Why my dog bites his legs
Have you ever noticed that your pet licks or bites its legs a lot? Have you ever wondered why he does it? Well, in fact, that dogs lick their legs and even chew them is quite common, so we should worry only if we observe that it becomes a compulsive or intense behavior.
Continue reading this article to discover the answer to your question about why my dog bites its legs, in which not only will we reveal the possible reasons for this behavior, but also you will find how you can prevent some of these causes and when you must go to a veterinarian.
Why my dog bites its legs suddenly
We must keep in mind that it is usual to observe that our dog licks its legs, especially the front ones, and even nibbles them. This is a normal behavior in canids and they do it when they want to clean their legs . Therefore, we should not worry if we see that our dog licks or nibbles his legs a little or a little while, since he will only be maintaining his hygiene.
On the other hand, we should be alarmed by a behavior of licking or obsessive nibbling, that is, when we see that we can not find a way to stop doing so, spend a lot of time doing it, do it daily and even get hurt.
Some of the main causes why your pet licks its legs and suddenly bites them are the following:
Hygiene
The dogs usually clean their legs, so it is easy to see them licking their hind and front legs for a while. But, normally, in a few minutes they stop doing it.
Itching
When in addition to licking it does not stop biting its legs, surely, it is feeling a strong itch that needs to be relieved and, for this reason, it insists a lot and it is hard for it to stop. This itching may be due to many things such as, for example, an insect bite, fungus, irritated skin, skin allergy, fleas and ticks, among others.
Wounds
It is possible for your pet to bite its hind and / or front legs because a puncture wound, a cut or a burn has been made. Due to the pain and itching, your dog will try to stop the wound from bothering you, so you will observe that without appearing to have an apparent reason, suddenly, it begins to lick and bite its legs. If it is a small wound, you can heal a wound to your dog yourself, but if it is a more serious injury you should go to the vet.
Leg injuries
If doing some type of exercise or playing your hairy one does a slight injury or even a fracture in one of the legs, it will begin to lick and bite the affected leg suddenly.
Strange objects
Another cause of this canine behavior is that a foreign object is stuck or caught between the toes or the fur of the legs. For example, it is common to find blades of plants or small stones entangled in the fur and between the toes.
Cysts or lumps
It is possible that the dog has begun to notice a small cyst or lump in some part of their feet or legs and that, because it is strange and that probably bothers you enough, start licking and biting the leg area in the that the cyst is found.
Broken nails
Sometimes the nails can easily break, if when this happens to your hairy one does not drop the broken piece by itself, it will bother him a lot and he will try to remove it with his teeth. If you have the right material, you can cut the nails to a dog yourself.
Why my dog bites its legs chronically
Sometimes, we observe that the behavior of licking and nibbling of our faithful companion is something prolonged, that is to say, that lasts a long time or that he does it a lot of days in a row and seems to find it hard to stop. These are some of the main causes why your pet nibbles on its legs chronically :
Constant allergy
Cutaneous allergy and food allergy in dogs, many times, causes this behavior repeatedly and prolonged. Until we detect and solve the cause of the allergy, we will not get the itching of our dog and, for this reason, will not stop licking and biting its legs.
Long-term infections
When a dog suffers an infection, either as a result of a badly healed wound or a badly treated fungus, if we do not cure it well the dog tries to relieve itself with bites in the affected areas in a constant and prolonged way. Surely, it stings and hurts a lot and this will make your behavior not only lasting in time until you cure the infection, but also be a behavior that occurs in a desperate and compulsive.
Obsessive behavior
Another cause of this behavior, when it is chronic, is that it is an obsessive behavior. Normally, when it comes to obsession, there is no presence of allergy or injury, but it is the way in which the channel channels excess energy, stress, anxiety, boredom, frustrations, etc. When this happens, as they spend many hours a day licking and biting their legs, it is observed that the coat becomes a reddish brown colo, since it is oxidized by the action of saliva. In addition, they are likely to end up getting wounded. Another obsessive behavior that you can observe in your partner is that your dog chases its tail.
When to go to the vet
You should contact or go to your trusted veterinarian when it comes to a licking and biting behavior produced by:
- Wounds
- Parasites
- Allergies
- Injuries
- Broken nails
- Visible packages
Another time in which you should go to the specialist will be when you see this type of behavior in your pet but you can not identify any of the cases that we have just commented, that is, if you do not know the possible reason but you observe this behavior you should go to the vet.
If your dog is diagnosed by the veterinarian with an obsessive behavior, then it is advisable that you also go to an ethologist or a dog behavior specialist .
You should follow the treatment and advice given by your veterinarian and your ethologist to ensure that your faithful friend is healthy again and that he stops licking and biting his legs for issues unrelated to his usual hygiene.
How to prevent your dog from biting its legs
Some ways to prevent your dog from biting its legs are:
- Have up to date veterinary reviews, vaccines and deworming
- Observe habitually if skin conditions are present
- Control the areas where you run and play to avoid possible injuries
- Contact the veterinarian as soon as you detect the first symptom that something is happening with the health of your faithful friend
If you've liked to know why your dog chews on its legs, it's probably also interesting to know why dogs bite their tails.
