct 22, 2011)

Wonder if I would qualify for an Alan Titchmarsh makeover (the garden, maybe me later!) When it was just Hattie she squashed a few things but then lost interest, now with the two of them they have a racetrack behind the shrubs and my patch of pollyanthus is now bear earth!


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## dollyonken (Jan 29, 2012)

This thread is making me laugh. Hattie is a demon in the garden and loves to put everything in her mouth, including stones and woodchip.

I have found that distracting her with a ball works wonders but it means I can't have a very relaxing time in the garden when I go out threre with her!


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## Blackstreet (Jun 15, 2012)

This thread has got me worried. Cosmo comes one on the 11th and we have a lot of gravel in our garden. What do you do if he swallows some. Isn't this dangerous and could get trapped in his intestines? I'm like a worried parent. Should I be covering over the gravel area....fret fret fret.


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## stacy (Jul 30, 2012)

my pup eats everything and anything shes so greedy!!


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## tessybear (May 1, 2011)

Mine have never eaten gravel I wouldn't worry.


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## TraceyT33 (Jun 25, 2012)

this thread has certainly made me giggle... Millie is all of the above (with regard to comments) she is into everything and i can't just sit and relax, im constantly up and down trying to get something out of her mouth, or get her from under a bush (as im worried shes eating something she shouldn't). yesterday she even got a bee, i went to take what i thought was a piece of bark out of her mouth and the bee fell off just so glad it didn't sting her. Millie loves the plants, flowers, **** bush and the bamboo. i try to use a little ball or squeaky toy to distract her and it does for 30 seconds and shes back where she likes best lol. She has also got a little more adventurous now jumping up into the raised flower beds!! the little minx xxxx


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## jannie (Aug 6, 2012)

omg what have i let myself in for cant comment as my pup not here yet my garden is my pride and joy I call myself a part time hairdresser full time gardener ! i also have a lottie which i was intending to take pup with me i have too see how he is before i can take that on i'm really worried as well spent the weekend trying to find any gaps in the hedge , worrying about the brook , the pond , now the plants , stone drive ,wood chip lol this is going to be fun


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## MillieDog (Jun 1, 2011)

I think its a passing phase. Millie used to eat the flower tops, dig holes and pull clumps of grass out whilst playing football. In the park she would eat anything dead and decomposing  I've had many a worry at how to stop her.

I can gladly report that now at 19months old the majority of behaviours have stopped  She still pulls clumps of grass when playing football, much to hubbies annoyance, but at least the holes have stopped appears and the flowers remain virtually whole. As for the dead stuff, touch wood and I'll whisper this - i think she may have grown out of it.  Last week she came across the remains of dead bird and rather than pick it up she squatted on it to mark her scent  The next day she went back to it and pooped on it - nice  But to me that is so much better than before. Fingers crossed here


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## Nanci (Mar 1, 2012)

I guess this is just characteristics of this breed, Sami did the same things, chewing on bushes and flowers and diggins holes, our beautiful back yard now probably looks the same as Colins! We did beat the grass turning brown where he does a wee, it takes a bit of diligence, but works beautifully . . we mix up a gallon of water mixed with teaspoon of Miracle Grow plant food and each time he pees, we pour a bit of this mixture in the same spot and it keeps the grass from dying. Soooo there we are out in the yard with him, lugging our gallon jug waiting for a pee!! lol


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