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Grooming-chewing?

Behavioral Issues
  • ZenGrrrlZ

    My female, Zhara, likes to "chew" on Ziggy. She runs up to him and begin chewing, or nibbling, on his neck. These are very tiny, very fast movements and she's never biting or, from what I can tell, hurting him at all. He just sits calmly, basically ignoring her. She generally then licks his face a few times.

    I'm wondering if this is some type of grooming behavior … has anyone else seen this type of gentle "grooming-chewing" in their Basenji?

    Lori

    The Z-Pack: Zen and Ziggy

    In memory of Zoe and Zhara Baroo

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  • MayaM

    Maya does this all the time, to herself, the other dogs AND me! It doesnt seem to hurt her or the other dogs but she has pinched my skin a couple of times when she did it to me.. Naughty girl!

    My cats groom like this also though, i wonder if thats one of the reasons for the basenjis reputation of being cat like :)

    Jess

    http://www.silverbriar.co.uk

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  • T

    Amina is our most persistent 'nibbler.' We joked that she would have hairless puppies if she continually nibbled them the way she does all the other dogs. None of them seem to mind it; I agree, I think it's grooming.

    Terry

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  • renaultf1R

    I call it flea-ing - All of mine do it to each other.

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  • tanzaT

    @renaultf1:

    I call it flea-ing - All of mine do it to each other.

    LOL, we call it "de" flea-ing!! Franie does it to C-Me all the time and C-Me really likes it… she will stop what she is doing, even when chewing a really good bully stick!

    Pat Fragassi

    Tanza Basenjis

    www.tanzabasenjis.net

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  • MacPackM

    We call it 'flea-biting' and grooming. Some do it, others don't, no one seems to mind it. I would call it natural and affectionate!

    Anne in Tampa

    Chipley, Missy & Lucky

    Topper, Nicky & Eddie in the clouds

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  • S

    My girl Wheat does that to me when we are just getting settled down to bed.
    I think its a bit of love they do with their mouths…very gentle.

    Sharron Hurlbut

    BRAT, basenji rescue

    Evergreen basenji club

    Seattle Purebred Dog Rescue

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  • DebraDownSouthD

    Cara flea bites me a lot but omg, poor Leora, it's almost nonstop when she is home. One day she made her get under the covers, then said in a sad voice "now she's flea biting my thigh." LOL

    Debra

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    I know this is an old thread, but it seems to be what we are experiencing…so rather than start a new one, I thought building on an old one would be best. We adopted a brother/sister pair of 5 month old Bs. They do well with other dogs, rarely nip at other dogs (unless they are overly excited and the other dog is a little too friendly - nothing serious so far), but my goodness do they roughhouse with each other. They will start the B-500 while taking them for a walk, and wrestle and tackle, nibble, grab each other by the throat, ear, leg, etc. Sometimes there's noise, sometimes not, lots of legs flying everywhere as they wrestle each other to the ground. By what I've read so far using the search feature, this seems pretty normal B behavior. But occasionally we fear someone's going to call the police and tell them we have a dog fighting ring going! Luckily for us it's only with each other that they wrestle. Other dogs don't interest them except to prove they can run faster. So the $64,000 question is...should we try to train this out of them, or do we just need to learn to live with it - as long as they keep it to themselves and don't involve other dogs. Many thanks!