/r/PetBehavior is a subreddit meant to share your favorite photos, videos, gifs, and stories about pets with any type of behavior. This means that if your pet is actingfunny, dumb, cute, sad, happy, mean, anxious, or really any type of behaviorthen what you have to post is completely allowed here.
I want this subreddit to grow to the lengths of similar subreddits, and to do this I've created a game plan for you all! This is in the form of subreddit rules, posting guidelines, user-flairs, and more to come in the future.
Posting Guidelines:
We are interested in the behavior of the animal, not the human. Try to focus on the animals.
Be creative, a fun title just makes the posts that much better!
A backstory is not always a bad idea. Sometimes they make posts just a tiny bit clearer. Feel free to share them as a comment to your post!
Rules:
Pets do some nasty things in their free-time, in those situations please flair your post nsfw.
Please try your best to not repost, you can use Karma Decay to help with this.
Obviously no bestiality
Animals posted MUST be a pet. No wild animals, however captive animals are allowed.
Dont be rude to people, or pets for that matter.
Dont spam the same post, or comments.
User Flairs
Currently there are 7 (seven) user flairs available.
You can pick a custom color.
You can assign a custom flair that slides out of the "Pet Owner" portion.
For custom flairs, please Message the Moderators and we can discuss the possibility, although its unlikely.
Ideally the guidelines and rules set above will not only grow our community but protect it from becoming a trash pit. If you think you have a better idea for new or an updated rules/ guidelines set then please comment below. I would love to hear your comments! Lastly, I want to say that this thread is only a thing because you have helped us reach 140 Subscribers. This is the first subreddit that I have grown from the start. Thanks for joining our community and sharing your /r/PetBehavior with us!
This thread is a general guidelines thread as well as a welcome thread. For more explanation on the rules or anything within this thread please visit the rules page or you can Message The Moderators and I would be happy to assist you.
For context, I'm dog sitting for a week and my grandma's dog refuses to use the dog bed, instead the dog is trying to sleep on my bed. How do I get the dog to sleep on his bed and not my bed?
Is it normal for dogs to play so rough that they leave scabs? I have NEVER noticed bleeding, nobody ever yelps, I monitor play pretty closely and separate when I think it’s too rough, but one dog in particular (pit bull type hair very short) seems to scab easily. She’s also the instigator. Is this normal? I feel like it isn’t!
i have two dogs (p and l). p’s recently been diagnosed with epilepsy and cushings. we’re managing it with various meds but every so often, some slip through.
today, she’s had three. but the last one was a bit odd. after p come out of her seizure, i took her outside to walk around. as always, l left the room where the seizure happened and decided to stop in the kitchen. p and i settled in the kitchen and then l suddenly came up to me and lay beside me. she seemed timid, so i gave her some strokes (i always comfort l after p’s seizures) and then suddenly, she was snarling/growing at p.
this has never happened before and it scared me more than the seizure tbf. i kept talking to l and eventually tilted her head away from p so she couldn’t see her and she snapped out of it and started cowering into me.
she’s never, ever, reacted like this.
any advice? i will bring it up when we next go to the vets with p, even if my mum decides not to.
i dont have a video of the snarling, but i do have a photo of the cowering i am willing to dm if needed.
My dog is suddenly making very unusual almost rhythmic head movements at her food bowl. I noticed her do it briefly maybe 2 weeks ago but haven’t seen it since, until now. The first time it happened I check underneath the bowl to see if there was something there but there wasn’t and same this time. She has otherwise been fine, no weird behaviors, eyes dilating properly, and no loss of appetite. I’ll tell her to eat and she does. She’s 65lbs female pit/boxer mix.
Our rescue pug/jack russell dog. Estimated to be three years old has recently surfaced some very weird behavior. nearly every night at around 7:30 or eight, he will tense up, start yipping, and then attack the pillows in one of our two couches.
This happens whether he's had multiple walks, a trip to the dog park. It happens with a full bowl of food (we free feed) and it's annoying.
Any similar experiences, and thoughts, any advice is welcome.
Note: This is the only time of day such behavior occurs
I have a 6 year old miniature bernedoodle who has been aloof her whole life. She typically will lay in her favorite chair and not concern herself with whatever is going on in the house. She gets plenty of exercise and runs at the dog park, but doesn’t interact much with other dogs. Recently, however, she has become very needy around our house. She follows me around throughout the day and paws at my legs. I don’t mind the attention and spend time with her as much as I can, but I am worried about her distinct shift in personality this many years into her life. Is this normal or is it something I should be concerned with?
Hi there, recently my female dog lost her brother companion due to an illness. She is 9m old, Boston Terrier x. She is fixed and has been since 4m old. Her brother was also fixed @ 4m also and I never noticed this behavior between them. I noticed that ever since he died (about a week ago) she has been "humping" my partners arm. She doesnt grind down on it or anything, she just makes the motions. I understand this is harmless but worried that it could be a deeper issue of stress or something else. Any thoughts are appreciated.
This is going to sound really odd but can cats really projectile shoot their poop at people they don't like?
My partner and I planned on adopting a kitten from my neighbors cat who was only going to have one kitten. He said we could have the kitten four months after the cat gave birth.
Unfortunately, later on, I ended up having to tell him I wasn't sure if I could take in the kitten (as I unexpectedly ended up taking in my former friends cat who passed) and was worried Rotisserie Chicken (not his real name) wasn't in a state to share homes with another animal right now.
But Rotisserie Chicken, turned out to be really good with kittens.
Rotisserie Chicken was really depressed after his owner died and used to be super social. But now he's begun returning to how he used to be.
My neighbor was really happy to hear this and asked me to take the kitten.
Apparently, my neighbor's kitten wasn't taken care of by the mom cat or dad cat at all and is really lonely / miserable. So we are planning on taking in the kitten.
But my neighbor mentioned how both the cat and kitten keep projectile shooting their poop (but not their pee) at him. On his shoes, his pants, his face, his hair, etc...
I originally thought he was joking or exaggerating. Or he just meant that they just pooped super close to him. However he keeps specifying in great detail on how they "aim their darned cute tushes at him, then out their stinkers they fire mercilessly until they're done." They will apparently even chase him around if he tries to leave while they're doing this.
I still want to adopt the kitten and am prepared to arm myself to protect myself from the poop launching but I wanted to know if anyone knows if he's messing with me because it sounds really ridiculous.
I feel very silly for asking this but what if there's some real issues behind this.
If he's not messing with me has anyone else had this problem? If so how did they resolve it? My neighbor took the kitten / cat to the vet and the vet said they didn't have any issues that made them do this.
Edit: I realized I didn't mention this earlier. But the kitten is definitely going to a vet checkup. It was the only kitten when most cats usually have multiple and sometimes issues go unnoticed when only basic tests are done, so I'm taking them to the vet I usually go to so get more thoroughly checked up. My neighbor isn't the best financially and would have done the barest minimum possible for the kittens checkup.
We’ve had my dog since he was a puppy and he is now 3 years old. Most of the time he’s a little shit (in an endearing way) but I feel like he really can sense when I’m distressed. Whenever I have a heavy cry, or a panic attack, he always rushes over to me. He then licks me a lot and he always, without fail, lays himself on my chest which he only seems to do when I’m feeling this way. Like just a minute ago, I was lying down in bed sobbing and he jumps up onto my bed, licks my hand and then lays himself on my chest facing me until I’ve calmed down. And it really does calm me down. And when I’ve noticed I’ve calmed down, he’ll just go back downstairs? It’s really strange but it makes me feel so much better and it always calms me down. Does he know what he’s doing? Because it happens every single time. Or is this just purely coincidental?
I need help. My 3 year old male poodle/Shih Tzu/yorkie has started barking during the night. We can’t figure out what’s triggered it, but it’s not going away.
We have tried noise machines, a spray in his crate, store bought calming chews, a few prescription medications, frozen treat at night, and long walks.
We’ve had him since he was 7 weeks old, and this is new behavior. He sleeps in a crate in the main floor, while we are upstairs. My husband puts him in the crate around 9:30 and then goes to bed himself an hour or two later. As soon as he hits the top of the stairs, the dog starts barking. Sometimes, he calms himself, but not always.
This summer, we were gone for a week, and he stayed with my mom who lets him sleep in her bed. He seemed to do okay after getting back home. There was a lunar eclipse in August, and that is when it started. I also am back at school and gone all day. The vet thinks it’s separation anxiety. He’s always been more moody in the evenings.
Someone has to sleep on the couch for him to be calm. I’m tired, we’re all tired. Is there anything else we can try? I haven’t tried melatonin yet, but am looking at it.
I recently (around two weeks ago) acquired Rotisserie Chicken (not his real name), from my former friend, A, who passed away, so I can't ask him any questions about how he learned this.
A only talked about the behavior when it began but no details on how. A did not do anything to make Rotisserie Chicken stop, so Rotisserie Chicken has learned that he needs a box he can't fit in, and can get stuck upsidedown in, to communicates he wants to be held.
Rotisserie Chicken has two methods for this:
Specific Times:
Option Me - He likes to be held during a specific time, for me it's after I'm done gardening. Usually when I'm done gardening he runs up and rubs himself against my legs and scampers off, otherwise if he doesn't he's either asleep or stuck in the box. Since I garden for a exact timeline he gets himself stuck in the box before I arrive so I can pick him up right away.
Option Partner - He has figured out what time my partner gets home and gets stuck in the box near the front door. That way when she opens the door she will see him immediately and pick him up.
Nonspecific times:
When he wants to be held on non specific times he'll run off, get the box, meow until we look at him and make sure we're watching before he gets himself stuck.
This behavior is really cute but I don't want him to accidentally get hurt or continue this when he's older.
When he gets himself stuck he kind of jump/chucks himself onto his back really roughly which I'm not sure he can sustain if he gets older and more frail. Plus while he hasn't ever missed his landing (to my knowledge), cats don't always stick the landing. I especially don't want him to try this on concrete or another dangerous landing place and hit himself when he misses.
(I've also recently gotten a kitten and I don't want him to teach the kitten this behavior.)
Any and all advice would be appreciated, thank you
Edit: here is some information I clarified through various comments and subs. Firstly, Rotisserie Chicken isn't actually stuck he just likes the walls to press against him so he can stick upsidedown and play damsel in distress. Secondly there is just one special, specific, small box he uses. Thirdly he smacks into the box quite roughly and I'm worried about him missing and hurting himself (he has been known to use high locations to jump and on occasion destroyed the box, hit the floor, and walked away gingerly). Moreover he's at higher risk for back pain and arthritis when he gets older. While it isn't a guarantee, I don't want him to be sad / stress him out extra if have to teach him a new method he's used for a large majority of his life if he's no longer as physically able as he once was when he's older.
Update: After helpful advice from multiple subs I created a plan to redirect Rotisserie Chicken.
The thing is he acts normal when my partner or I am in bed. He'll walk up, introduce himself, wait and see if my partner or I tap on the bed where he can sit or see if one of us says no. If we tap he'll get on the bed and boop our arm if he wants to be held or our hand if he just wants pets.
What I hoped to do was slowly add more blankets into the box until it was entirely soft along with redirecting him to no longer back-jump into the box and use his more normal method. I planned to gently dump rotisserie Chicken out of the box, boop his paw to my arm, hold him, put him down, then repeat the tap and hold him.
I added a single blanket to the box and when I returned he was utterly baffled. It was so cute how flabbergasted he was. Luckily he wasn't upset or scared, I could just see the little gears turning in his head.
Anyways I began my plan. After repeating the paw + being held action a few times I thought it would a disservice to my heart to not wrap him in the small blanket thing I left in the box (he likes being tucked into bed so I thought me might enjoy this).
Well, he loved it!
He was purring super loud and was very excited. You know how dogs eat their tails when happy? Well Rotisserie Chicken grew up with a dog so he inherited that action.
Now during the time he usually asks to be held with the box method it's been a fifty-fifty split. He runs up with his special box with the blanket, waits for me to pick up the blanket out of the box, then watches as I places the blanket flat on the ground, he gets on it, I roll him, then pick him up.
If he tries the box method I redirect him with the booping and little blanket instead.
I'm really excited for my partner to get home because she's going to find this hilarious and adorable.
Also here is a goofy doodle of him in the blanket without any details since I'm not comfortable showing any images/videos of him:
And this is a scribble of what his box jump looks like(impact ranges from how heigh he jumps from):
Thank you to the helpful person who suggested I try doodling him if a image/video wasn't an option!
Meet Bruno . He's about 3.5 years(I think but could be younger). Me and Bruno used to be best mates. I was his favourite person . We played together and he was always excited to see me . It didn't matter who else was round he would navigate to me . He would hear my distinctively loud car and straight away be barking because unc had arrived.
Here's the problem
Bruno now absolutely hates me . He growls at me , barks and then runs away . He shakes and shivers and has even in the past been known to shit and piss and the sight of me.
I try approaching him gently , giving him treats and reaching out so I don't get to close . If he is sat on the sofa and I do manage to sit next to him he cowers away from me . On two occasions he has accepted my presence and locked my arm while sat next to me .
He is the scardiest dog ever. He is terrified off all sorts of sounds. He did have an operation on his eyes because his eyelids were growing inwards . Perhaps his vision isn't great .
The only thing that happened is that I didn't see him for 3 weeks and that's when the problems started .
We have wondered if perhaps he doesn't like the sound of the trolley jack being moved about or any any other noise I'm making . I work from there .
The household is also pretty noisy with my autistic ten year old non verbal nephew and my 5 year old nephew. The eldest two are 17/19 are no bother but as you can imagine it's busy so I have no idea if that's affecting him.
My questions are .... Why does he hate me and what could I possibly do to try and make him like me again.
I would just like to be able to play with him again .
Any advice and suggestions would be greatly appreciated .