Probably tasted like chicken.

Before you do anything are you giving her twice daily walks? Pent up energy sometimes drives dogs to boredom and they can react this way. Labs are highly energetic and need their twice daily at least half hour walks. Maybe some frisbee tossing in the park to help her unwind. Meantime go about sprinkling cayenne pepper on anything and everything you think she might go after next. Does he have enough chew toys around? Those may get boring after a while but it's a good supplement to the walks. But really, a carpenter is the only answer to these attacks on the wood.

my cat did the same thing to the corner of one of my side tables.... i have been told to maybe use wood putty or wood patch? i'm looking forward to seeing the advice you receive, good luck!

My puppy liked to chew the carpet in the corners of my living room. For us the best strategy was to conceal her favorite spots. Otherwise she'd stop for a while, and then every so often it would again occur to her that this might be fun to do. Unfortunately I think you should live with the damage for 6 months or so, until your dog grows out of this stage. Then fix it all at once.

That is a pretty big piece of wood to attempt to patch. Possibly you could simply cut it off at the point where it gets really bad, patch the little dings with paintable filler, and paint.

Crate Training! I agree with southwick on cutting off the chewed part but also cut the other side to match. Oh and a tired puppy is a good puppy!!!

Our pup did the same thing about a week after we moved into our first house. I used an epoxy wood filler to fill the missing parts of the windowsill. It took several applications with sanding in between, but after some practice and finesse we got our sill to look new again!

Hard to tell how big the damage is, but it certainly looks like you could fix it with an epoxy wood filler like PC-Woody. (http://www.acehardwaresuperstore.com/pc-woody-epoxy-paste-structural-wood-filler-p-996.html?ref=42)

It's simple to use, moldable, paintable and bonds like iron.

Definitely wait a little while until you're sure your dog isn't just going to tear it up again.

Yes Training is good solution.
Maybe build a dog house in the house?
http://www.flipflipmeheidi.com/2011/01/dog-house-extravaganza/

No idea about the wood, but I'd absolutely crate the pup.

You can fix this yourself but it takes a little artistic talent and a bit of patience. My lab (oh, labs- so cute yet so destructive!) chewed a corner of my baseboards and I was able to re-sculpt the edge with wood putty (the thick stuff from the plastic tub) that you can get at any hardware store. First, clean the damaged area and remove any loose pieces. Sand any areas that protrude past the original shape of the window sill. If you used water to remove dog spit, let it dry completely before moving onto the next step. I used a simple, clean, metal putty knife to create on the basic shape with the wood putty (Make sure you use some pressure to get the putty into the nooks and crannies left by dog teeth). Depending on how much wood is gone this could take a few layers. Let each layer dry completely before the next one goes on. Once it is completely dry I used a medium grit sandpaper to sand it into the final shape. Wood putty is great because you can simply paint right over it and it looks as good as if it was real wood.
You may be able to use a similar technique on the corners of wall but use Spackle instead of wood putty.
Good luck!

Thad is right. An epoxy filler would work the best. I like using Bondo, it is easy to find and work with. But before you do you should make sure your dog is not going to do it again. Having him chew and eat wood is one thing but you may need a vet if gets to epoxy. Have you tried rubbing the affected area with a bit of chili oil?

When that happened here to my blinds, I took them to a local authorized dealer. He shipped them back to the manufacturer, which replaced the damaged slats. That wasn't cheap. The blinds dealer told me that such damage is common, and that dog owners often eventually decide just to live with it. What a bummer, huh?

Use an epoxy wood filler- it is moldable like playdoh (ask your local hardware store to recommend a brand). Clean up the damaged area of the sill, then mold the epoxy into a shape reminiscent of the missing area and apply. After it dries, you can sand it down, prime and paint. If you work neatly, you will never know the difference :)

wood filler/bondo would do the trick. I've seen that stuff get used on the bottom of old rocking chairs to help restore it.

as for the chewing yes, a board puppy is the chewing devils playground. get that pup some stuffed animals, rope with knots, and other various chew toys. The stuffed animals make the biggest messes, but it's kept mine from chewing on the couch

My dog did the same thing - I'm lazy and just hung curtains. I agree with everyone that says to wait until you're sure your dog has moved on from the sills before you fix them.

I am definitely not a woodworker, but here is my "two cents": I'm thinking you could cut off the corner there, around the torn up part, and cut another square of new wood to replace it. Not sure about the best way to join the new wood to the old--maybe with holes drilled in the sides, and short pieces of a dowel, and some wood glue?? Then sand, and repaint the whole thing. Might be easier than replacing the whole sill, anyway!

this is what you need. extremely easy to work with. I've been using it around my 1913 craftsmen to restore rotted wood corners and split clap boards etc.

http://www.abatron.com/cms/buildingandrestorationproducts/woodrestorationmaintenance/woodrestorationkit.html

the consolidant turns wood rock hard. the epoxy is also rock hard, pup won't be able to chew it. breaking it off might be possible with extreme force, but it won't be chewable. Once it dries you can sand it down into shape like wood and then paint over it.

this only resolves the damage, no idea how you get him not to do it again.

http://www.abatron.com/cms/buildingandrestorationproducts/woodrestorationmaintenance/woodrestorationkit.html

no idea why it wont post the whole link

My pup likes to chomp on my plantation shutters. All sorts of awesome. Bitter Apple has helped some. Hopefully I can reshape them with wood filler when he grows out of this stage.

Your going to be fine with the wood repair. You'll need a straight edge(anything) some 3 inch wood screws, sand paper, and epoxy type wood filler/putty I think this repair is to big for the bondo.

Drive the screws into the sill leaving them protruded into the empty space where the sill that has been chewed off used to be. This is going to help tie the repair to the old sill. Use the straight edge to make sure they aren't protruding paste where the edge of the sill used to be.

Fill the space around the screws with epoxy putty in the profile of the old sill. this might require a few layers. Any epoxy you put on that's beyond where the sill shape used to be should be sanded off with the sand paper over your straight edge. The straight edge will keep your shapes flat like the old sill so when it's painted over it will be invisible.

I wouldn't do any of this until the dog has been cured of chewing though. We had a problem with a dog like this that ate our wall and repairs in plaster too. We eventually mixed cayenne into the plaster and only had to repair once more after that.

You can buy the wood, paint and glue at Lowe's and do it yourself. If you don't have a saw (even a handsaw will do) take the old sill up to Lowe's and use their handsaw rig. Shouldn't cost you more than $15. You just wiggle the old sill with the window open until it pops out and glue the new one into place. Replacing just the sill of a window is so much easier than most people think it is.

Sounds more like an anxiety attack, if this is unusual behavior...
Still, be sure to leave some frozen peanut butter kongs hidden around for her, esp. during teething time. And bitter apple what she needs to leave alone. It will work great, with a little time investment. And make sure she's getting enough face-time with people.

If you can find matching, just carefully cut off the damaged part, and use liquid nails to glue in a new piece. Spackle, sand, paint.

My husband used the epoxy wood filler (ask for advice at Home Depot, Lowes, or your local hardware store) when our very young dog ate a section of our *staircase!* (She started on that after she ate all the corners off the coffee table.)

If it's any consolation, she pretty much stopped that after the teething period. And now that she's 11 years old, we think she's pretty OK after all. :^)

One of my grown "puppies" did the same thing to the corner of a mint danish modern table of mine! I have laidback Great Pyrenees who are crate trained but frequently allowed to stay out because they are so chill. Toys, chewies, kitties & each other...none of it helped that day! :)

I'd hold off repairing until you are sure it was either a fluke (as was mine) or a phase that will be outgrown. Use curtains...then try building it up, here would be my suggestions:

1. cut each sill off at an equal angle, fill in teeth marks with putty and then paint. It will look like the angles are purposeful.

2. use several screws in it to build up some support and fill with bondo/putty, sand smooth, then paint.

It isn't an actual structural issue so whatever looks good, I would go with!

Your dogs not "teething", she's bored and not getting enough exercise.

I have a border collie and when she was a pup she liked to chew on high heels. So i bought a board from the lumber store and told her it was hers. She focused all her chewing on that piece of wood and i have never seen anything else destroyed.

*NOTE: Don't to the cayenne pepper!!! My mom did that to my dog and she ended up with acid reflux all night. So unless you want to clean up doggy barf along with that wood, DONT DO IT!!

Found this and thought it could help.

http://www.homeownershub.com/maintenance/Wooden-Window-Sill-Repairing-Of-47637-.htm

George Beland has the right idea. Our Borzoi did the same thing on brand new sills in the master bedroom.

What I did was buy inexpensive moulding the same thickness as the sill. I cut it to fit the perimeter of the existing sill, leaving a "window" where the chewed out portion was. I then filled this with a heavy dose of wood filler and allowed it to dry an extra long period of time. (follow the manufacturers instructions).

Sanding, priming and repainting the whole thing left it looking better than before. The idea of using moulding I hit on just in case they did it again, which they did. It was easier to buy and replace the moulding than it was to fill an even larger hole the second time.

Crating, of course, was also an option!

You might want to consider replacing the wood sills with less-chewy ceramic tiles.

P.S. Or, perhaps consider laying tiles over the wood sills to discourage chewing.

I'd spray the wood with bitter apple so he doesn't do it again. That's what I did when our dog did the same thing. However, I just sanded it down a bit and painted over it again since it was in an inconspicuous spot. Good luck on fixing!

Same thing happened to the door moulding in our master bedroom and laundry room after our calm dog of 9 years became neurotic after the loss of her pup sibling. Now we're having to crate her since she decided not to stop at wood chewing and instead moved on to carpet peeing--- every day-- in different rooms.

I am coming to this thread too late to provide advice (already done) but I could right novels on window sill chewing. I have a huge window and its sill is only about a foot above the floor - the purrfect height for one of my greyhounds to snack on it. It has been damaged so many times (and repaired) that I stopped counting. Currently its waiting for another round of sanding of the wood filler and painting, but I will do it in the spring - I don't like to paint when I can't open the windows (well, I can, but it's -15 C right now).

P.S. Bitter Apple did nothing. I haven't tried the cayenne - I will do it if I have to repair the window again.

Also, you can just muzzle the dog instead of crating (or if crating is not an option).

Muzzling a dog in their domain, just seems like a cruel deterrent. Trying to find out what's motivating the behavior to try to remedy it, in my opinion, is more responsible.

i dont know about the woodwork, but bitter apple spray prevents my pup from chewing on stuff, because it tastes terrible.

also, like others have mentioned, unless your dog is <6months old, teething is probably not the issue. boredom may not be either -- (my dogs got plenty of chew toys and i take him for walks) he may just be a chewer.

I am slightly embarrassed to admit this in public, but I chewed on the window sills when I was 2. My Dad had to replace several. My Mom thought I was looking out the window :)

my previous dog did this too. he had massive problems that we couldnt solve thanks to the jerks who owned him before his shelter life and abused him.

i havent fixed it yet. and the damage is on the window sills, the windows themselves (dont ask me how) and a lot of the trim around the door. sadly its mostly wood trim original to the house and stained......so i think i have to replace a lot of it!

:(

If your dog is teething, then you should try getting her one of those freezable toys. It'll help with the pain, so she'll prefer chewing on it. I think that a combination of displacing and deterring the behavior should keep her away from the sills. Once it is clear that has worked, clean up the chewed sites and use an epoxy-based wood putty to build up the original profile of the sill. Wood filler is too flexible for what you want to do here. The thing you need is sculpt-able like clay, not the stuff you squirt from a tube. You can also trim the corners to be rounded or beveled so that you do not need to fill as much area. Then just sand and paint. Here's a picture of where we used the same stuff on our cabinets.

If your dog is teething, then you should try getting her one of those freezable toys. It'll help with the pain, so she'll prefer chewing on it. I think that a combination of displacing and deterring the behavior should keep her away from the sills. Once it is clear that has worked, clean up the chewed sites and use an epoxy-based wood putty to build up the original profile of the sill. Wood filler is too flexible for what you want to do here. The thing you need is sculpt-able like clay, not the stuff you squirt from a tube. You can also trim the corners to be rounded or beveled so that you do not need to fill as much area. Then just sand and paint. Here's a picture of where we used the same stuff on our cabinets.

Bondo. Shape it to match the existing profile. Then paint it.

Then invest in a crate and crate train your dog. And make sure he's getting tons of exercise and has lots to do. Dogs are often destructive because they're bored or have excess enery. Try toys like these if basic balls and bones interesting enough for your pooch:
http://www.bestfriendsgeneralstore.com/unique_dog_toys_c/dog_toy_puzzles/Dog+IQ+Puzzles

Man. Typos galore in my comment.
I meant to say "excess ENERGY" and "AREN'T interesting enough"...
Sorry.

I'm afraid I only have advice to stop your pets chewing your furniture. Something spicy like rubbing it with a chilli pepper, won't harm 'Fido' but it will stop their chops!

Our dog went through a shredding phase when we moved twice in one year. Eventually, your dog may choose to destroy something potentially lethal (dryer sheets, in the case of our beast), so it might be worth crate-training now. The vet explained that dogs are den animals who find comfort in small, cozy spaces. Our somewhat anxious dog climbs into her crate voluntarily throughout the day when she needs a break or a nap.

Do you rent or won. If you rent, I say wait until you know it's over with, then replace the sills. If you own, it's your call to use wood filler, but I don't think the repairs will be anything like good enough, especially on corners. You need new wood. Sorry.

Hot sauce... make sure it doesn't contain garlic(dogs are allergic). One lick and they will leave the area alone. the odor is strong enough for them to realize where the taste came from and the growing sensation of hot will keep a stubborn dog at bay. and remeber to wipe it down of any residue after the dog has gone back to smell that hot sauce. I know apple bitter didnt work on my dog, we tried that after the hot sauce but she just ate the apple bitter like it was a dirty shoe, stuck her tounge out a few times and the taste dissapated too quickly for her. she has grown to be the most stubborn dog we have had. I made sure to give her a treat after she went back to the spot to smell the area after disliking it as to calm the growing taste.

My dog did this too. I cut out the wood with a hand saw, cut another little piece of wood the size of what I'd cut out, sanded it so that it fit well, and then hammered it in with thin nails. Then I used wood putty to fill in any cracks and then sanded the whole thing. If you rent, I would wait til you move out to fix this, in case it happens again. Here are some pix I took of the job. I'm happy to say my landlord didn't take anything out of my security deposit.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/52182863@N00/sets/72157625738906509/

ha, my young dog did the exact same thing. i've thought about doing a search here for repair tips but talked myself out of it every time, telling myself that there was no way this has happened to anyone else.

thanks for the help, i'm not so overwhelmed by the idea of repairing this on my own now.

sadly, my dog moved on from window sills to one of my old wood children's school chairs and then an old japanese wooden rice box. he was FAST & CRAFTY when he wanted to chew. thank doG he's grown out of this behavior now. lucky for him he's cute.

thanks, Apartment Therapy!