[lovemyava]

Hello-
So we live in Fargo and our 6 month old V has been cooped up all winter, it's finally nice out and she LOVES to be outside in the yard.....however, the other day I found her digging a hole in the grass, I have to admit it was funny and cute her nose and lips were full of mud . I would like this behavior to stop though now we have three spots in the yard with no grass. Any ideas on how to get her to stop digging? She also digs in the house on the furniture and us if we are in the way of the furniture. We have tried telling her no, but she doesn't seem to care to much about that word.

 

[chino777]

Our trainer suggested building a sandpit, in the backyard (away fro everything) and fill it with her favourite things ie toys food treats.

Yes this encourages digging, but thats what these dogs do, so it encourages her to dig in the one spot as its alot more fun finding treats then dirt .

We havn't tried it yet as chino, is not as bored anymore and has stopped alot of her digging, however i think we will do it down the track.

 

[jp]

We have the same problem. We have about 3 big holes from last summer. I decided I need to fence them off this summer so I can fill them in and reseed because she will just dig up the fresh dirt and eat the seed, or carry away a piece of replacement sod. That was last summer's experience. But I know it will just lead to new holes in other places. She seems to like to dig up some roots or maybe grubs. I'm hoping someone has had luck with a solution here.

 

[madaboutvizslas]

Fargo, North Dakota. Visited there once. Someone told me its so flat you can watch your dog run a way for 3 days!

My girl used to dig alot. Vizslas are described as "mischeivious diggers". I thought back hoe was a better description. At one stage I encouraged everyone to put up their photos up and see who's V could dig the biggest crater!

However she grew out of it by about 15-18 months of age. Haven't fallen into a hole for quite a while now.

 

[Mercutio]

I don't have a solution i'm afraid - we were also told to try the sandpit thing and so decided we were happy to sacrifice one corner of the yard. But of course he then decided another patch was better to play in and I eventually gave up trying to control it. It did seem to get a bit better about the same time as his bored barking behaviour because i started giving him more interactive toys during the day while we were away. But sometimes I think he just liked to dig up some dirt to lie in.

Two years on and I think he has stopped but we're waiting just a little longer before starting repairs. There is really only one crater in the yard but it is big enough that he fell in it the other week.

 

[lovemyava]

Thanks everyone for the great advice! We have been outside all day yesterday and most of today playing fetch and she hasn't dug anymore yet! I guess we will just have holes for awhile

 

[Islander]

I am grateful Ziva doesn't dig in the yard, however she does have nearly
7 miles of beach to excavate ..... this is where she really lets the sand fly!

 

[abbysmom]

Our V is starting to dig as well. If someone where to walk in to our back yard they would either A. think we buried 4 dead people back there or B. Archeologist are doing an excavation back there. Anyone had any luck on problem solving?

 

[lovemyava]

Ava finally just gave up and realized having to come inside as punishment, was not worth the hole digging. Good Luck!

 

[kab]

We have had the same problem!! our one year old has completely destroyed any garden I have had. I really wanted to protect the front bed from him - after having it mulched twice already i needed another plan. I used the indoor invisible fence disk and put it in the middle of the garden area. Just the sight of that disk makes him squeamish...problem solved - unless it's raining

 

[sniper john]

In the yard, I have always dumped the dog poo into the holes before filling them back in. That way they do not get dug back up. Then there are a couple places at the back of the yard that digging is allowed and actually encouraged. Over time it has progressed to where little digging gets done in areas not wanted. As for the back flower bed. The only solution was a rock garden, cactus, yukka type plants with spike needle pointed leaves, shrubs with thorns, hollys with sharp edged leaves etc. As landscape rocks even got pushed away and holes still dug, the holes where filled with bricks, covered with dirt, and the large landscape rocks placed back over into place. It was a long road, but my V eventually gave up and the back garden is no longer attacked.