# Help with socks



## FrancoD13 (Aug 9, 2012)

Hello all...I need some help with how to treat a behavior. My boy is 6 months old and pretty mischievous. Gets into anything. He still is very much like a puppy and puts anything he can find in his mouth. One of his biggest targets are socks. We do our best to keep all socks out of his confined area (which is essentially the living, dining and kitchen rooms). However he is a bit of a Houdini and gets through the barriers into the adjacent mudroom and finds socks. Usually it is a game of keep away, but he has already swallowed three pairs of socks (one emergency room visit and two home vomit remedies). he knows he isn't supposed to do this. When he does grab a sock, he tries to hide under the table or run around the kitchen island. He gets a pretty stern "no" and then we play fetch with one of his toys. However, he keeps doing this, every day. Sometimes he earns a little crate time when he is persistent. I'm not sure what to do. Because of the past experience with swallowing I want this to stop, not to mention the screaming of my little girls when they know he took something of theirs, and how slobbery and wet it is. 

Some other things I've tried are to reward him when he does "leave it" which he knows, throw treats near his feet when I see him going for the sock. But I'm wondering if I should try to bait him...load a sock up with some bitter apple spray or pepper flakes and let him learn the hard way. I'm really open to anything, as this gets me more upset than it should.


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## Gabica (Jan 20, 2018)

My Miksa loves socks but he never swallowed any. I turned it into a retrieve game instead of chasing him and by now he is allowed to help me with laundry, and picking up certain clothing items, carrying them from A to B. First teach the puppy the drop it command (plenty of advices out, not going to repeat). Also if any unwanted object is in the mouth of the puppy start running the other direction. And do a catch me if you can game. Eventually the puppy will stop and drop the item and then Huge praise. At the beginning I also often gave it back to him and let him carry for another round. Eventually it becomes an item I pick up meant to be brought to my human game, just like with birds.
I am not sure how feasible the bitter apple spray is, in my experience they are very smart and will find something else what does not have the bitter apple on it.


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

Our first reaction when we see them with something they should not have, is to chase them down and take it. This leads to puppies running from us, and a game of keep away. Them trying to eat, or hide with whatever they have.
At 6 months, he has learned this behavior. I truly understand your worry, with his past sock eating experience. With kids in the house, it makes it so much harder to keep non eatable things out of his reach. That’s really a area your going to have come up with a plan.
In the mean time work on him not thinking your going to snatch what’s in his mouth. Do it with things that it is safe for him to have. When he has something safe, you call him to you in a happy voice. You might need a longer leash on him, so you can reel him in at the same time. Pet, and praise him, and ignore what’s in his mouth. Sometimes you just release him, and he keeps what he has. Sometimes after the pet and praise, you remove it from his mouth, tell him how awesome it is, and then hand it back. There will also be times that you will remove it. It will quickly disappear behind your back, and you hand them something better.
Your always going to praise and pat them first and ignore what’s in their mouth. No matter if they get to keep it, or it’s going to disappear.

This trust building exercise is going to take awhile, because of the past history. Every time you chase him down, it’s going to set back the training.


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## tulipspink (Aug 27, 2021)

Pepper flakes are effective on my expericed (i use the liquid one). So one day he's trying to destroy my native box and I placed just a little amount on the spot he's trying to bite then when he licked it, he ran and tried licking it again and never came back. Now he knows that that box would harm him. After a week, he tried destroying my box again and repeat adding sauce and now he never touches it.


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## rchik43 (Apr 12, 2020)

tulipspink said:


> Pepper flakes are effective on my expericed (i use the liquid one). So one day he's trying to destroy my native box and I placed just a little amount on the spot he's trying to bite then when he licked it, he ran and tried licking it again and never came back. Now he knows that that box would harm him. After a week, he tried destroying my box again and repeat adding sauce and now he never touches it.





FrancoD13 said:


> Hello all...I need some help with how to treat a behavior. My boy is 6 months old and pretty mischievous. Gets into anything. He still is very much like a puppy and puts anything he can find in his mouth. One of his biggest targets are socks. We do our best to keep all socks out of his confined area (which is essentially the living, dining and kitchen rooms). However he is a bit of a Houdini and gets through the barriers into the adjacent mudroom and finds socks. Usually it is a game of keep away, but he has already swallowed three pairs of socks (one emergency room visit and two home vomit remedies). he knows he isn't supposed to do this. When he does grab a sock, he tries to hide under the table or run around the kitchen island. He gets a pretty stern "no" and then we play fetch with one of his toys. However, he keeps doing this, every day. Sometimes he earns a little crate time when he is persistent. I'm not sure what to do. Because of the past experience with swallowing I want this to stop, not to mention the screaming of my little girls when they know he took something of theirs, and how slobbery and wet it is.
> 
> Some other things I've tried are to reward him when he does "leave it" which he knows, throw treats near his feet when I see him going for the sock. But I'm wondering if I should try to bait him...load a sock up with some bitter apple spray or pepper flakes and let him learn the hard way. I'm really open to anything, as this gets me more upset than it should.


bitter apple has worked for me for similar things


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## John N (Sep 11, 2020)

The one and ONLY Cure to the V and Sock Problem: Don't buy them anymore!


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## Pumpkin (Sep 6, 2021)

FrancoD13 said:


> Hello all...I need some help with how to treat a behavior. My boy is 6 months old and pretty mischievous. Gets into anything. He still is very much like a puppy and puts anything he can find in his mouth. One of his biggest targets are socks. We do our best to keep all socks out of his confined area (which is essentially the living, dining and kitchen rooms). However he is a bit of a Houdini and gets through the barriers into the adjacent mudroom and finds socks. Usually it is a game of keep away, but he has already swallowed three pairs of socks (one emergency room visit and two home vomit remedies). he knows he isn't supposed to do this. When he does grab a sock, he tries to hide under the table or run around the kitchen island. He gets a pretty stern "no" and then we play fetch with one of his toys. However, he keeps doing this, every day. Sometimes he earns a little crate time when he is persistent. I'm not sure what to do. Because of the past experience with swallowing I want this to stop, not to mention the screaming of my little girls when they know he took something of theirs, and how slobbery and wet it is.
> 
> Some other things I've tried are to reward him when he does "leave it" which he knows, throw treats near his feet when I see him going for the sock. But I'm wondering if I should try to bait him...load a sock up with some bitter apple spray or pepper flakes and let him learn the hard way. I'm really open to anything, as this gets me more upset than it should.


I think Viszlas inherently love to steal socks. Mine still takes socks whenever she can, but luckily doesn't swallow them. Hopefully yours outgrows that. Maybe get a great toy that is very special to her and when she takes a sock, casually tell her to drop it and offer her the toy instead? I try to ignore my girl when she steals socks because I know she wants me to react and chase her down. Lots of missing and slimy socks are my lot in life though.


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