# Looking for mail catcher to prevent dog from shredding incoming mail...



## atwnsw (Sep 20, 2010)

I have 1 year old springer spaniel who loves to eat paper/magazines/etc...

My house is an older house with a mail slot and the mailman drops the mail through the 12" wide opening (13" with hardware).

When we aren't home we like to leave the dog out of the crate. The downside is that he likes to "read" the mail" and then dispose of it while we are gone. When we get back home the mail has been through a paper shredder.

Option 1) Put a receptacle outside the door (no fun).
Option 2) Put the dog in the crate (can't do it)
Option 3) Find an attractive letter holder that will protect the mail.

I have done my research and still haven't found something that is the right size or aesthetically pleasing:

http://www.mailcatcher.org/shopping...=883667&merchantid=189189&shop=itemdetail.asp I love this idea but the person hasn't responded to my emails or phone calls in 2 weeks. This would be perfect but I need to find out if it can be sized to fit a 13" opening. In any case, he won't return the calls. This is a winner if I could find it in my size.

http://www.shopwiki.co.uk/letter+cage
This is an alternative although a little unsightly. Unfortunately they only seem to be available in the UK and none of them will ship to the US. I found something similar on eBay but it was too small for the mail slot.

http://garagedoormailbag.com/faqs.html Functional but butt ugly. My wife won't let me hang that on the inside front door of the house.

http://www.snailsakk.com/ An option if nothing else works....

Any ideas on where I can find what I need or get the exact parts to assemble it. I am not much of a handyman but am open to creative ideas...

Thanks in advance...

Anthony


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## Jim F (Mar 4, 2010)

What about a large box that you can just put in front of the door with the open side facing the mail slot when you are not home with a chair or some other heavy object holding it in place. You can store the box out of sight when you are home. That is a short-term solution. The long-term solution is to work with a dog trainer to modify this unacceptable behavior in your dog.


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## Mr Chips (Mar 23, 2008)

How big is your dog? if small just go to a craft store and get a smallish wicker basket and srcew it to the door below the slot










if you are afraid do will chew basket go to marshalls, or anywhere that sells tin stuff, they will have something that will work.

It is easy enough to break your dog of this habit. just take some junk mail, from day before, put a light coating of vaseline on it, and shake on some cayan pepper powder. Drop these through the slot when you leave, or come home on your lunch break and do it. Do this for a week or so, your dog will learn to leave the mail alone.


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## kbsparky (Sep 11, 2008)

Get rid of the varmit


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## nap (Dec 4, 2007)

will the dog eat any of the cloth bags you are considering?

You can make box that is attached onto the back of the door with a flip open lid. Make it as large as you like or as small. Decorate it as desired.


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## forresth (Feb 19, 2010)

my vote is the basket, with mouse traps on the outside of it.


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## atwnsw (Sep 20, 2010)

I am glad that I can provide everybody some amusement.

The posts are actually very funny.

The manufacturer of Product 1 finally called me back last night (death in the family which is why I didn't hear back for 2 weeks). So, I ordered it.

Regarding the missing product number, I realize now that I can't count.

The dog is a rescue and has some issues but is very sweet.

We are making progress on his behavior but it is requiring patience and time.

I figured you might enjoy a photo of the little monster!

Mail Eating Monster


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## lanemiller (Apr 6, 2010)

That is a damn cute dog. Forget the Mouse Traps. I'm sure you've tried this already but when our dog was chewing things a lot we just got her a Lot of chew toys, of different varieties, squeak toys, bones, pull ropes. Worked for us.


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## handbag (Oct 30, 2020)

I am a bit late with this post however I recommend Letterboxer which is a new spin on the traditional letter box Cage. It is made of solid birch so it’s tough however it automatically folds flat so it doesn’t obstruct your front door from opening. I love it and best of all you don’t need to drill holes in your door to fit it. I think it can fit a letterbox 340mm wide by 120mm high 

You can check them out here Home - LetterBoxer - British Made Letter Box Cages


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