Why do dogs chase their tail?

Question

Years ago I heard dogs chase their tails whenever they are lonely.

But could this be the reason? And if this is not the reason, what are the real reasons why dogs chase their tales?

Answer 1

There are several reasons why dogs chase their tails. Below are some of the most common reasons why this strange behavior occurs in dogs:

1. Boredom. Most times, dogs chase their tails as a sign of boredom; it is their way of having fun and dissipating some energy. This is mostly common in puppies, which may not really be aware of the fact that their tails are parts of their natural body makeup, but see them as toys. Generally, this type of play becomes less common as the dogs grow older.
2. Excessive energy. One of the reasons often touted for tail chasing in dogs is boredom, but on proper assessment, it is lack of adequate physical activities rather than boredom that causes this behavior in dogs. Whenever your dog needs some aerobic exercises, the dog might choose to engage in some tail chasing to release some energy. Once activity levels increase, this behavior ceases automatically.
3. Instinct. Back in the days, dogs were mostly pack animals that depended on their instincts for their livelihood, and the prey drive was among such instincts. The inborn desire of dogs is to pursue any smaller creature, capture it, kill and eat as food. One theory stipulates that every dog that chases its tail acts based on this inborn instinct, and attempts to catch its tail just like it would catch any smaller creature for food.
4. Attention. Dogs are very special animals no doubt, and they love nothing more than to be shown much love, attention and affection by their owners. Dogs are more likely to chase their tails if they believe it will attract their master's attention. Sometimes, even a reprimand for the dog can act as a welcome positive reinforcement.
5. Stress. Dogs are likely to use whirling as a distraction mechanism to focus on something else other than stress or other negative experiences. Once this is the case, it might begin in just a response to a particular thing and spread to some other things, making it a more general coping technique.
6. Injury. If your dog was accidently slammed in a door and received an injury in the tail, the dog will often attempt to ease the pain and discomfort from the injury by engaging in tail chasing. Other superficial conditions such as parasite bites or skin irritation can also cause this behavior in dogs.
7. Medical causes. Certain neurological conditions can make a dog chase or chase his or her tail. Though rare, a number of tail chasing cases in dogs have been linked to epilepsy, and has been described as some kind of seizure-related symptom.

Answer 2

I have a 14 month old golden Doodle named My Boy. He gets lots of exercises, but he still engages in the tail chasing ritual once in a while. The tail chasing mostly occurs whenever I dish out instructions to the dog or after a training session with the Master Trainer.

Answer 3

Why do dogs chase their tail? Dogs chase their tails because they can chase it. They do it because dogs will always be dogs and they love to play. If they chase their tales with compulsion, it could be due to their loneliness, boredom and frustration, but mostly because they just enjoy doing it.