Destructive

What can I do to stop Ellie chewing.
She steals things and takes them to her bed and chew them to bits.She's not a puppy any more she's 16 months.
She chews bedding,wood,plastic,coal,anything and everything.
It's not like she doesn't have toys because she does and she also isn't alone as there is someone here all the time and there are 3 more dogs in the garden as well and they don't do it.
How can I stop her?

Well, the easiest solution is to make sure that you do not leave anything lying around that you do not wish her to chew. To stop it you really need to understand why she is doing it. Does she have any other behaviour issues? For example: is she particularly nervy, does she have SA, is she dominated by the other dogs? Does the chewing happen all the time or are there particular circumstances under which it occurs?

Don't give her all the toys at once.
Give a few at a time, and then take those away, and give some more.
Don't leave anything laying about, even on tables, cos the dog will get it if they want (I learnt the hard way!)
Is it when you go out of the house? Or she is 'alone' and you are in another room? Leave a kong, or something similar to keep her occupied.

I agree totally with what the others have already said. With Jake I also taught him the leave command. If I ever catch him with something of mine I tell him to leave and immediatley replace the item with one of his own toys. It seems to have stuck in his head now that he has his own toys and must not chew mine even when i'm out or not around!

Kongs are great for stopping them getting bored if boredom is the reason for the behaviour. There is a really good thread about kongs somewhere on this site.

She does get left on her own(in the company of 3 other dogs ) at night,But she does it night and day.I don't leave things around as a rule but she will sneak in and steal things.Last night she chewed yet another piece of vet bed to shreds even though the other 3 are lying in the same bed.
She also chewed the corner of the bed and part of the door frame.
I don't leave toys with them all the time just when we go out and leave them(short periods for time) and sometimes at night but usually she doesn't bother with the toys just other things.The others don't do it why does she?
Yes she is very nervy so I suppose she does it for comfort.I had a kong but she chewed it so badly that you can't get the treats in anymore.

Agree with what the others said.

But she is only 4 months old - still a pup really. If it's any consolation, Loki will chew up anything of mine he gets hold of - hence we put barracades in front of certain places in the kitchen and keep best items out of reach - such as mobile phones , landline phones , socks, boots (which cost the earth to repair/replace) bra's ( ok so I'm not too tidy).

I am home with Loki and he is far from nervy but I guess he gets bored if we leave him for an hour or two. I leave the radio on, a chew for him but my belongings are always more interesting ...
Sometimes I have left a sacrificial sock on the side - not sure this is such a good idea as it 'invites' him to have a gnaw, but at least he doesn't touch anything else and I get to give him a mock admonishment when I find it in his mouth

Forgot to say it is natural for dogs to chew so is hard to stop them.

As SB's said, I think you need to determine why she's chewing before you can find a way to stop it. You also need to look at how you react when you catch her.

Is she doing it for attention? - Do you chase after her to get the item back? Or have you ever laughed at her doing it? Both of these reactions are more likely to encourage her to steal and chew. Even being shouted at is a form of attention (to a dog, any attention is good attention). Try teaching 'swaps' instead - let me know if you need info about this. Yes, swaps can lead to her trying to steal things just to get a treat, so be careful how much access she has to stealable things, but it's a good command to teach in case she ever accidentally picks up something that could be dangerous to her.

As Jake suggested, teach the 'leave' command too - always useful!

If you decide she's doing it through boredom, you'd be better off finding something for her to 'do'. Tire her mind out, not just her body. Try teaching and playing hide and seek, or basic tracking. Try thinking up new commands to teach - it doesn't really matter what as long as she's exercising her brain. Also try feeding kongs, especially frozen ones - they take long to 'deal with'.

If she's untrustworthy while you can't supervise, have you considered crating?

There are many chew deterrents available, some work others don't. But, IMO, they should only be viewed as a temporary measure while you figure out why she's chewing - they're not a cure.

Hope some of this helps.

Becs

Having a dog that suffers from Separation Anxiety, it's something that you'll have to be patient with. Although you're dog may be left with other dogs, it's not always Canine companionship that she may want, it could well be human (as in my case)

I've found by removing everything that's reachable and leaving my dog with a rawhide chew (one that's gonna last a while) I haven't had many probs.

If you think your dog is suffering from SA, PM me and I'll try and help as much as I can

Lucky Star, isn't it great owning a Utonagan

You could always invest in a stronger kong I'm assuming she's also a ckcs? They do a range of sizes and 'toughnesses' so you should have no problems finding one that suits - mine are indestructible with a rottie and a bulldog around

Becs

We have the large red kong for Teagan (who is a chewer), and it's not even got teeth marks in!)