Dog Owner Worried How Labrador Will Behave When Home Alone-Doesn’t End Well

A dog owner was worried about her puppy destroying her backyard if left home alone, and she wasn’t surprised when she caught him on camera trashing the whole place.

A viral TikTok video shared on Thursday under the username @sh8yla_, shows the black Labrador retriever, Billy, making a mess in her yard, biting off her newly planted trees and scattering them around the property.

“Nervous he’ll destroy the backyard when I leave him home alone …” reads layover text in the clip. The caption says: “My billyyyyy (we lost 7 trees).”

While behaviors such as chewing things off, playing and exploring around are all normal behaviors for dogs, especially for puppies who are yet to be trained, they do often result in destruction of household property.

The Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals – Angell Animal Medical Center (MSPCA-Angell) explains that dogs do not engage in destructive behaviors out of spite or revenge, they often do it as a way to cope with anxiety or to let out excess energy.

Some other common reasons behind these behaviors include teething; fears and phobias; and social isolation or boredom; among others.

Training is key to address destructive behaviors says the American Kennel Club (AKC), and positive reward-based training is the best way to discipline them while also strengthening your bond and providing them mental stimulation.

Making sure they get plenty of opportunities to exercise throughout day is also a great way to prevent them acting out of boredom.

Rewarding desired behaviors and being consistent with your their rules are key factors that greatly influence the effectiveness of the training.

Punishments of any sort will not be effective, they will actually work against you, making your dog fearful, breaking their trust in you, and destroying the bond you have created.

The video quickly went viral on social media and it has so far received over 1.5 million views and 195,800 likes on the platform.

One user, Baileyjjjj, commented: “The way he prances around with the entire tree.”

Lookifixedit said: “He didn’t destroy it, he changed it to how he wanted it. He’s the one spending all day in it remember.”

@me201912 added: “He thinks your gardening sucks so he’s rearranging.”

Newsweek reached out to @sh8yla_ for comment via TikTok comments. We could not verify the details of the case.

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