New behavior issues in 5y/o

My corgi is in the 5 year old range, and over the last few months he has gotten worse and worse with his alone time shenanigans.

He has decided to chew and EAT whatever he can if he's home alone, which is an obvious problem. He's chewed up decorations, groceries, recycling bin objects, heck even the carpet (which full disclosure 2 weeks prior had coconut oil spilled on it, but why a 2 week hold?)

The only thing that had been changed in the last few months is he has slowly been put on a diet (a 3-4 month gradual decrease in portion served) so I am to assume the behavior is linked to this, but not like my solution should be to return to over feeding.

Any advice on someone who's gone through similar?
I feel AWFUL that he now is kenneled my 8hour work day, I want to be able to trust him to be free to roam the apartment all day like he's been allowed for 3 years!

With it being the harsh winter it is, outside walking time has decreased but direct play time has increased to try and compensate.
Might more play/energy releasing time be my solution?

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Permalink Reply by Beth on February 23, 2019 at 3:05pm

MIght something be stressing him? Is there work being done nearby, a new dog moved in the neighborhood that barks a lot, couple in a house up the street fighting all the time?

I agree that all-day crating is concerning in an adult. Do you have room to set up an ex-pen somewhere? I think he needs time to break some of these new habits, then I would try gradually longer periods of unsupervised time, the same way you start a puppy,

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Permalink Reply by Natsuhi Shirosaki on February 27, 2019 at 9:49am

It can also be a sign of boredom or separation anxiety. I did research before n actually saw that mental stimulation is more tiring than psysichal one. Stuff kongs or put his daily food in those food dispensing toy. It will make him eat slower, stimulate his mind and give him work to do. Training simple commands also help. Also there are matts where u can hide treats in, as an extra puzzle to solve. Corgis are intelligent and they need to be mentally stimulated