Okay so Odis has recently decided to become very destructive. He loves digging in the back yard and is really upsetting his babysitters. What can I go to get him to stop? We yelled and him and he knows he's in trouble but wakes up the next day and does it all again.

I've heard of some people getting the shoes to go on their feet as long as they are supervised and won't get the opportunity to chew them off. Shoes make it hard for them to get any grip on the ground to really dig. Deciding what he is digging for helps as well. If he's after critters like moles then the best course of action is to get rid of the moles. If he's digging because he has too much energy then stepping up the exercise game and mental stimulation should help.

I'm afraid the only help I can give is how to repair. Rocks on bottom, 4" soil, seed, cover with chicken wire held in place with lawn Staples then cover with straw. Water.

He's upsetting his babysitters? Who are his babysitters?

Digging is a natural behavior and is to be expected. Rather than try to curb a natural behavior that, let's face it, he's going to do whether you like it or not, I prefer to re-direct that behavior to an appropriate place. My boy is a digger too (like a serious digger here) and no amount of yelling or filling holes with various recommended deterrents (wood, rocks, poop, you name it) stopped the behavior. This went on for YEARS and we were both frustrated. And then one day I decided to stop fighting him and work with him.

I went out and bought a 4 sided square raised garden bed, then picked an unused, out of the way part of the yard to place it. Then I loosened the dirt inside and buried some toys in the dirt with other toys laying on top of the dirt. When it was all ready I called him over and encouraged him to dig in it which he immediately went crazy over. He had his very own small digging area where he could dig to his hearts content (which he gladly did) and I didn't have a frustrated dog digging holes everywhere he shouldn't have been. It worked out brilliantly, I highly recommend setting aside an area for them to dig freely if you have a serious digger on your hands. My boy was such a frustrated digger before that he would start digging holes anywhere, even in the middle of a walk. He is much, much happier with a designated digging area and the act of digging alone tires him out more than you might think...probably not a bad thing with that young, puppy energy!

Please see my intro in the Welcome Mat! However, I have included it below:

So my wife and I found Layla at a local animal shelter and Layla seems to be about 2.5 years old. She is on the small side and weighs only about 35lbs.

She also seems to have come trained in many ways. First, she hardly says anything! She doesn't bark or growl or howl. She may yelp if you catch her fur as you are putting on a collar or something. Also, when she becomes excited by other animals or when she is being introduced to another dog.

She is fully house trained! What a blessing. She is car trained so she rides in the car well without noise or bad behavior.

She is not motivated by food, treats, or toys at all. But she does get bored.

She behavior inside and outside the is SO very different. She is calm and easy going inside. She is very affectionate and I think is her main "training" language. Outside I can't hardly seem to get her attention. This makes training hard.

She does need exercise. My general practice is one long (maybe 1/2 hour) walk and two shorter walks a day.

She is not crated trained by we have a room where she sleeps with a crate in it.

Now for my PROBLEM: She has destroyed a $600 rug in our house because she has decided it is her place to lay down and she digs in the carpet and then quietly lays down. How do I train Layla to go to a "place"?

Buy a rug or bed that will be "hers" and every time she goes to dig at the other correct her and move her to the rug that is hers and start training the down command. Down and stay always at that rug and after a time she will naturally start using it. You can also look into getting booties for her so that while you are training her to the new spot the booties will protect the old rug from her nails. Mine dig at their beds a little though not too much. They want it to be "just right" when they lay down so they ruff it up. Old comforters work well as well as new bedding. If she digs at a certain spot in the rug you can lay an old comforter over that spot and see if she will lay on it, then when she has become comfortable or attached to the comforter then move it where you want her to lay.

Heard putting some of their droppings then filling the hole in helps.

Leo also likes to dig at first my brother was not liking it but i was determent to find a compromise that worked for everyone. so when his sand box (is a 4x4 square) is fill of potting mix he get to pick a new spot which is usually next to the bamboo. but when the box is all his again he only digs there and every one is happy. with one exception gopher season or "gopher madness" where he gets to freely dig all over the yard as long i fill the holes in.