Stop the Bites:Why Does My Dog Bite My Other Dogs Ears?
Okay, so my dogs, they're usually the best of friends, right? But lately, Max, my golden retriever, has been obsessed with biting my other dog, Bella's ears. Bella, a sweet little beagle, she just takes it, but I was getting seriously worried. Why was he doing this?
First, I watched them closely. I mean, really watched them. I paid attention to when it happened, what they were doing before, and how Bella reacted. It wasn't all the time, which was a clue.
Observation Time
- It mostly happened during playtime.
- Max seemed to get extra excited, almost hyper.
- Bella, bless her heart, just kind of whimpered and stayed put.
So, playtime seemed to be the trigger. My next step was to try and interrupt the behavior. Every time I saw Max getting that glint in his eye, the one that said, "I'm about to chomp on some ears," I stepped in.
I used a firm "No!" and redirected his attention. I grabbed a toy, started a game of fetch, or just called him over for some pets. Anything to get his mind off Bella's ears.
This wasn't a one-time fix, obviously. I had to be consistent. Every. Single. Time. It was tiring, I'm not gonna lie. But I started to see a difference. Max was slowly learning that ear-biting meant playtime was over.
I also started working on some basic obedience training with Max. Just simple stuff like "sit," "stay," and "leave it." This helped him focus a bit more and listen to me, even when he was excited.
It's still a work in progress, to be honest. Max still gets the urge sometimes, but it's happening way less often. And now, Bella seems a little less anxious during playtime, which is a huge win. I felt so relieved I was getting somewhere.!
Basically, I figured out that for my dogs, it was all about excitement and a lack of clear boundaries. By being observant, consistent, and putting in a little training time, I was able to start changing the behavior. It's not perfect, but it's definitely getting better! And I'm super proud of how far we've come.
