My little dogs dug a hole in the sofa

[Stephen Cherry]

Now they are hiding stuff in there. Can anybody suggest an appropriate punishment?

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[Erik Loza]

Hahaha.. Wow.

"Why did they do it in the first place", I guess would be my first question.

Erik Loza
Minimax USA

[Phil Thien]

Beagles love to dig and bury their treasure (bones, pig ears, etc.), don't they?

Leaving a pair of beagles alone along enough for them to dig a hole will almost always result in, well, a hole. A pair of beagles is a destructive force to be reckoned with.

About the only thing they (beagles) like to do more than dig, is escape confinement. So I'd suggest using a piece of cardboard to block a doorway and therefor confine the beagles to one room. They will quickly overcome the cardboard and you will find them where they aren't supposed to be. But they will be so busy fist-pumping and hi-fiving each other that they may forget to dig a new hole.

Seriously, once the hole is dug, there is no more punishing them. You have to catch them in the act, and whack them on the back-side. And do not allow them to dig outside, either. I have a strict "no digging" rule.

Right now I'm beagle-less. I have a half-beagle, half lab. His digging, sniffing, baying, running-off, etc., instincts are slightly repressed from the lab genes. But there are times when he will notice I'm on the other side of the dog park from him, and he will stare at me as he digs quite a deep hole. He knows it will take me 20-30 seconds to reach him, and by that time he will have quite a respectable hole finished. He just simply cannot help himself.

Beagles are maddeningly awesome.

[Mel Fulks]

I think YOU brought out the camera and he didn't want to be photographed. BAD ,Stephen, BAD !

[Stephen Cherry]

I think that it's pretty funny. Basically, they are too wild to run around the house unsupervised, so they are kitchen dogs. The sofa was on it's way to the dump, almost out the sliding glass door in the kitchen, but they took up residence on, and now in it. Anyhow, the sofa may be making the big trip to the county dump pretty soon.

The funny thing about beagles is how nice and gentle they are, while at the same time being so wild.

[Erik Loza]

No expert on dog behavior but I guess my gut reaction is to the effect of, "Well, if they had a place they could dig safely.....".
To use a comparison, our cats have a ton of energy and are always up to shenanigans but never have destroyed one piece furniture or anything else in the house. They have plenty of toys and I play with them every day, tire them out. Maybe just find a way for them to release that energy outdoors?

Best of luck with it,

Erik Loza
Minimax USA

[Jeff Monson]

Its looking like they need a place to dig, do you have an outdoor area that you could give them bones to bury? I think that would help a ton, also if they have a favorite thing in the house that spurs them into burying it, I'd take it away.

[Pat Barry]

We had a new Lazyboy reclining sofa and somehow my dog's favorite tennis ball ended up stuck inside where the footrest folded down. Bridget (our old yellow lab pictured as my avatar) figured out pretty quickly that it was far easier to go thru the side of the couch to get her ball back. LOL! Bad on me for not training her how to recline the sofa. It might have been easier than sewing the couch panel back up so it hid the damage.

[Stephen Cherry]

Its looking like they need a place to dig, do you have an outdoor area that you could give them bones to bury? I think that would help a ton, also if they have a favorite thing in the house that spurs them into burying it, I'd take it away.

They dig a little in the back yard. Not very often though. This sofa is/was about 25 years old, so I'm guessing it had plenty of smells (spilled drinks, Doritos, who knows what else) to attract them. Plus, I think leather has a little bit of a smell that naturally attracts dogs. They chew rawhide bones, which are pretty close to the same thing.

I'm thinking I need to get a little dog bed, something with a removable, washable cover.

[Mike Chance in Iowa]

Now they are hiding stuff in there. Can anybody suggest an appropriate punishment?

Yup. Bad Stephen! Bad Stephen! What were they doing alone unsupervised long enough to do the damage!? :D

[Stephen Cherry]

Yup. Bad Stephen! Bad Stephen! What were they doing alone unsupervised long enough to do the damage!? :D

What were they doing? They were digging!

[Gordon Eyre]

Well, your first mistake was not getting a Sheltie and your second was in letting them get up on the furniture. Your wife will probably thank them when you bring home a new sofa. :eek: