I'm sure I've told you guys before, but I really believe this dog is the smartest dog I've ever known. Proud Mama here! However... either he has some loose screw upstairs OR he is actually smarter than me! When he is in the mood to do so, ever five seconds he takes a toy and shoves it under the sofa. He then begins to "dig" the floor or lie on his side and reach under as if trying to get it. All this time he whines and whimpers. I think it may be like the kid who drops his cup over and over and over again saying "uh-oh" every time just so Mom will pick it up. I know this is a small thing compared to pottying inappropriately or pulling on a leash or eating problems...but it's driving me BATTY!

I have been taking each toy out from under the sofa about 3 times then I take the toy away if he puts it under again. He starts with the squeaky football... it gets taken away... Next goes the rawhide... Finally a tug rope... All day he will do this... I do not throw it when I take the toy out. I gently lay it on the other side of the room and talk to him like a person telling him I will take away his toy if he keeps doing this (sometimes I think he actually know what I'm saying).

What would you guys do??

Well I'm just gonna say how funny and cute that is but I'm sure over time it gets old. Have u tried to play with him with the toys before he starts to hide them? Or maybe make it a game. Pick 3 toys remove the rest. Show him the 3 toys let him out of the room, hide them and let him back in to see if he can find them. His actions sound like he wants to play/needs attention. I could be off here but that's what I would do

First off, that is adorable! I know, it's cute at first but would get old fast. I would either put his toys away when he's not using them or just ignore him. Since he's so smart it shouldn't take him long to figure out that if he puts his toys under the sofa and momma doesn't get them out then they are stuck there and he's out of luck. Hopefully that will cure him of his desire to stash his toys. It does sound like he wants more attention, maybe tiring him out more via exercise and training will make him less likely to do it as well.

I'm not sure if he's doing it for attention or not. I used to kind of toss the toy out. Well, as you know, that's FUN!! If I leave the toy he stratches and digs on the floor and sometimes the leather side or front of the sofa. If he is tired, he is sleeping (since he's only 4 months old). So tiring him out does stop him from doing this. My husband is thinking about wedging a board up under the edge of the sofa to prevent the toys from going under. It's just such an odd thing for the dog to do, I would love to figure out why he's doing it and if I can train him not to do it.

I think the answer has already been said. I think he's bored. He's 4 months old so he's starting in on the teenage years... you're experienced with it, so I'm sure you know I would try upping his exercise and seeing if he lightens up on the behavior!

Koda and Hailey do this too, but I think it's usually more accidental or to "bury" their toys and then they realize "Oh crap, I can't get them back without help!"

Willow does the same thing but not just with the couch. She throws her balls down the basement, in between this hole between the stove and cabinets and she also shoves her toys under the microwave stand and then digs and digs for it. I watched her one day as she was doing this and as soon as she finally got the toy free...she put it right back and started it all over again. It dawned on me that she was bored and was just trying to entertain herself. After watching one of the videos on here with the toy puzzle that hid treats...sorry can't remember who had that, I decided to try and find her a similiar toy so she would have a puzzle to work on. I think she just needs more mental stimulation.

Konrad does this too He's gotten quite good at retrieving his toys though, he can usually get them out in 20 seconds or less. He also likes to wedge his toys between the couch cushions for safe keeping

26nikita wrote:

After watching one of the videos on here with the toy puzzle that hid treats...sorry can't remember who had that, I decided to try and find her a similiar toy so she would have a puzzle to work on. I think she just needs more mental stimulation.

I haven't been able to find any of those toys locally, so I just use a muffin mold with treats in each cup and a tennis ball on top of each treat. Sometimes we play a game with it, I'll only put one treat in and I'll have 4 tennis balls in it and I'll tell him to find the treat, he'll get one chance and if he chooses the right one he gets the treat, if he chooses wrong I pick up the mold and reset it. We go back and for with this for about ten minutes or so when we do. He's gotten really good at this, at first he would immediately just try to grab a ball, now he actually takes a second to sniff and he gets it right most of the time I got the idea for the muffin mold toy from a video on youtube, but I can't seem to find that video right now...

Rhet wrote:

I haven't been able to find any of those toys locally, so I just use a muffin mold with treats in each cup and a tennis ball on top of each treat. Sometimes we play a game with it, I'll only put one treat in and I'll have 4 tennis balls in it and I'll tell him to find the treat, he'll get one chance and if he chooses the right one he gets the treat, if he chooses wrong I pick up the mold and reset it. We go back and for with this for about ten minutes or so when we do. He's gotten really good at this, at first he would immediately just try to grab a ball, now he actually takes a second to sniff and he gets it right most of the time I got the idea for the muffin mold toy from a video on youtube, but I can't seem to find that video right now...

Ah, that is brilliant! I might have to try this, thanks for the idea!

Rhet wrote:

I haven't been able to find any of those toys locally, so I just use a muffin mold with treats in each cup and a tennis ball on top of each treat. Sometimes we play a game with it, I'll only put one treat in and I'll have 4 tennis balls in it and I'll tell him to find the treat, he'll get one chance and if he chooses the right one he gets the treat, if he chooses wrong I pick up the mold and reset it. We go back and for with this for about ten minutes or so when we do. He's gotten really good at this, at first he would immediately just try to grab a ball, now he actually takes a second to sniff and he gets it right most of the time I got the idea for the muffin mold toy from a video on youtube, but I can't seem to find that video right now...

That sounds fun!! Also the hide and seek with some toys would be fun! Thanks!

Great idea and cheaper too!

My dog knows how to potty train and that's it. I don't know how to teach him other tricks. She is so stubborn and very playful. How do you teach dog tricks?