Investing in quality training can help protect your bedroom, like this beautiful furnished room at Hub Tampa!
Having a pet at apartments near USF can be one of the most exciting, rewarding experiences you can have in college. No one can deny that it's comforting to have a furry friend to help you get through the highs and lows of life at the University of South Florida. For people who aren't willing to live without their dogs, finding a pet-friendly apartment near USF is a must. But despite the joys of having a dog, it can also be a source of stress in life. Destructive dogs can cost you hundreds in fees if they start tearing up apartment property or the property of your neighbors. Having a troublesome dog can be overwhelming when you just don't know how to make the bad behavior stop. Read on to learn some tips for keeping your destructive dog in check and advice on how to manage their behavior.
Puppy-proof your USF apartment
If you have an especially destructive dog, you can take a page out of a new dog owner's book and puppy-proof your USF apartments. This involves tidying in such a way that there's nothing in reach of your dog for them to chew while you're out at the University of South Florida. Puppy owners do this while their puppies are teething and still learning what's off limits. Pick up everything off the floor that you don't want chewed, tuck in bedspreads, and consider putting a protective plastic cover over your couches in your furnished apartment. Make sure anything hanging on the walls is high enough that your dog can't reach it and keep chewable items off of low coffee tables. This will be easier if you have a short dog, but even if you own a large dog, this is a valuable step in damage control and can save you the expensive costs of replacing items that would otherwise get destroyed.
Invest in quality training
It may seem obvious, but the value of quality training can't be overstated! Consider bringing your rambunctious pup to an expert who will know how to handle them. Not only will good dog training sessions teach your dog right from wrong, but they also teach dog owners the best way to keep their pets in line. If you're really struggling to control your dog, it's much better to learn from an expert than try to deal with the problem by yourself. Reaching out to professional trainers also provides you with some support that you can lean on when you're feeling overwhelmed.
Correct your dog early and often
Along with training, it's important to correct your dog's destructive behaviors to show them that what they're doing is not okay. When your dog starts displaying destructive behaviors like chewing on a couch cushion, tell them immediately to stop, then redirect them to a toy that they are allowed to chew on. Try to correct them as soon as you see the behavior occurring so that your dog can quickly make the connection. This can be very frustrating, but the key here is persistence: you can't give up before your pet does! If you stay calm and stick with it, you'll start to see results.