[GSDgirlAL]

I hope this isn't a repeated question, I looked for this topic but didn't see it ... anyhow.. does anyone have any insite on tail chasing? why do they do it and what does it mean? Ava has started this recently and I'm not sure what to make of this.

Thanks for your input!

 

[AbbyK9]

How old is Ava?

In young dogs, tail chasing can be part of normal play behavior, but in older dogs it can be a sign of a variety of things: boredom, lack of exercise, anxiety, or even neurological problems.

There's a good (brief) article on it here -
http://www.usask.ca/wcvm/herdmed/applied-ethology/behaviourproblems/tailchase.html

 

[GSDgirlAL]

Ava is 2.

Thank you for your reply and for the link - I'm definitely going to check it out.

 

[DarkEquine]

Zac chases his tail alot...most often when he has just been let out and just before he goes to bed and is in that "whiney, whingy" mood.

 

[CherryCola]

Tail chasing can be a number of things.. I'm wondering in what sort of scenario she does it? My girl chases her tail when I'm making her dinner. It doesn't worry me because I know it's either excitement or anxiety because she's too impatient to wait

 

[Spiritsmam]

Eli is now 10 months old and is a tail chasing fiend! he will be lying down, notice the end of it and seemingly not recognise that it is part of him

He has hindimb deformities so can't chase it per say, but spins round on his butt, rolls and flips, having a great time trying to "catch it"

The other dogs of course look at him like he's nuts. I just attribute it to him being a puppy, but hope he doesn't stop any time soon - it's so funny to watch.