Ep 116 Help! My Dog Won't Stop Digging Holes in My Garden! - Help! My Dog: The Podcast. Dog Behaviour & Training Strategies that Work!

Summary4 min read

Episode Overview

Podcast: Help! My Dog: The Podcast. Dog Behaviour & Training Strategies that Work!
Host: Dr Tom Mitchell
Episode: Ep 116: Help! My Dog Won't Stop Digging Holes in My Garden!
Date: February 18, 2026

In this episode, Dr Tom Mitchell tackles a popular listener's question: “Help! My Dog Won't Stop Digging Holes in My Garden!” He breaks down why dogs dig, the role of learned behavior and environment, and walks listeners through a clear, actionable plan to stop this frustrating habit. Dr Tom’s advice is rooted in dog psychology, prevention of bad habits, and positive reinforcement, using his signature practical and upbeat style.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Understanding Why Dogs Dig (00:34–02:30)

Digging Is Innate and Rehearsed:
Dr Tom emphasizes that digging is part of the dog's natural "blueprint" and is reinforced by past opportunities to dig:

"Your dog is digging holes because, well, that's what they do in the garden. And they've got that blueprint and they've got that rehearsal history." (00:34)
Environmental Setup:
Digging often happens due to unsupervised time in the garden, providing the dog ample chance to practice this behavior.

2. Step-by-Step Behavior Change Plan

Step 1: Stop the Rehearsal (02:30–04:05)

Supervised Garden Access:
Prevent the dog from digging by no longer allowing unsupervised garden time:

"We've really got to not leave them unsupervised in the garden... what we need to do is create a clean slate. 100%. No rehearsal, three weeks, let's say." (02:42)
Use Leash If Needed:
For persistent diggers, even supervised, keep the dog on-lead for bathroom breaks and closely monitored outings.

Step 2: Teach an Alternate Behavior (04:06–07:03)

Create a 'Go to Bed' Game:
Dr Tom recommends teaching the dog to go to a bed by the door after bathroom breaks:

"What we like to do with these dogs is we like to teach them to get on a bed by the door... you are going to get some high value food and you are going to pop the bed next to the door." (04:12)
Positive Reinforcement:
Lure the dog onto the bed, feed generously, walk them away and repeat until the dog eagerly seeks out the bed when outside.
Gradual Progression:
Build up to letting the dog out off-lead, trusting that the bed has become a positively charged spot, encouraging the behavior you want.

Step 3: Maintain and Expand (After the First Three Weeks) (13:10–15:00)

Open Garden Access Carefully:
Once the no-digging period has reset old habits, allow access with confidence the dog will prefer the new pattern.
Scatter Feeding as Enrichment:
Mix in scatter feeding (tossing treats in the grass) to encourage calm mooching and scentwork which doesn't lead to digging:

"We can start to then incorporate scatter feeding into the garden where we get them back to mooching around... when they've decided, 'I can't be bothered anymore,' what we should hopefully see is that they then go and get back on the bed by the door." (13:39)

3. Overarching Principles and Final Advice (15:05–16:30)

Break the Cycle:
Two key tasks:
1. Stop them rehearsing the undesired behavior (digging).
2. Actively build and reinforce the behavior you want (going to bed, calm mooching).
"You have to make sure they're not rehearsing the bad stuff and then what you have to do is rebuild the picture that you do want." (15:50)
Timeframe for Change:
The plan can transform digging habits in about three weeks with consistency.
Encouragement:
Dr Tom shares his enthusiasm and confidence:

"Three weeks and you can absolutely transform this... can't wait to hear how you get on!" (16:12)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On Stopping Digging:
"The fact that they're digging holes would suggest that they are spending some time in the garden to be able to do that... create a clean slate. 100%. No rehearsal, three weeks." (02:44)
On Positive Training:
"Feed, feed, feed, feed, feed them and you're going to just then lead them away. Walk them back over to the bed... until you've got a dog that's really suctioning to the bed by the door." (05:02)
On Pattern Building:
"It's not about digging, it's about if in doubt, get on the bed by the door. And yes, you can be a dog and you can mooch around and sniff and if you get bored of that, you get back on the bed by the door and you can come in." (14:05)

Timestamps for Key Segments

00:34 – Dr Tom introduces the episode's question and frames why digging is a common and natural behavior.
02:30 – The importance of stopping the cycle and preventing rehearsal.
04:06 – The lure-to-bed strategy for creating new, desirable habits.
07:03 – Building confidence to let the dog go out and return to bed voluntarily.
13:10 – After three weeks, opening up the garden and incorporating new enrichment.
15:05 – The essential two-step approach for long-term success.
16:12 – Encouragement and wrap-up of the main lesson.

Takeaway for Listeners

Dr Tom offers a hopeful, science-backed, and practical solution to garden digging:

Prevent unsupervised digging for three weeks (reset the habit).
Teach and reinforce a calm “go to bed by the door” behavior using high-value treats.
Gradually return freedom, using scatter feeding and ongoing positive reinforcement, with the expectation of real change in about three weeks.

Listeners are encouraged to try the plan, join the Help My Dog Hub community for more support, or email questions for future episodes.

Next Episode Teaser:
Dr Tom plans to answer another listener question—listeners can submit theirs for a chance to be featured.

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[00:00]
A
Your dog is digging holes because, well, that's what they do in the garden. And they've got that blueprint and they've got that rehearsal history. Before we dive in, a warning. The content of this podcast may not be appropriate for some young listeners. This is real life, and that means that sometimes it can be a little bit graphic. So listen on at your own peril. As a veterinarian, dog behaviorist, best selling author, and trainer over the past decade, I've had an obsession with transforming the behavior of dogs, understanding their brains, and creating practical strategies that you can implement easily at home. I know all too well when the dream you imagined when you first got your dog is far from your daily reality. In fact, out of the blue, a few months ago, my little dog, Gorse was bitten by a dog 20 times her size. And suddenly our life of stress free walks, a calm and cuddly household, and being teammates was replaced with reactivity, anxiety, and worrying about what's around the next corner. I'm Dr. Tom. This is the Help My Dog podcast. And this is me documenting that journey of transformation, sharing my knowledge and experience with you, and having a few laughs along the way. All right, welcome to this episode of the Help My Dog podcast. And today we're doing a listener's question. And the listener's question is, help. My dog won't stop digging holes in my garden. And it's interesting, this isn't one that really comes into my world because it's just not something that my dogs do or incline to do, partly probably because of everything that I'm going to share with you today. But I get that it is a problem that does crop up. Okay. And that you might be dealing with. And so let's talk about what you should do about it. So first things first. First things first. This struggle is a struggle of rehearsal. Right. Your dog is digging holes because. Well, that's what they do in the garden. And they've got that blueprint and they've got that rehearsal history. Yeah. And so what we've got to do for this training process is we've really got to not leave them unsupervised in the garden. Yeah. This is the fact that they're digging holes would suggest that they are spending some time in the garden to be able to do that. And actually what we need to do is create a clean slate. 100%. No rehearsal, three weeks, let's say now in extreme instances, you might go out into the garden, even supervise, and if they're off lead, they'll go to Their, you know, their last hole and start digging. Then we might need to think about them being on lead for three weeks. Okay? So they can go to the toilet and this other stuff that I'm gonna, that I'm gonna talk about, okay, that's step one, step two, what I want to do is I want to create a dog that, that effectively goes out into the garden, goes to the toilet and then goes and comes back to the door. And what we like to do with these dogs is we like to teach them to get on a bed by the door. Okay? So they're outside, they're, they're on the bed, they're still being a dog, they've got their freedom, right? But they're just chilling on their bed, which is, you know, way more, way more appropriate. And so what you're going to do to teach this is you are going to get some high value food and you are going to pop the bed next to the door. Just make sure it's a waterproof bed that can stay out there all the time or a platform or something. And you're going to lure your dog onto said bed and you're going to feed, feed, feed, feed, feed them and you're going to just then lead them away, walk them back over to the bed. They're probably going to get on the bed because they're like, oh, that led to food, feed, feed, feed, feed, feed. When they do, lead them away and repeat until you've got a dog that's really suctioning to the bed by the door, right? And then what you're going to do is you're going to start to build out, going outside with your dog off lead, go to the toilet, you've got your high value food in your pocket. What are they going to do? They're probably going to go and get on that bed, aren't they? Because now they've got a new pattern. They go and get on the bed, feed, feed, feed, feed, feed. What you can then start to do is you can start to have the confidence to let your dog out of the, out of the door. They can go toilet themselves. And what you should start to see is that they suction back to the bed. Okay? Now the beauty of this is that it gives them something to do instead. Yeah. And what it also does is gets them from being in the garden area where probably they can dig to actually being in an area where they can't dig and they are waiting to come in. And you can periodically open the door, chuck some food on the bed, periodically Open the door, let them in. Right. Bearing in mind this is happening over three weeks and they've not rehearsed digging and you've covered up the holes. Yeah. And now we've got a very different pattern of behaviour. And then the final layer of this puzzle, I actually like teaching on speaking on this even though it's a bit of an unusual one for me to talk on because it's quite a fun complete plan to share with you. The final piece of this is we can go. Right, okay. Hey guys, I just want to take a moment to answer a question that has been coming in literally 10 emails today and that is how can we help you with your dog's behavior struggle? Whether that be reactivity, separation anxiety, resource guarding. Maybe you've got multi dog household struggle right now. Maybe your dog's just so over aroused on a walk that they just can't listen to you and they're chasing everything in sight. Like can I get Tom's help? And the answer is that actually you can. And you can do that by booking a behavet behavior consultation. That's where literally my team give you the plan on how to transform your struggle and get you to that dream that made you get a dog in the first place. Right. Your world's got smaller and smaller and smaller and actually it doesn't need to be that way. You just need to reach out for help. Now a couple of things to say on that. First of all, if you're insured, if your dog's insured with pet plan, Kennel Club, Agria or many pets, we actually do direct claims with them, which means that that's covered by your insurance. So you don't pay out of your pocket, your insurance covers that. And the second thing to say is that we have loads of options. If you're insured with another provider or if your dog's not insured at all, that's also totally fine. We have loads of options that we've developed to make this so accessible for you because we're aware that you've already invested a load of time and a load of money in getting your dog, looking after your dog, caring for your do. But the last thing we want is for you to have done all that and still not be living the life that you deserve with your dog and we know we can get you there. So all you need to do is go to the Behave Vet website and the way to do that is go B E H A dot V E T that's beh vet and it will take you There or just Google Behave vet. Right. And you can get scheduled in and we can literally get you booked in for a consultation as soon as possible. We normally can accommodate it within a week. Right. So that you can be getting to your dream asap. The final piece of this is we can go. Right, okay. We don't need. We. We can now open up the window for them to potentially dig the hole. But they're not going to because they've not rehearsed it in a few weeks. And when in doubt, they should get on this bed. And what we can do is we can start to then incorporate scatter feeding into the garden where we get them back to mooching around the. The grass. We throw bits of food around there, sniffing and scenting it out, eating the pieces of food when they are done or when they've decided, I can't be bothered anymore, what we should hopefully see is that they then go and get back on the bed by the door, which we can feed them the high value again. And now what we've done is we've recreated the picture. Yeah. It's not about digging, it's about if in doubt, get on the bed by the door. And yes, you can be a dog and you can mooch around and sniff and if you get bored of that, you get back on the bed by the door and you can come in. Yeah. That is a perfect picture that we have rebuilt. But you have to do two things. You have to make sure they're not rehearsing the bad stuff and then what you have to do is rebuild the picture that you do want. Right. So actually that was quite a straightforward listener's question. And importantly, you've got to get the management right. Yeah. And then be really proactive in rebuilding it. Three weeks and you can absolutely transform this and hopefully you get value. And we can't wait to hear how you get on. And hopefully that was useful to some other listeners as well. And next week there might be another listener's question. If you ever have a question, guys, and you're not in the Help My Dog Hub, obviously, if you're in the Help My Dog Hub, then stick it in the community because we can help you directly. And if you are not in the Help My Dog hub, then email teamhelpmydog.com with your listener's question and we will add it to the mix and I will pick it out at random from the magic ball of questions that is on constant rotation in our living room. It's not. But it was a nice idea, wasn't it? We'll see you next week, guys.