‘Britain’s naughtiest dog's' chewing habit costs owners nearly £9k
You might think your dog has disobedient moments, but it’s probably nothing compared with Cooper the boxer.
His owners claim to have ‘Britain’s naughtiest dog’ after he chewed his way through eight sofas, two dining room tables and 10 remote controls – costing Jill Kirkham and her partner Steve nearly £9k in total.
The first item of furniture to go was Jill’s cuddle chair which Cooper gnawed through when he was a mere 12 months old.
Now at a somewhat calmer five and a half years old, Cooper worked his way through seven more before he got to this point.
Even though he’s cost her and Steve a bundle, cleaning supervisor Jill ‘wouldn’t have him any other way.’
Jill, 54, said: ‘Cooper is definitely Britain’s naughtiest dog.
‘You can’t take your eyes off him for a second – or he’ll be up to no good.
‘We could tell he was going to be mischievous when we got him as a pup, but I was not expecting to have to shell out £9,000 for new furniture.
‘He didn’t just nibble the cuddle chair, he took it back to the bare framework.
‘To say it was a shock when I walked in from work was an understatement.
‘He has cost us an arm and a leg, but I wouldn’t have him any other way.
‘He is my best friend and the most loving dog.’
Jill fell in love with Cooper the moment they met him in 2015.
‘My heart melted when I met him, I just had to have him,’ Jill said:
But when Cooper tore apart the couple’s cuddle chair when he was a year old, Jill was shocked.
She said: ‘It was then I realised just how destructive he was.’
A mere two weeks after the cuddle chair bit the dust, Jill arrived home to find stuffing strewn about her kitchen and her sofa destroyed.
‘This time I was not happy,’ she said.
‘He had left it in tatters.
‘We spent a few weeks without any furniture before we could replace it.’
Jill and Steve tried their best to curb Cooper’s chewing habit, but the four-legged agent of chaos even managed to tear his way out of a crate.
Jill said: ‘He had twisted the bars to free himself and eaten apart our brand new sofa.
‘I couldn’t believe it.’
On top of sofas and chairs, Coopers also ate his way through mobile phones, remote controls and dining room tables.
In total, Cooper has chewed up:
- Eight sofas – costing £700 each
- Two dining room tables – costing £300 each
- 10 remote controls – costing £20 each
- Six mobile phones – costing £300 each
- One set of oak nest tables- costing £250
- One set of wooden doors- costing £300
Making the total cost of his reign of destruction £8,750 so far.
‘One day I came home to find a leg of our dining room table ripped off and in his bed,’ Jill said.
In addition to crate training, Cooper has been but through puppy classes, puppy university and agility to try and control his behaviour and at last he seems to be chilling out.
‘He hasn’t eaten our latest sofa yet,’ Jill said.
‘It’s a leather one and I don’t think he likes the taste of it.
‘We’ve gone through eight sofas, numerous mobile phones, two dining tables, rugs, shoes, trainers and handbags galore.
‘But we wouldn’t change him for the world.’
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