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[john_proctor]

Yeah, I think I sorta even talked myself into your point by the end of my last post.

I'd say it's probably most fair to say that I don't encourage chewing so much as I keep something around (a nylabone, in my case) that they're allowed to chew on. 

And, like I said (wrote), 8 times out of 10 when they get it, they're using it to play tag or keep away.

Though the brittany does like to chew sticks in the yard.

[infopri]

Big Dog's prior owners had the crazy belief that she had to live outdoors (not all dogs, just her because she's so big and has a thick coat that they didn't bother to groom).  IMO, this was cruelty on several levels, not the least of which is that we live in a brutal winter climate, with 150" to 200" of snow a season and long stretches of subzero temperatures.  Another aspect was that Big Dog was bored and lonely and had no toys, so she spent a lot of time chewing on sticks and rocks.  By the time I adopted her at age four, her molars were seriously worn down.  (She was also 40 pounds overweight from all the treats they gave her, to compensate for keeping her outside.)  I've tried giving her toys (of all kinds), but even now, five years later, she has no idea what to do with them and/or no interest in them.  And if I don't watch her, she'll still chew sticks and rocks when she's outside.  (But at least her weight is now where it should be.)

[msparticularity]

The Poodle was a rescue, and he has no clue what to do with toys, either. He does play with us and with the cats, but mostly he just wants to play chase and roll around on the bed together. Our littlest cat, however, loves all the toys that are intended for him. She "captures" them and drags them off to her lair under our bed.

Also due to at least partly to his former stray status and associated food insecurity, the Poodle spent his first couple of years with us creating caches of his dry food--generally in our bed, under his blanket. He would also offer to share them with me periodically, again reflecting his sense that the pack eats together and I get the first pick since I'm the alpha. :)

He no longer gets any dry food at all now, since his pancreatitis led to CRF. However, he does get all of his chicken and sweet potatoes out of his bowl and spread them around, before eating them in some order known only to him. This week he's been eating most of the chicken first, after several weeks of going for the sweet potatoes in a big way. Maybe he just likes variety?

[biomancer]

Quite a few good points have been brought up here, so rather than add any analysis I'll just add my story.

Biopuppy gets rawhides or similar chewable treats when I need her to let me get work done uninterrupted for more than a couple hours (so, this happens around once a month).  With small chewable treats (like pizzle sticks) she'll start chewing right away.  However, she'll take the rawhide on a "tour" of the house - she'll take it into every room, and often will carry it around for a full day before she starts chewing on it.  I don't give her Nylabones or other synthetic chew-toys because she'll bite off pieces and swallow them.  Usually they pass through without incident, but sometimes she throws up the pieces, and I don't want any serious repercussions. My SIL the vet approves of the occasional rawhide and the occasional filled bones for Biopuppy since she bites a bit too hard for the synthetic treats.

One of Biopuppy's stranger habits seems to be a monkey-see-monkey-do sort of thing.  I had her in the backyard with me when I was pruning trees, and she watched me remove branches and suckers and break them into smaller pieces that would fit in the mulch container.  Any branch that lands in the yard, she'll pick up and chew on enough to break it into similar-sized pieces, which she'll then leave in a pile for me.

Biopuppy also will pick up a mouthful of food from her bowl, put it on the floor, and eat it one piece at a time.  SIL says that's quite common behavior in shepherds (Biopup is a shepherd-beagle mix).

[scheherazade]

Biopuppy also will pick up a mouthful of food from her bowl, put it on the floor, and eat it one piece at a time.  SIL says that's quite common behavior in shepherds (Biopup is a shepherd-beagle mix).

My husky does this as well sometimes.

[bookishone]

I have never heard of the finicky mouthful-sorting technique that some of you are describing in your dogs! I would love to see that. My lab has a somewhat similar finicky-ness, though, when he's fetching the ball. We'll be fetching along just fine when suddenly, on one of the throws, though I can't see that anything is different, he'll suddenly stop on his way back (usually), pause, and then trot WAAAAAY around an imaginary spot in a big half-circle to pad his way back to me. Or he'll run up to the ball, lunge at it, pause, pull away, sniff at it doubtfully, and then either leave it there or pick it up gingerly between the tips of his teeth to return to me. But if I throw it again, he'll run right after it. Weird. It's almost like he's superstitious about certain spots in the yard or something. For a while I had a theory that if the ball had rolled in something nasty, this would account for the behavior, but I never could find anything different about the Forbidden Zone or the Forbidden Ball.

[mountainguy]

[bump]

Volunteering at the animal shelter earlier today, I noticed that several different dogs engage in some of the same behaviors while on walks. I assume these are normal dog behaviors:

• Kicking pebbles everywhere with their hind legs, sometimes after peeing, sometimes not.
• Chewing on weeds and then spitting them out.
• Putting their two front paws in their water dish

Does anyone care to translate? I assume that partially climbing into the water dish means either "I'm warm" or "I want a better reach," but the other two behaviors have me completely baffled.

[scampster]

• Kicking pebbles everywhere with their hind legs, sometimes after peeing, sometimes not.

I thought our dog did this to spread his scent around after peeing. Seeing as he is a bichon and never actually generates enough pee to mark all that he would like, I just thought this was his way of being efficient.

• Chewing on weeds and then spitting them out.

I think Lucky does this when he is sick...

[thundering_m]

Our dog is a sociable eater. He will NOT eat anything unless he has company. If he has been alone for a couple hours, he is delighted to see us but quickly grabs a snack from his bowl of dry kibble and carries it in to wherever we are.

He has some doggie geometry gene that allows him to calculate the precise epicenter of all the beating hearts in the house, and there he sits, monitoring the wellbeing of all who reside in his care.

He never hides food, is indifferent to most toys and all chews. His people are his life.

But you'd think he might eat something if he were hungry.

[psychdiva]

Putting their two front paws in their water dish

Were they labs or lab-mixes? I think that might be a retriever breed kind of thing.

[gennimom]

• Kicking pebbles everywhere with their hind legs, sometimes after peeing, sometimes not.

My dog does this. He'll run around doing his business in various locations before finally doing his "moonwalk" imitation. Dirt/grass/pebbles go everywhere. I've always interpreted it in his case as meaning he was finally completely finished doing his business for the time being.

[mountainguy]

Psychdiva: yes! It was a lab-mastiff mix and another dog that I'd guess was a retriever with some chow in his bloodline.

[psychdiva]

Beloved Young Dog likes to lean against us with the top of his head, sighing deeply and with great contentment. It seems like the canine equivalent of a long, tight hug. Does anyone else's dog do this? What does it mean?

[mountainguy]

Beloved Young Dog likes to lean against us with the top of his head, sighing deeply and with great contentment. It seems like the canine equivalent of a long, tight hug. Does anyone else's dog do this? What does it mean?

My friend's Swiss mountain dog likes to do this as well. I don't know for sure what it means, but I take it to be an expression of loyalty.

[psychdiva]

Psychdiva: yes! It was a lab-mastiff mix and another dog that I'd guess was a retriever with some chow in his bloodline.

I'm guessing that it may be a fixed action pattern induced by proximity to water. I've never seen a non-retriever do it and almost all of the retrievers I know start scrabbling like that when close to even an inch of water.