-
Mouthy Dog in Play and Preventing Owner from Leaving House!
This is Sonic. He is a Husky Pitty mix. His owner reached out to me because he has a bit of a bite problem and mild separation anxiety issues. I’ve suggested some management and “busy toys”. Any suggestions or ideas would be great! He bites during play. He grabs the sleeves of his owners coat when he tries to leave for work.
-
8 Replies
-
Hi @Katt , cute dogs! If the biting of the person’s sleeves is mainly occurring when he tries to leave, that sounds like Sonic’s way of expressing his distress about his departure. We’d need more details about Sonic’s behavior *after* the person leaves. A spy cam would be ideal to record actual behavior. What does he do when alone? Does he eventually settle? Will he engage with a food puzzle when alone and be settled *after* the food is completed?
Once we have more details, we can provide more guidance. If Sonic does indeed have separation anxiety, the protocol to help that is very detailed and specific and I would recommend they work with someone who specializes in SA.When nipping occurs during play, getting into a habit of incorporating a dog toy in play gives Sonic something appropriate to put his mouth on. You could teach Sonic and his owner how to play a structured TUG game with strict rules that help to teach good manners and impulse control. Let us know if you need step-by-step tips for that.
-
So I’ve got a little more information. Sonic isn’t completely alone when his owner leaves for work. He lives with his mom. I’ve asked him if there is anyway we can get a video of what Sonic does after he leaves. I did suggest to him the fill and freeze the Kong and give it to him before he leaves for work. I also suggested that if this is indeed a case of separation anxiety to look into talking to a expert. I did recommend that he read a book on separation anxiety as well. As for the bitting I did suggest to him to give Sonic the toys as if to say “bit tis not me”. I’m hoping we can get a video of him so I can get more info on Sonics behavior.
-
-
@Katt I moved your post to this discussion so that more folks could see it. There’s a lot going on here for Sonic and family… Your photos help some, but could you share a few more details? In addition to the questions Virginia asked, how old is Sonic? How long has he been in the home? What are his activities during the day? Does he have an enrichment plan? How is he fed?
-
So he’s had Sonic since he was a 6 month old pup. He’s 2 years old now. The house is the same house that he brought Sonic home. The time that his owner is gone for work is usually about 12 hours or so. He doesn’t have an Enrichment plan step up, but I’m writing down some ideas for him . He takes him for daily walks. He’s free fed.
-
Hi @Katt – In a case like this, where the dog and human have been together over a year and just now asking for help, I always ask these questions, too:
1. How long has the problem been happening? – If the answer is that this is a new thing, then a vet check is a first stop. Pain is often disguised as anxiety.
2. If the problem is not new, then I ask: Why are you reaching out for help now? What shifted that these behaviors need to be addressed? – Sometimes with questions like that I can suss out if there was a lifestyle/schedule change or if the behavior has escalated. In this case, it may be as simple as Sonic coming to social maturity and finding his ability to control all things with his mouth.
If Sonic is healthy, the hardest part of all of this will be meeting Sonic’s needs physically, mentally and emotionally. It looks like he has a dog buddy – I would ask about that relationship as well.
Since the owner is gone half the day, there are some challenges but I would begin with a look at the SEEDs schedule for those breeds and see if you get any ideas there.
https://mycatchcampus.com/forums/discussion/all-the-seeds-posts-in-one-place-take-a-peek/
-
Awesome. I’ll be meeting up with Sonic and his owner within the week or so. I’ll give updates when I have them. I did ask about the other dog. Her name is Jayde she’s an older dog. Sonic seems to have a good relationship with her. From what I’ve been told. I’ll have more info when we do a phone call tonight.
-
Great, @Katt please keep us posted and bring any questions or success stories here! Looking forward to hearing how this goes. You’ve got this!
-
I will
Thank you!
-
-
-
-
-
Log in to reply.