[KMaryP]

I have a backyard heavily covered with pine trees. My pups love to eat the pine cones and bark and nibble on the needles. It's impossible to keep them fromit. In addition, we have several flowerbeds that are mulched with shredded bark mulch, which they also love to eat. Is this dangerous?

 

[craven.44]

I would venture to guess that it is not good for your dogs to eat a bunch of foreign material like pine cones and mulch....

 

[petra'smom]

They may have the potential of causing mechanical problems passing through the intestines -intestinal blockages- if your pup swallows enough. Also I think the sap may be toxic, I think they make turpentine out of it. Try to redirect your pup's attention by giving a stuffed Kong when outdoors.

 

[poodleholic]

Yes, it's very bad. Work on "leave it," and in the meantime, supervise at all times, so that you can prevent this. While it may seem extreme, I think I'd be using a muzzle, if necessary, to prevent the dog from ingesting these items.

 

[KMaryP]

Thanks all. I figured it wasn't good for them, but didn't know if it was poisonous. I forgot about the terpentine; I think that's true.

I sure wish they knew "leave it", but that's not the case. In the two weeks I've had them, they're almost housetrained and have learned to run in and out of their doggie door (a huge challenge), but that's about it. I know it's a long road ahead, but I'm up to it!

How do you teach a dog "leave it"? Clap my hands or distract them in some way when they get hold of something they shouldn't and say "leave it"? IT makes it especially hard having two pups - do they know which one I'm talking to? They don't even know their names yet!