Why Does Your
Dog Do That?
This question
seems to resound around the earth among new pet owners everywhere.
Thousands of people at this very moment are looking at some odd
behaviour and asking themselves just why is the dog doing this?
Let's look at a few of the common behaviours and see if we can
understand the reasons behind them.
The first is
the age old problem of garbage can raiding. This behaviour is quite
annoying as it creates a huge and unsightly mess to clean up. It
involves an animal wilfully tipping a trash receptacle and then
going thru the contents, leaving a lot of destruction and debris in
their wake. Why does Fido do this? Well, the simple answer is
hunger. Your dog most likely smelled something delicious in the
trash can, like perhaps a carryout box or even a piece of meat you
threw out of the refrigerator. This problem can usually be resolved
by getting rid of odiferous objects such as table scraps in a
separate sealed bag or by using a more stable trashcan. If the
outdoor receptacle seems to be the common target, have an enclosure
built around it to keep the animal out.
Another common
mystery to dog owners is the eating of grass. Dogs are naturally
carnivorous, rather than herbivorous, it is hard to understand how
an animal would bypass a plate of steak to go mow the yard with its
teeth. The answer lies in the animal's own stomach. Your pet may
have a bellyache from the plate of steak you gave him this
afternoon. Dogs eat vegetation when they feel poorly, especially
with illnesses related to digestion. This is probably not a danger
to your pet unless your yard has been chemically treated. However,
it is advisable to keep an eye on your pets eating habits and
behaviours. If the animal displays signs of poor health a veterinary
visit would be in order.
Another habit
human companions of our canine friends find disgusting is litter box
raiding. The scientific name for this situation is Coprophagy but
even without the fancy word, we all know exactly what we mean here,
if you let the dog in a house with a litter box, you can bet the dog
will find it within no time. But why does your dog insist on eating
what the cat left behind? There are many theories as to why our dogs
do this. Some medical conditions can cause the symptom to occur.
Some of these medical conditions include pancreatic of intestinal
dysfunction, starvation or even severe malnutrition due to advanced
infections of parasite such as worms.
Others believe
that the eating of faeces may be a way for dogs to replenish their B
vitamin supply or a hold over from evolution. Still others claim it
is a psychological condition caused by nervousness or a guilt
complex instilled by an owner who was too harsh in housebreaking. No
matter what the reason for it, the easiest way to prevent it is to
keep the animals yard and walking area free of faeces of any type
including their own. Aside from this, walk your dog on a leash so as
to have control should they find something you missed. Also put the
cats litter box up out of the dogs reach but still accessible to the
cat or get a litter box with a hood system. A visit to the
veterinarian would also be in order as this condition may be
symptomatic of various ailments and could also be a contributing
factor in the animal developing a parasite infestation.
Hopefully
these short insights into your dogs mind have given you a bit more
information on what makes your dog tick. By understanding how your
dog thinks, it is much easier to train them to perform or quit
performing various actions as the case may be. For almost every
behaviour imaginable, someone else has experienced it and wrote
about it on the Internet. If your dog is doing something you just
can't comprehend or that makes you think your pet has lost its mind,
do a bit of research and maybe you will find the dog's motivation
and how to cure that problem that's driving you mad or at least
satisfy your curiosity so you don't have to ask, Why does Fido do
that?