Repetitive behaviours, stereotypical behaviours, compulsive behaviours, or whatever you would like to refer to them as, can creep up on anyone. They are common in breeds that people refer to as "needing jobs" or dogs that have a predisposition to enjoying or working in patterns, and they generally do serve a purpose.
This post isn't to claim all scientific resources and knowledge of stereotypical behaviours, or to describe all possibilities that could lead to them, but it is to help the lay person or owner understand what to look for, and what to do if they find themself presented with their animal doing one.
Why do they come about?
Well there are lots of reasons for this. It can be entirely stress related, it can be a mixture of stress and genetics, it can be mostly genetics. A lot of the time these behaviours present themselves because the animal is using it as a coping strategy.
When we as people have big emotions, or when we can't get out of situations we find ourselves in, then we use certain things as coping mechanisms. Some people chew their fingernails, some people might resort to self harming, some people might walk and pace around their living room if they haven't left the house for a few days. Sometimes this is more like what we see in dogs. We see them trying to do something to alleviate the feeling they have.
These behaviours can be any number of things, they can be tail chasing, overgrooming (Licking, chewing or scratching themselves), it can be pacing in circles, excessively sniffing, or chasing/looking for lights or shadows. Any behaviour that is done in excess, or outside of their normal context.
For example: if a dog is sniffing, and they are sniffing a normal sniffy area, but then they sniff and sniff and sniff and sniff to the point that it doesn't feel normal....that's the "in excess" bit.
So to clarify, things can be done in the right context, but they can be done in the wrong way or too much!
A little bit of scratching an itch is fine, but scratching until you're sore or bleeding...maybe not.
Whether it's genetics or something a dog develops over time, this type of behavioural pattern or strategy needs to be addressed and as much as possible prevented from happening and dealing with as soon as possible.
So let's say you encounter your dog or animal doing something and you're not sure what to do? There isn't a sure fire way of approaching these things that will help or cure everything immediately. There are a lot of factors at play and a lot of things to do.
- Speak to a behaviourist. They may be able to help you find out whether this is a repetitive behaviour that we are dealing with, and how to best proceed. I would be really shocked if you spoke to a behaviourist about this and they didn't take it very seriously, and give you immediate triage advice.
- Try and stop the dog from encountering the context within which they will find themselves using the behaviour.
- e.g. my dog bites themselves when they are confined in a crate -- can we avoid putting them in a crate as a first point of management?
- e.g. my dog is looking for and chasing shadows and lights -- can we keep the environment as dark as possible and avoid this while we begin to address it with a professional.
- Finally it's important to speak to your vet. Let them know what is going on, what is happening to your animal and talk through their ability to assist or help in any scenario.
- Your vet may be able to discuss initial medications, because in reality medication is a normal thing to consider with a behaviour of this type.
- Your vet may be able to do that initial rule out examination. This would be a consultation where they might be able to have a good look and discussion with you about your animal to discern if there is a reason for the behaviour.
- e.g. wouldn't it be awful if we assumed something was a repetitive behaviour but in actual fact your dog was chewing their leg/hip because it's actually really sore.
- Or on the flip side, we know that pain or illness can exacerbate these things...is the dog doing to the pacing in circles because they are stressed because they don't feel well, for example.
There are loads of nuanced things to behaviour plans, so it would be wrong to go into this in detail, however, the above strategies should be a way to get the ball rolling towards helping your dog recover from these things.
Finally, if you need help with this, or know someone who is struggling, please don't hesitate to get in touch. These things are hard to live with, very lonely and extremely stressful. I'm here if anyone needs me.