Our whiny dog

December 25, 2005 8:27 AM

We gave our dogs a couple of rawhide bones for Christmas. The girl dog (chow/ lab mix supposedly) has gnawed it down to a nub and carries it around in her mouth room to room crying and whining, basically, pacing our small house.

I think she wants to carry it outside possibly, but that is out of the question (it is really rainy). She has also done this in the past with a squeaky sandwich toy (Sammich). In that case we thought she thought it was her puppy because she would lay it between her paws and lick it and when it squeaked she would talk back to it and also she would take it from room to room (and to bed at night). This new rawhide couldn't have the same attachment. Right now, she has started chewing on it again. She has never had a litter and I am not sure if she had ever gone into heat before being spayed. Any idea what she it doing??? Any similar stories?

posted by TheLibrarian to pets & animals (12 comments total)

our dog did the same with any rawhide treat -- until we let her outside to bury it. Then she'd come inside for while and later whine until we let her go outside to dig it up and bring it in. Lots of bloody noses ensued (she dug so intently), so we finally stopped giving her those types of chews.
posted by mdiskin at 8:33 AM on December 25, 2005

I don't know why your dog is whining but I always understood that those rawhide bones were a really bad idea. They stink when wet, the smaller pieces are a choking hazard, and swallowed parts can be bad for the intestines. Check with your vet.

I would recommend getting your dog real bones. They're cheap (often free) from any butcher. You want cow bones. When I can't get to my butcher, I just buy soup bones from the grocery store. They're about 50 cents each and have marrow in them, which is good for your dog. They don't stink nearly as much as rawhide.
posted by dobbs at 8:39 AM on December 25, 2005

Could be she's guarding it. Last time I gave my dog a pig ear, she buried it in a pile of laundry. She'll also bury her full food bowl by nosing a towel over it, then eat a few bits of kibble at a time through a strategic flap of cloth. (For what it's worth, she's the only dog I've owned who does this -- and the only one who isn't a shelter dog. Weird.)

When my dog is prancing and yodeling and showing off a toy, that means she's trying to get me to play with her. "Look at this awesome thing I have! And it's mine. Mine mine mine. All mine. I know you want it but you can't have it because it's MINE." So I take it from her, throw it, she goes crazy trying to get it back, all is well.

By the way, you want to watch the rawhide consumption.. too much of it can congeal into a solid blob in the dog's belly and cause all manner of gastric problems.
posted by cmyk at 8:46 AM on December 25, 2005

We gave our dogs rawhide bones for Christmas because it is not something they usually have AND I knew we would be around during their consumption. Thanks for the concern about those, however , I am mainly just interested in her behavior at this point.
posted by TheLibrarian at 9:00 AM on December 25, 2005

A few years ago we gave our pug a toy that he really enjoyed. Eventually it because teh nasty and we tossed it out. My wife found another one this season and we gave it to him last night. He freaked out when he saw it, ran around with it in his mouth, and then eventually began exhibiting the same behavior you describe. It seemed to us he was looking for a great spot to enjoy the toy, but his favorite spots in the room were filled with gear that we're packing for a trip. I cleared a spot, he sat down and was content.
posted by ArcAm at 9:09 AM on December 25, 2005

Our Shiba does the same thing with "Greenies". I've always heard that they are trying to find a place to hide it. She will walk all over the house until finally deciding she wants to break down and eat it.
posted by stew560 at 9:55 AM on December 25, 2005

I've always heard Greenies are bad for pets, but lately theres been more and more proof that they really are.
posted by phox at 10:14 AM on December 25, 2005

My dog won't chew raw hide, but she does carry it around and take it outside. She hides it behind the furniture and in corners. If someone watches her hide it or she sees someone notice it, she takes it and hides it somewhere else. If we let her take it outside, she buries it. Again, if she notices someone watching her bury it, she digs it up and reburies it somewhere else. Every now and then we find a rawhide bone behind the couch or in the garden. She promptly rehides it until she's sure we don't know where it is.

When my dog is prancing and yodeling and showing off a toy, that means she's trying to get me to play with her. "Look at this awesome thing I have! And it's mine. Mine mine mine. All mine. I know you want it but you can't have it because it's MINE." So I take it from her, throw it, she goes crazy trying to get it back, all is well.

She does this, too. But not with rawhide.
posted by duck at 10:42 AM on December 25, 2005

Our dog does a similar thing with Dr. Dentals. I think she's looking for a prime spot to enjoy it like ArcAm describes. And her favorite spot is outside if it's sunny and dry.

As for the safety of rawhide, you should get the biggest your dog can chew. And it really depends on the dog. Our dog gnaws on hers so we don't have a problem. Also the ones we get don't really smell.

Almost everything I've seen on Greenies, either fails to describe the breed/size of the dog and the size of the Greenie given, or the dog involved is small or toy breed and/or the Greenie given it too small for the dog. Again, you should give your dog the largest size it can handle. We actually give our dog Dr. Dentals because that's what Costco carries and we haven't had any problems.
posted by lobakgo at 11:31 AM on December 25, 2005

My dog gets OBSESSED with rawhides. It's insane.

Yeah for the record, my aunt's dog puked all over my bed the morning after she devoured the greenie I gave her. Someone told me it's because they have a high wax content.
posted by radioamy at 1:59 PM on December 25, 2005

I'm echoing the other comments about the dog wanting to burry it. We have a puggle, and whenever we give her a lasting treat such as a rawhide, she does the same thing. She too whimpers and cries and darts about the house with it. She is simply looking for a place to bury it. She's done it indoors, though. In laundry baskets and comforters and the like. I assume your dog only wants to bury her treat.
posted by viachicago at 4:23 PM on December 25, 2005

my dog does the same exact thing. He wants to bury that mofo, can't fight the instinct.
posted by stevejensen at 11:13 PM on December 25, 2005