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If you’ve got a dog and a carpet, you probably know full well by now that the latter is not long for this world. How many times have you come home to see your carpet in tatters, ripped up all around your innocent mutt who just looks at you with an inquisitive look on their face? What’s the matter, friend? Don’t like what I’ve done with the place?

Your dog tearing up your carpet is definitely an aggravating experience, for sure, and you want to be done with it. However, in order to do so you need to understand what your dog is trying to do in the first place, and whether or not it’s a good or a bad thing in the first place. Once you know this, you’ll be better equipped to deal with this pernicious problem.

Step 1: Understand Why Your Dog is Tearing Up the Carpet

It’s definitely tempting to chalk your dog’s clawing and scratching to being something that dogs just do, and there’s something to that, to be sure.

Your dog, like everyone else, wants to be comfortable, and scratching is a very comforting thing to him or her. If your dog is trying to take a nap on the carpet, a little pawing at it might make it fluffier and more comfortable for them.

When dogs are outside, they usually scratch the dirt and ground in order to regulate their temperature and claim territory for their own. This, then, is yet another explanation for why your dog tears up your carpet – they want to make sure your other dog (or even your cat) knows who’s boss in the home.

Could There Be Something Wrong?

The most important thing to rule out is separation anxiety – dogs will often get bummed out when you’re not there, and tear up the carpet in order to deal with that anxiousness they feel at not having you around.

While these perfectly innocuous reasons could very well be why your dog is ripping up that beautiful carpet, there are some other things you might want to watch out for.

If you want to figure out if separation anxiety is your dog’s problem, there are other symptoms to look out for.

If your dog always tries to leave with you when you try to head out the door, or whines whenever you don’t let him or her out with you, these are signs that your dog just can’t handle being without you. Flattering, to be sure, but it’s something you should get your dog used to unless you want to stay a homebody.

How Can I Stop My Dog from Tearing Up the Carpet

Luckily, regardless of why your dog is treating your carpet like it just shot him or her a dirty look, there are ways to stop your dog and correct its troublesome behavior.

If your dog is trying to make itself more comfortable on the carpet, be sure to give them a nice, cushy bed on which they can take a nap. This way, they can sleep in peace without needing to make his own safe space for himself.

In order to deal with your dog’s separation anxiety, you might want to keep your dog appropriately distracted while you’re away.

It might be a god idea to give him or her some toys and other things to play with while you’re gone. If you think you will be gone for a longer period of time, get a dogsitter or ask one of your friends to check in on him or her.

There are myriad other methods for stopping your dog from ripping out the carpet of your home, but these are the most effective for the most frequent causes of dog scratching.

Keep that in mind the next time your dog leaves you with a Thunderdome-esque, post-apocalyptic carpet situation upon your return. In the meantime, take it as a compliment: your dog loves you so much, they go crazy without you around!

Here’s another good video that addresses chewing in general:​

Related Resources

• MetPet’s Article on Separation Anxiety in Dogs

• How to Stop Dogs from Scratching the Carpet, from The Nest

• The Richmond SPCA’s Preventing Destructive Behavior in the Home