dog trying to bury toys and crying

Little Miss Cutie

Hi all,
I have a two year old bichon. In the last few days he has been picking up toys and trying to bury them. He is crying as he walks around the house carrying them. I let him outside and he half burys them but then digs them up and starts again.
Is this normal?

star-pants

I wasn't sure about this so I went googling, most cases seemed to be with female dogs.
A lot of the responses to that was 'false preganacy' or them wanting a pup/ being in heat / not being spayed.

Some responses were that this can be signs of lack of social skills when they were pups, and that they need social stimulation and more exercise.
Some say it's anxiet because of this too, and they need to get outside and bury things.

Does he get exercised much?

Bluefrog

I'd be thinking along the same lines. Pent up stress can make dogs anxious and display a lot of unusual behaviours. My boxer pup will just sit there and howl when he's bored and he has a fine pair of lungs on him. Exercise and other stimulation could be the key - do you rotate the toys - my two get bored with theirs fairly quickly and I find it helps a lot if I withdraw some for a few days, then others so they are never stuck with the same stuff too long - the things I do for them

Little Miss Cutie

he gets walked at least 3 long walks a week and short walks on other day - he is always exhausted afterwards. We have him out in the back garden with us a fair bit and once its sunny we leave the back door open so he can run in and out.
He has about 10 different balls / toys which he takes out of his bed at random.
I will try to take away some of the toys and see if it helps. I will also walk him more.
As for social interaction we have no other pets so he has all the attention. He is allowed all over the house and always sits with the family.

Bluefrog

Let us know how you get on. I think the mention of 'social skills' was more a reference to getting to socialise with other dogs more than hanging out with people. In any case, its hard to see the connection here as the behaviour seems to have come on pretty suddenly.

Has anything else changed in your home recently, routines, new people, furnishings etc? Is he OK in himself otherwise, eating normally, eliminating ok, inside of his ears their normal colour etc.

star-pants

Sorry yes - the social skills was in reference to when they're pups, sometimes if maybe they're taken from their mother too early / don't get to play with their siblings they don't develop certain skills.
(I was going on reading a few sites where people were asking similar question to yourself).
It can also be semi normal, one person had said their dog talked to their squeaky toy, not quite whining but similar, and would bury it, unbury it, bring it in, wander round with it etc.
If he does try to hide his toy, (someone else said) you should try to look away, or walk out of the room, let him hide it, and then come in. Sometimes it's a game they play.

Little Miss Cutie

yeah sorry I wasn't clear, I understand that you meant other dogs. I dont know any other dogs for him to play with. I will leave the room in future and let him bury it.
He had an ear infection which cleared up about 2 weeks ago and his strangeness is only the last few days. He is great form otherwise, I would ever say better than usual.

Thanks for all your help so far

star-pants

Well if he's happy enough then maybe not much to worry. You can always check with your vet to be sure if it'll help you feel better
Yeah one of the people said their dog did that all the time, wagged it's tail n whimpered with the toy in it's mouth. Would hide it and dig it up etc.

Little Miss Cutie

thanks again it is just totally out of character for an otherwise happy chappy.

The pup was over 15weeks when I got him, I was on a waiting list with a well know breeder for him. I picked him out when he was a few weeks old and then collected him when she said he was ready.

star-pants

If he was 15weeks he'd have gotten good social skills/bonding with his mother/siblings so that probably isn't an issue.
I don't know so don't even remotely take my word for it, but on one or two of the sites someone mentioned that maybe there was something wrong with the dogs spleen or mouth and that's why they were carrying around a favourite toy and crying. BUT!! that was just a mention. (I was just googling and reading random pages where people asked the same question as you). I think all of them were female dogs, so a lot of people said it might be false pregnancy, but yours is a boy so that's not it! lol.

Actually a friend of mine is a dog trainer, I should be seeing her later so I'll try and remember to ask her, see if she knows anything.
For now, if your dog seems happy/is eating/playing /going to the toilet fine, I wouldn't worry too much, it might be a phase or something.

Bluefrog

Was thinking about the mouth as well - like a toothache or something but if he's eating I guess that's not really likely either. Definitely a strange one.