My son's 14 mo. old male German Shepherd Dog has started chasing his tail. He recently bit it so hard that it bled. We have read that this is a sign of boredom. My son is trying to exercise him more. He runs 3 mi. with him 3 times a week. He seems worse when he is around other dogs or people.
HI diwagner thanks for your post, I would like to ask you an extra question or two if I may before we look at a solution so I can get a better picture of the dogs motivation. I was wondering if you could tell me if he does this in front of you the majority of the time or if he tends to do it more often when you are out or he is alone. Also does he have many toys and does he enjoy playing with them? And finally does he display any signs of nervousness or submission such as always approaching people with his tail between his legs or his ears down?
The dog seemed to start the spinning a few mos. ago when visitors would arrive. Now he does it in the back yard when alone. He is not nervous or submissive. He also is not an aggressive dog.
Hi again diwagner, Your sons dog is approaching his teens and at this age unusual behaviors can develop especially when the dog is excited or bored. Some breeds are more predisposed to tail chasing as an outlet for this pent up energy and excitement. There are two main things to do in order to reduce this behavior.
[B]Do not accidently encourage this behavior [/B]by giving the dog attention when he is doing it. Instead redirect the dog to a more positive behavior and give praise and attention for that. For example if you see the dog outside chasing its tail ignore the tail chasing but ask him to 'come', when he comes praise him. Follow this with a few other commands and praise and fun or play a game with him.
[B]Keep him mentally and physically challenged[/B]. There are a number of ways to keep your dog challenged.
Regular daily obedience training is a good routine - just five minutes a day spent rehashing familiar commands with your dog is an extremely effective way of reinforcing your authority and dominance while also keeping your dog mentally challenged. Be sure to use praise and/or treat immediately whenever your dog does something right.
Regular exercise is also very effective at improving your dog’s behavior and it can be both mentally and physically challenging. Quite walks, while not particularly physically challenging keep your dog mentally stimulated especially if you vary the walking environment to include new and interesting places. Free running your dog at the park or jogging with your healthy dog on lead can provide a great energy burning opportunity. Alternatively you can train many dogs to run on treadmills which is especially useful if you have reduced mobility or limited time and have a high energy dog.
Toys are also an important source of mental stimulation for dogs and are very useful for keeping dogs entertained when owners are out. Try to build up a collection and rotate them so your dog does not get bored. Toys which can be stuffed with food and require the dog to work the food out slowly are especially valuable. Also raw hide chews and similar items are an excellent tool against boredom.
Finally you may also want to consider putting something that the dog does not like the smell or taste of on his tail. Make sure what you use is non-toxic for pets and make sure to keep it away from any broken skin. This option should be used in conjunction with the ideas above because otherwise you are only treating the symptoms of the problem and not the problem itself.
I hope this helps, let me know how you and your son get on.
