[maus]

I have a 7 month old pure bred tricolour beagle that I got from a breeder. So far she is doing quite well in her training. If she goes outside off leash, she will not leave the yard. She sits, she stays, she comes, she leaves it, she runs up the steps when I say "upstairs", so goes on the couch when I tell her, etc. She gets plenty of exercise (we walk for at least an hour every day together plus plenty of run around/play time in the yard). The only treats she gets is a denta stick once a day (she won't eat treats anyway for some reason, guess she just doesn't like them). She gets her water left down and will ask for the door when she needs to go pee or poop (if I for whatever reason ignore that request though, say very early in the morning because I am asleep, she will go infront of the door on a pad). She is amazing with children, does not beg for food, no health problems, and just wants to play with everyone she meets.
Sounds perfect, right?
Well...
I have tried crate training her. She slept in it when she was very young and had no problems, but as she's gotten older, she has gotten worse. She has found several ways to escape the kennel. The first time, I don't know how she did it, but she managed to unlatch the lock. Second time, she rammed the wall of the kennel that has the door on it until the joints popped open and she squeezed out. Third time (with two padlocks on the door and the joints bent back with plyers so she couldn't pop them open) she slid the tray out of the bottom of the kennel, rammed into the side of the kennel hard enough and long enough to not only open a door put move the kennel into the next room on the opposite wall. She flipped the kennel on it's side, bent the wires along the bottom and ran out. I no longer use a crate with her because I don't want her to hurt herself.
So, when she is left alone, I leave her out in the living room and kitchen with everything like the garbage can, oven mitts, etc. moved out of her reach. Normally she is fine with this and when I come home, she is sleeping on the couch and waits for me to take off my coat and shoes and acknowledge her before she comes over to say hi. Other times, she just becomes insanely destructive.
She has destroyed my couch, and has chewed through the power cord for my satelite receiver twice. I had to remove a carpet because she chewed it to pieces and started eating it. She's eaten countless pens, chewed on my cellphone, chewed through two leashes, ripped down curtains, destroyed lighters, and the list goes on. I have tried keeping her confined to a smaller room (the bathroom) when I am gone, and she managed to lock the door from the inside and destroyed the doorknob. It is getting to the point where I am considering getting rid of her (as much as I love her) because I simply cannot afford to keep replacing all the things she is damaging and I have no idea why she keeps doing this. I know it is not her teeth because I check them regularly and they are in excellent condition and she does not have any teeth coming in right now. I have tried the bitter apply spray and it doesn't bother her one bit. I don't know what to do about this, I'm really losing my patience with her and I just want it to stop and know why she keeps doing this. Any advice?

[reeskujo]

There is usually always a reason that dogs especially puppies are destructive..dogs don't think like humans they don't destroy just to do it.....It could be anything from bordem to not enough excersize or even seperation anxiety..
How many hours a day is she your puppy home alone?
Is the one walk a day the only walk the puppy gets?
What kind of mental stimulation does the puppy get?
Do you leave toys or something for the puppy to chew on when you leave?
How does the puppy react when you leave,whining,barking,pacing etc.?

Beagles are a working breed dog as well as a high energy dog.This means they were bred to do a specific dog.Theses types of breeds need a lot of excersize and mental stimulation.Your not just dealing with puppy energy but with the energy the breed has naturally..
The puppy may be getting very bored when it's home alone and the one walk a day may not be enough.For some breeds just running in the yard is not enough to burn off the energy and if they have to much energy that hasn't been burned off they will find away to do it especially if they're bored...
My Husky had tons of energy and she also had seperation anxiety when my husband would leave...She would eat paper,pens even climb the book case to get what she wanted..
We had to makes sure if we were going to be gone more then a few hours we to her for a long walk and then threw her a ball around in the yard so she could play and run off the rest of her energy...When we started doing that she destroyed less and less until it finally just stopped...
If we slacked off one her excersize she would actually jump the fence just so she could run
and running is basically what the breed was bred to do.

It really sounds to me like your puppy needs to burn off more energy and doesn't have enough to mentally stimulate him/her...

As I said puppies are dogs are generally never destructive for no reason it's usually becasue they have a need be it physically or mentally that we're not picking up on.

Good luck and I hope this helps.

[Yogi]

I have to agree, this is not a surprising action by a breed that is high energy and appears not to be getting enough exercise daily to wear itself out.

[Todd]

Sounds like she may nedd a bit more exercise/run time especially to really wear herself out. You seem to give her a good amount but maybe not at the right time. When are you home? Do you work during the day? If possible it may be a smart idea to give her some nice runtime (atleast 30 minutes or so) before you leavr the house in the morning (if you do) so she is more relaxed while you are gone. because of the way she acted in the crate it also sounds like she may have some separation anxiety. This is often another cause for destructive behavior. Here are a few very informative links of separation anxiety in dogs and how to approach and fix this problem;

Separation Anxiety In Dogs – How To Treat It|Pet Library

Separation Anxiety In Dogs | How To Treat Dog Separation Anxiety

Dog Anxiety - Options for Calming Separation Anxiety

There are also natural remedies to help calm your dog down and relieve some of his anxiety. There are meds first but I wouldn;t use those unless it's a last resort because of possible side effects;

Brew a cup of green tea for your anxious pup. Green tea contains L-theanine, which is a non-protein amino acid found to promote relaxation in both people and dogs. You can also add some brewer's yeast to your dog's meal. Brewer's yeast contains thiamine (vitamin B1), which helps calm anxious dogs.

Lavender is well known for its calming properties. Place a small amount of the essential oil on a cotton ball and tuck into your dogs bedding or tie into a bandanna around their neck. Use true essential oils and not a chemical "smell like" product. Never place essential oils directly onto your dog's hair or skin as they can be irritating. Plug in an essential oil diffuser if your dog is anxious being left alone or you anticipate a thunderstorm or fireworks. Do not use essential oils for cats.

Make you dog a cup of chamomile tea. Chamomile reduces anxiety and can encourage a dog to sleep. Cool the tea prior to giving it to your dog. Chamomile can also help if your dog has stress-induced diarrhea or loose stools. You can also cook your anxious pup some hearty oatmeal. Oat is both calming and nutritious.

Flower essences are comprised of parts of different flowers and plants selected for their curative properties. They are predominantly used to take care of mental and emotional issues in humans and animals. The best known flower essence is Bach's Rescue Remedy. It is comprised of five original essences and is well known in the dog rescue community for its calming effect on stressed animals. Place a few drops of the flower essence into your dog's water bowl to relieve anxiety. Drops may also be placed directly into your dog's mouth or rubbed onto exposed, non-irritated, skin.

Hopefully I was of some help. Good luck!