Why does my dog's fur raise on her back when I am playing with her?

Question

We can be playing the chase me game or wrestling, but in either case she is wagging her tail and having fun. Does your dog do this? I have a black lab about one year old.

Answer 1

Hackles go up when the dog is aroused. It's most often associated with more aggressive arousal, but it can also be just out of plain old excitement. You have to look at it along with the whole picture of what else the dog is saying.

Something really important to note here is that you say that her "tail is wagging and she's having fun". Tail wagging is probably the most commonly misconstrued communication that dogs give. Most people think of tail wagging as meaning a dog is happy, when in fact a dog's tail will wag in lots of circumstances, including when they are agitated or uncomfortable -- even right before they bite. This kind of miscommunication is often why people say that a dog "bit without any warning!" Dogs usually give lots and lots of warning... it's just that humans don't tend to pick up on it.

Naturally, we can't tell through the computer whether your dog is indeed having fun. If she's doing a lot of play bows, or if her ears are forward or relaxed backward, she's probably having fun. If she's stiff and staring quite a bit of the time, or if her ears are stiff or pulled back, she's probably not having so much fun. It's still hard to say without seeing all the pieces together. My dogs growl intensely when they're having the best fun of all, and I'm sure that strangers passing by my house might think that someone is getting killed in my yard, but they make a distinctly different growl (it's deeper) when they are serious than when they are playing. It does come down to knowing as much about "dog language" as you can and about knowing your dog.

Answer 2

Calm down the rough play a little bit. The raised hackles as it's called is what a dog does when he/she is trying to make themselves look bigger and more imposing to an advisary. It's a defence reaction. And is a sign of unsurity. When she does this she is hoping that she will appear more threatening and intimidateting in the hopes that what ever it is that she is trying to ward off will go away. The wagging of the tail is also not always a sign that a dog is being friendly. When a dog is wagging their tail it's is a sign of excitment. This could mean a few different thing. I.e Happy to see you, wants to play with favorite toy, and even excited aggression. I have been training police k9's for12 yrs for street patrol and narcotics detection. And let me tell you. When we are about to deploy one of our dogs in a attack situation their tails are going a million miles an hour because they are excited that they are about to get to go after someone. Now don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that your dog is going to turn and attack you if you play with her. All I'm saying is that the when her hackles come up it's a sign that she is confused a little because you are playing kinda rough and I don;t think she is sure of your intentions. My best advise that I can give to you along with anyone else out there that may have a dog that does this is when you two are playing try not to get to rough with her. And if you see her hackles come up like that slow it down and call her to you and immediatly give her gental strokes and tell her "Good girl" so that she will calm down and see that it's ok and that your not trying to harm her in any way. Also try other types of play like playing ball or catch the frizbee because it helps build bonds between you and her. If for some reason she ever does try to aggresivly bite you or tries to show serious aggression towards you DO NOT!! back away or try to run because to a dog this show fear and she will go into a prey state of mind. Because even though dogs have been domesticated for 1000's of years you must remember that they are all derived from the wolf. And reguardless of breed are all the same species with the same natural preditory instincts. Stand your ground and do what is called an "Alpha Roll". Which is you grab her by the side scruff of the neck and without hurting her force her to the ground on her side. To dogs this is like a bite and is what an "Alpha Pack" leader will do when another member of the pack does something that is not considered acceptible behavior or has over stepped their bounds within the pack. Once you have done the Alpha Roll hold her to the ground until she has submitted. How you will know this is her body will go limp and she will relax and maybe even submissively pee a little. Don't worry it's not being cruel or mean to do this to your dog to teach them their place within your pack. Because they are instinctively a pack oriented animal and the alpha roll is something that they instinctively understand. Once she has relaxed and submitted to you start to stroke and pet her calmly and in a soft tone tell her "Good Girl" and let her get back to her feet continuing to stroke and pet her. This is the possitive re-enforcment part of the exercise and is seen by her as a reward for show submission to you as the dominant member of the pack. These few suggestions that I have given you is how we use the dogs natural instincts to teach them proper behavior.

Answer 3

Your dog's hair raising on the back is typically called "hackling" and is scientifically known as piloerection.

The simple definition of piloerection is "erection of the hair on the skin."

Piloerection is an involuntary reaction, and can be triggered in a canine due to a variety of stimuli. I can't stress enough, hackling by no means or in no way insinuates aggression or a dominant dog. Dogs will hackle for any number of reasons, including pure excitement, which may well be what your dog is feeling.

It is impossible for me to decipher exactly what sensation is causing your dog's piloerection, but don't rule out dominance or fear/anxiety. Depending on your dog's level of confidence and her social (dominance) drives, your dog may be attempting to express dominance through your games. Both wrestling and "chase me" are games played by dogs within a pack, and both are dominance inducing games. If your dog is laid-back and easygoing, she may be having fun, but simultaneously feel overly anxious or slightly fearful of you, depending on your body language and presentation.

Regardless of the cause, keep in mind that hackling is just as common in your dog as it is to a human (hair on the back of the neck) and can be caused by nearly anything.

Answer 4

My Chi's hair stands up when she's had enough of the Jack Russell Terrier chasing and playing with her. At first she'll play, but then when she's had enough she turns into a werewolf as if to say NO! and exert herself.

Of course two seconds later she's chasing the JRT... I think it's just a way of saying you're playing a bit too rough.

Answer 5

The only time the hair on the spine stands up is when the dog feels threatened or about to attack. You may be playing in a way that the dog feels you are a threat! I would be alittle more cautious when playing with the dog. My dog never does that when he plays, only when he sees a strange dog, or something threatens him. If I were you I wouldnt take it lightly!

Answer 6

Thats usually a sign of anger.

Answer 7

A sig of aggression. Most likely she's an Alpha female.

Answer 8

Are you putting her paws into a socket? (JUST KIDDING). Playing on the carpet and getting electric static? Pulling our legs? Ever think of taking her on the David Letterman Show??

Write this extraordinary question down and ask the vet next visit.

Answer 9

IDK.Maybe she has the feeling that she like it and maybe it tickels so her furrises.

Answer 10

i don't know why, but my dog does it too