What is she doing?

    • Gold Top Dog

    What is she doing?

    Rory does this weird thing with dog beds and I'm not sure if it's normal, imitation digging, play or an ocd thing. She basically digs in them, mostly ones like the fleece crate liners, where the middle is flat and the sides are raised. But she digs and kinda pushes it around in circles. Then she'll bit it, shake it around, and go back to digging in it. She could do it forever. She has done it as long as we've had her. We don't have a yard for her to dig in, so maybe she wants to dig? But it's only with these very specifically shaped liner/bed things. I had taken her old bed away cuz it weirds me out but then her fleece liner from the car crate came in the house and she found it and started doing it again. I hid it but she found it and started crying for it and I pulled it out and she's at it again. She will do it even if she just ran with DH and chased bunnies at the park. So while i guess it could be an energy release thing, it's not necessarily. Any ideas? Should I be concerned? Should I never let her see one of these types of dog beds again? =)
    • Gold Top Dog
    I wouldn't worry. My dogs do that when they're getting ready to go to sleep sometimes. I don't know if they're trying to readjust the bedding to be comfortable or what they're doing exactly, but it's harmless. If it looks like a problem - if she's chewing it up, for example - then you should take it away, but otherwise let her have fun. It could be the fleeciness of it that is like a toy.
    • Gold Top Dog

    Yep, Coke "digs" his beds too before he finally plops down to sleep.  We always laugh b/c one of his "beds" is just a thick blanket folded up and he will "dig" it until it's a total mess, instead of just lying down when it was nicely folded flat. 

    • Gold Top Dog
    It's not the same thing as when she's "fluffing" her blankets for bed. LOL She just scoots it around and around and shes hot and tired with her tongue hanging out...LOL. I hid it again tonite and she got really upset and sat by the door to the room it was in. You'd think i took away her best friend. =(
    • Gold Top Dog

     Emma does the same thing, and now Ena does it, too. They do have scent glands in their paws, so maybe they're claiming space? I think it's a pretty normal behavior....

    • Gold Top Dog
    jenn52
    I hid it again tonite and she got really upset and sat by the door to the room it was in. You'd think i took away her best friend. =(
    Well, you did take away her best friend. Sounds like Linus from "Peanuts" ;).
    • Gold Top Dog

    Max does the same thing.  He digs around on the blanket, then spins around in circles two or three times and then he plops down to go to sleep.

    Joyce

    • Gold Top Dog

    Willow does it also.  And, sometimes if she's just going to lay down on the carpet she will paw at the carpet to get it all comfie.  I'm not a huge fan of her pawing the carpets like that but she does it.

    • Gold Top Dog

     How old is she and is she spayed?

    • Gold Top Dog

    If shes not hurting anything, give it back.