April 19, 2011
Our 6 year old GSD has recently become fixated on her tail. She will bite and chew whenever she is alone. Do you have any suggestions?
Full Question:
Hello Mr. Frawley,If you have time, I would appreciate your guidance with regard to our GSD. Belle is 5 years old, in excellent health, obedience and personal protection trained, and a loyal pet. Behavior wise we have one problem. Over the past 4 months she has become fixated on her tail. We have vet bills for Keflex and powder for treatment, we use a command or the nicker collar to stop her biting her tail, but cannot watch every single minute. Long story made short, she bites her tail until it bleeds. The collar to keep her from reaching her tail is intolerable and she hates it. Too big for inside and she lives with us. Bandaging results in a determined effort to tear off the bandage. When she is with us there is no problem. When she is in the yard or the run (all fenced) or when she is alone in the home and we are gone, she is at the tail. She is a beautiful dog, came from champion stock, we have her well trained. We really love this dog, but the tail biting is not getting better. Your guidance would be appreciated. Thank you.
Respectfully,
Mary Ann
Ed's Answer:
Has anything changed for this dog in the last 4 months? This kind of obsessive compulsive behavior usually doesn’t just pop up out of the blue. It’s a sign of anxiety and frustration, and the dog vents and displaces the anxiety on one of their own body parts, most often the tail.
If she has never done this when left alone before the last 4 months then I would look into finding a holistic vet that practices classical homeopathy to treat the WHOLE dog, not just the tail chasing. Many times neurotic behavior is merely a symptom on a much deeper underlying problem. Vaccine damage is one of reasons for strange behaviors that pop up out of nowhere.
For information on vaccinations and the problems they cause please read our vaccinosis article.
I would also recommend these 2 books, Shock to the System and Vaccine Guide for Dogs & Cats.
For more information on natural health care and homeopathic treatment of your dogs (and cats) , I highly recommend Homeopathic Care for Cats & Dogs and Natural Health for Dogs and Cats.
For now, exercise her more so she can burn her excess energy and don’t put her in situations where you know she is going to damage herself.
If she has never done this when left alone before the last 4 months then I would look into finding a holistic vet that practices classical homeopathy to treat the WHOLE dog, not just the tail chasing. Many times neurotic behavior is merely a symptom on a much deeper underlying problem. Vaccine damage is one of reasons for strange behaviors that pop up out of nowhere.
For information on vaccinations and the problems they cause please read our vaccinosis article.
I would also recommend these 2 books, Shock to the System and Vaccine Guide for Dogs & Cats.
For more information on natural health care and homeopathic treatment of your dogs (and cats) , I highly recommend Homeopathic Care for Cats & Dogs and Natural Health for Dogs and Cats.
For now, exercise her more so she can burn her excess energy and don’t put her in situations where you know she is going to damage herself.
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