My Shih-tzu eats his own tail help!!?

Question

My dog "Itzy" eats his own tail. He has actually perfected the eating of his on hair on his tail. He holds it down with one paw and turns his back and then he licks and bites his own tail until its wet and ugly. His hair no longer is pretty and fluffy. It's stringy and ungly. He's a Shih-tzu and he messes up his look. I don't know what to do.I don't even know what maks him do it. He is almost 2 years old and has been doing it since he was a baby (pup). I don't know if it is soothing to him or what. But i'm frustrated because when he hits us with his tail its always wet and nasty. Help anyone?

I know its not fleas or allergies because its just his tail. I feel as though it's what he does as a habit. Like we bite our nails etc..

He does not it his actual tail but he pulls and licks the hair on his tail. This is just a detail for those who thought I was not "bothering" to take him to the vet. He is well cared for. He's just doing something that is questionalble.

Answer 1

it's a habit he needs to break. what you want to do is get one of those cones and some yuck spray. first spray the part he keeps attacking. make sure there are no cuts or open sores. spray. and see if he still goes for that spot. if he does, then put the cone on. this should help keep him away from that spot. hopefully in time, the tail will grow back to its fullness.

Answer 2

Hi... I bet that is a cute pup... I'd get the sweater, and if you have snow, clear a small area close to the house for her to go to the bathroom. While i know people opt for pee pads and dog litter, i find it turns a home into a doggie toilet. Meanwhile, your other dogs might get the idea it's ok to go in the house, as well as outside. I think all dogs are relatively easy to housebreak, unless they have anxiety or are fearful for some reason, then it's a bit more difficult. There will always be an accident from time to time during the process, as you know. As far as the advice you find on your journey through the internet, take what you feel is most sensible and what you think would work out for you. I have a friend with a shih tzu and she is a very good little dog, well adjusted. She likes kids; however, my friend has always taken her to the grandkids' houses and so she's known them all her life. They range in ages from 2 - 15 years old. She's comfortable enough. Any dog would benefit from puppy classes. As for your other dogs, let them know when they are overstepping their boundaries with the pup - clap and say NO , or do whatever it is you do to get their attention.... i'm sure you'll do a great job.

Answer 3

I once had an elderly lady for a friend. She had a wonderful little dog. A mix of some sort. She had the dog trained well and it behaved very well. Learn here https://tr.im/nuwH0

She kept an uncovered candy dish on her coffee table with candy in it. The dog was forbidden to eat the candy. When she was in the room observing the dog he did not even appear to notice the candy. One day while she was in her dinning room she happened to look in a mirror and could see her dog in the living room. He did not know he was being watched. For several minutes he was sitting in front of the candy bowl staring at the candy. Finally he reached in and took one. He placed it on the table and stared at it, he woofed at it. He stared some more, licked his chops and PUT IT BACK in the bowl and walked away. Did he want the candy, oh yeah. Did he eat it? Nope. They can be trained that well but most, I'll admit, are not trained that well. When I was a young boy, maybe 5 years old. We had a german shepherd. He was very well trained also. My mom could leave food unattended on the table, no problem. She would open the oven door and set a pan roast beef or roast chicken on the door to cool. No problem. He would not touch it, watched or not. But butter? Whole other story. You leave a stick of butter anywhere he could reach and it was gone. He was a large shepherd so there were not many places he could not reach. Really, I think the number of dogs trained to the point they will leave food alone when not being supervised is very small indeed.
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Now if we are talking obedience training, not food grubbing, that is a different story. Way back when I was first learning obedience training one of the final exercises was to put our dogs in a down/stay and not only leave the room but leave the building for 15 minutes. The only person that stayed was our trainer, not the owners. Most of the dogs in my class did not break their stay, which would be an automatic fail. I'm happy to report my dog was one of the ones that passed.

Answer 4

There are a number of reasons why your dog could be doing this, and your vet will be able to help you narrow down the causes. Allergies, sores, fleas, worms, and stress are just a few of the possibilities. But again, your vet needs to be consulted on this one.

EDIT: Just because it's on his butt and tail does not mean that you can rule out allergies or fleas. Fleas often concentrate near the butt and hind legs, because they're harder to get to there and can hide better. And if he's sitting on or in something that he's allergic to, then the allergy would be concentrated to his butt.

Also, here's another possiblity, which is what happened with my dog. My dog, for whatever reason, started to lick his tail. The constant moisture caused a staph infection, which he messed with constantly. He'd mess with it, the staph infection would get worse, and so he'd mess with it more. This could be what your pup is doing.

Answer 5

Many people love the idea of owning a dog but one thing that they have to keep in mind often times, is that the dog needs to be trained. While the pet may look heart-breakingly cute when it's in a shelter or at the pound, picking out the dog is only the first part of the relationship between dog owner and the animal. Many people don't understand that they have to put time and effort into socializing the dog.

An unsocialized dog will intimidate others, tear up the home, and will create an environment that can become so bad that the it will have to be returned. Many times when dogs have to be returned to shelters or to other resources, it will end up euthanized, which is very heartbreaking. All of this can be spared if a person learns the various techniques in order to socialize the dog.

One thing that they have to understand is that the he wants to be told what to do. It's in the canine nature to follow a leader. The dog will be more than willing to obey the leadership of its master. Here's a look at some common techniques that are used in dog training:

"Dog Whispering"

This is a technique that has been around for a while, but gained national notoriety over the last 10 years. Some people might hear this term and wonder how in the world whispering to a dog can train it! Whispering isn't meant to be taken literally in this case. As trainers have shown, whispering is a term that refers to connecting with a being or an entity on a very deep and almost spiritual level. When it comes to dog training techniques, dog whispering involves careful observation of the dog's behavior and actions.

It literally entails getting inside the mind and the behavior system of the canine. When a person uses dog whispering techniques, they interact with the dog on the canine level. Again, one the most common mistakes that people make is treating the dog like a small human being.

"Reward Training"

Reward training is very simple and it's one of the older tricks that works. This is a simple method of training the dog by positive reinforcement. Once he does what it is told to do, it receives a treat. How this works is that the dog owner must entice the dog towards the treat. Once the canine develops awareness for the treat, it develops a strong desire for it. When the desire for it is extremely strong, the dog owner pulls back. Then the dog receives a command and when the dog obeys the command, it receives the treat. The object is to make the dog associate a treat with the command.

"Clicker Training"

Other dog training techniques include one that is similar to reward training, which is called clicker training. How this works is that the clicker is incorporated to get the dog's attention. The clicker is clicked as a form of communication with the dog. It learns that there is a command or reward associated in conjunction with the clicker. Many people claim that this is fun, and they actually make a game with the dog by using the clicker for their dog training tasks.

"Ultrasonic Whistle"

Last, a relatively new form of dog training technique is called the ultrasonic whistle. This works because the ultrasonic sound is only heard by the dog. When the owner is trying to communicate a command, or stop the dog from barking, they will blow on their whistle when they want to communicate a command to the dog. The benefit of this is that the humans can't hear this noise, but the dog can hear it, and they will learn to associate the sound with a command.

Dog training techniques aren't hard to incorporate, but they are something that absolutely must be incorporated from the time a dog owner brings their new dog home. No matter how old or how young the dog is, they will need training. Once they are trained properly, they will be a wonderful addition to one's family.

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Answer 6

I had a lhasa that did the same thing. It is either anxiety or just a habit. If eating his tail is a habit, you can put tobasco or another extremely hot sauce on his tail that's taste will deter him from eating it. If your dog likes tobasco, vinegar or something bitter works just as well. If the eating of the tail is anxiety- you need to see you vet and possibly put the dog on anxiety medication. I have a shih tzu of my own and foster multiple others and shih tzu tend to hand anxiety issues that relate to chewing or licking. My dog has taken both clomicalm and valium to prevent it.

Answer 7

This sounds like either a stress behavior or an allergy. Talk to your vet - your pup will need extra help in breaking this habit. This is obviously not going to just go away - please take this seriously and go to your vet for this as soon as you can. You cannot "know" whether it's an allergy or not - because you clearly have not bothered to get him checked.

Toys that stop boredom : feed your dog his meals from these, so that he has to work for his food,
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Answer 8

shihtzu eats tail

Answer 9

I think he is either on crack or angry with you for callin' him Itzy.

lol

Have you noticed a crack pipe near his doggy bed or dish? You might wanna check...

Hope you get this worked out! Good luck!

Answer 10

could be allergies or you may need to have his anal glands checked.