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Post by windowdog on Oct 20, 2008 14:54:20 GMT -5
So my pit has a new behavior that has come out in the last few weeks. She's begun hiding or burying toys. She only does this with her favorite toys and it isn't a MAJOR issue. It's just that it gets to the point where she has no toys left to play with somtimes.
I know where most of them are, and we try not to disturb them or she gets really stressed looking. She'll walk around the house with a bone over and over looking for somewhere to hide it, and if she sees you watching her she immediately changes location until she thinks you didn't notice where it went.
I know she had a pretty crappy life before ending up in a shelter but it's kind of sad seeing her get so stressed about where to hide her things. I just wish we could make her feel more at ease. I mean she already had a crate and we make a point of not taking things out of there, but apparently that doesn't help.
It's cute, but sad at the same time, any suggestions?
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Post by emilys on Oct 23, 2008 10:14:40 GMT -5
How about making a game out of finding one of the toys (especially if you actually know where it is)? Get excited and ask "where's your Kong? Run around with her and point to where it is... if she finds it, trade for a great treat and then give her the toy as well.
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Post by valliesong on Oct 23, 2008 16:27:11 GMT -5
Emily's approach sounds like a good try.
My parents' dog Daisy has done this occasionally since she was a puppy, but it never really seemed to stress her out. In fact, she thought it was a fun game when you would help her bury the toy. Then she would dig it up and play with it.
Roscoe does this differently. He doesn't bury his toys, but whenever he gets excited (like when someone comes home) he grabs one of his toys and dances and wiggles around, whining, until he calms down.
Just another quirky thing dogs do. I would be more worried about her stress levels than the actual game, so if you can find a way to make it fun and relaxing for her, that should solve the problem.
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Post by RealPitBull on Oct 24, 2008 7:55:56 GMT -5
Yeah, it is pretty normal for dogs to bury/hide stuff. I like the idea of Emily's game as well, maybe to help take the stress out of it for her, if you feel her behavior is at all detrimental.
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