naughty puppy and im all out of ideas

i have a 6 month old staffy pup that is constantly digging holes under our fence to get to the dogs next door. we've tried everything we can think of to stop him. we've put his pooh in the holes, we've yelled and hit him and rubbed his nose in it then tied him up. i no its a boredom thing as he only does it when DP and i are at work. its come to the point where he has to be tied up everytime we leave the house and i hate having to do that to him. we walk him all the time down the local dog beach so he interacts with loads of humans and dogs as he is so social. i just cant think of anything else that we can do! please help. its driving me crazy. specially seen as the dog next door comes through the holes into our yard and barks and nips at us.

Hi raffy,

we have a 4 month old amstaff - have you tried puppy school?

The dog nextdoor to us dug a hole under our fence and we go 2 bog blocks and put it in the hole :lol:

When i remember what our trainer said at puppy school i'll come back and post!:lol:

Definitely do the puppy school/obedience training, because they will give you some good ideas too.

Also, invest in some Kong type toys, that you stuff with food, the dog then has to work quite hard to get it out, same goes for marrow bones. I sometimes stuff the empty marrow bone with other goodies and little smear of peanut butter/cream cheese/vegemite on the outside makes it interesting and gets them started. You can give your puppy their own sandpit and bury things for them to find, also hanging a toy from a rope where it will swing back and forth can be quite entertaining for them.

get a roll of chicken wire and lay that down on the grass, stake it with tent pegs - the dog won't be able to dig through it. At least it'll stop the holes.

Are you taking it to dog training? It may need more mental stimulation ... just as MD says :yeahthat:

chicken wire works for my Pit Bull.. keep it down with bricks etc.
I have heard of someone who poured chilli powder all through the dirt, so when doggy digs, it gets in his nose and makes him choke.... it worked, but takes a lot of effort.

thanks everyone. i was thinking of resorting to puppy school. he has kongs and a million other toys and we've tied a rubber tire tube from an occy strap to the roof but he has the attention span of a goldfish and gets over things VERY quickly he wont even fetch a ball in the park more than twice :wall: we'll give the chicken wire and the chilli powder a go. thanks again everyone :crossfingers:

I've heard Wasabi works well too apparently! I am all for the chicken wire thing too....maybe even your neighbour can put some on their side?

Be careful when tying your dog up though. It can be pretty dangerous for a pooch.

Good Luck