An Ode To Those Gutted Stuffy-Fluffies!

I know Henley is not the only dog out there who can gut a toy in two minutes flat. I mean completely wreck it, stuffing all over the place and giant holes where those cute stuffed limbs used to be.  Even toys labeled "indestructible" are no match for Henley; they will have a chunk taken out of them in seconds. He is a dog with a singular purpose, gut the toy and call it a win.  I just roll my eyes, pick up the pieces and move on, but I've started thinking about this a bit differently recently, mostly because he's the first dog I've ever had (and I've had a LOT of dogs) who was this single-minded with toys.

How about if we look at this as a necessary behavior?  Dogs are animals and animals, by their very nature, must hunt and kill to survive.  Now, dogs have been domesticated for over 30,000 years, but who's to say that predatory drive isn't still there?  Maybe it's just the case that some of our dogs have more of a predatory drive than others, and while they may exercise that drive by chasing squirrels, birds, and neighborhood cats (Henley does that too!), some also direct that prey drive at their toys.

If you watch a dog taking apart a toy, and believe you me, I've had a lot of opportunities to do so with Henley, there is a method to his destruction.  He is focused, toy poised between his front paws, or pinned to the floor with one paw, as he snaps at it, shakes it, and rips his first hole. Once that first hole is made, he often moves to a new place, laying down to get a better angle, as he starts pulling out the stuffing, literally dissecting it. Now, fortunately for me, he's never eaten any stuffing, squeakers, etc.  He just leaves those spoils for me to clean up, which I do promptly.  Once a toy is gutted, he's done with it.  He might return to it later to see if he can pull it apart some more, but for the most part, once it's gutted, he just carries around the empty carcass until something new catches his eye. Or he nods off.

I'm now starting to think of Henley as a captive animal, not just my beloved pet dog.  I wouldn't give a second thought to a captive wolf tearing apart a carcass!  But Henley is stuck in my house with me (and Ozzie), and his toys are his outlet for this very natural, normal behavior. He is genetically wired for this, as he's been doing it since we brought him home.  What does it mean for me long term? It means I buy a lot of toys for Henley, varying the texture, durability (I hope), and size to keep his interest.  If a toy is able to be repaired, I re-stuff it, sew it up, and put it back into the rotation. If it's beyond repair, I toss it.  And the best part of all of this is that this dog has NEVER chewed up anything that wasn't one of his toys; he's never touched a blanket, pillow, cushion, chair, etc.  Not once.  All of his predatory drive and chewing behavior has been directly appropriately to the toys that are his.  I'm actually quite proud of him for that, and frankly relieved, as were he chewing my stuff, it would be a lot more expensive to replace!

So, if you, too, have a dog who likes to dissect toys, try thinking of it as a natural part of the predatory sequence and part of life as a captive animal. It's our responsibility to keep our dogs entertained with appropriate outlets for their mental and physical exercise.  Finally, if any of you have durable toy recommendations, Henley and I are all ears.  Well, he's all ears, but I'm listening too!

As always, if you have questions about your pet's behavior, you know where to find me.

I also buy Henley lots of hard, ridged, flavored, bone-type toys to chew on.  He loves these and I find them in every room, especially when I step on them in the middle of the night!