Dog Play - The Good, The Eh, The Bad - Stubborn Dog, Novice Owner

Dog play seems simple enough to know what’s good and what’s not. Your dog meets another dog, and they take turns chasing each other. No barking, no growling, and no rough housing. They back off and give each other space, all is well. Clearly, it’s good dog play.

When your dog meets another dog and their hackles raise and they viciously lunge toward each other with jaws snapping and spittle flying, you know it’s bad dog play. I mean at that point, it’s not play.

But what about the other stuff that’s not so obvious? The snarl without raised hackles. The air mouthing and non-verbal teeth-baring. The body slamming. The grunts and huffs. At what point is it not okay?

We’re lucky that I get to puppy sit a friend’s dog a few times a week. Roxie is an Australian Shephard and she’s a few months younger than Pandora. Up until Roxie, the dogs Pandora got to play with were tiny, elderly dogs that had no tolerance for puppy antics and younger, bigger dogs whose size Pandora was unsure about.

Pandora met Roxie once when Roxie was a teeny pup. The first time Roxie came to the house after she’d grown to the same size as Pandora was the best event to witness. Pandora finally had someone her own size that she could rough house with. And rough house they did. They body-slammed each other so hard, I was sure Pandora had taken lessons on throwing hard blocks from the NFL. Then they tore around the yard. They jumped on each other, rolled each other, snarled at each other and then stood in front of me with the biggest, happiest grins of contentment.

Since then, Pandora and Roxie have gone through various stages of acceptable and not-so-acceptable play.

Signs of Good Dog Play

Pandora and Roxie have some of the sweetest moments when they are in calm play. I’m not even sure if they are playing or just politely taking things away from each other. Whatever it is, there is no animosity or anger. They dig out toys from the toy bin and then they decide which is the cool toy. Roxie will go lie down with whatever the cool toy is, and Pandora will walk over and gently pull it away from Roxie. Pandora then goes and lies down with the toy and Roxie goes over and gently takes it away. That’s good play.

Some other signs of dog play that are good:

If your dog is smiling, it’s good. You know your dog’s happy look. If they look happy, chances are good, the play is fine.
The dogs keep going back to each other.
They switch roles: the one that was being chased is now the chaser.
They stop for a drink and go back to playing. Roxie will stop for a drink and Pandora stands next to her impatiently waiting for Roxie to finish so they can tear off together around the yard.
The bodies aren’t tense. The muscles are relaxed.

Signs of “Eh?” Play That Is Actually Okay

This is the stuff that I wasn’t sure was okay. I had to watch a lot of videos to make sure the girls weren’t getting too rough with each other. In case you’re wondering, most of these are actually fine. They get rough. But they are okay.

Blocking/ Body Slamming/ Bumper Bodies – whatever you want to call it. When they run and slam their shoulders into each other, it’s usually fine. Pandora and Roxie will do this and then get into crazed race mode. That’s when they tear around the full yard at warp speed. The only drawback is that Pandora can cut faster than Roxie. Roxie has run into the fence a couple times, when Pandora does a last-minute cut.
Teeth-baring
Air-mouthing
Snarl/snort and huff – this is usually displayed when they are baring teeth and air mouthing at each other.
Cheek/Jowl biting – this looks so painful, but Pandora doesn’t yelp. I haven’t seen Pandora do this to Roxie, only Roxie to Pandora. And apparently, it’s fine. Now, if Pandora were to yelp, that would be a sign Roxie went too far. However, since they are friends, I’m pretty sure Roxie would just take that as a learning lesson.
The Takedown – this is when the girls are on their hind legs and batting or holding each other with their front legs while air-mouthing. Pandora will then wrap her legs around Roxie and take Roxie down. I haven’t seen Roxie do this to Pandora. I guess they each have a signature move. But Roxie doesn’t yelp or run away. And I’m sure if she did, Pandora would back off right quick.

A Few Signs of “Eh?” Dog Play That Need to Be Watched

This is basically, the warning zone. One has done something to the other and it’s not okay. If the dogs are usually friendly with each other, you probably won’t have to intervene.

The “I’m Done” snap – Roxie has to do this to Pandora. Roxie gets tired quicker than Pandora. She needs to go in and rest. Pandora has no concept of rest, unless it’s bedtime. Roxie will lie down, and Pandora will give her roughly, 0.2 seconds before trying to engage her in play again. Roxie will do a high pitch snarl/snap thing to let Pandora know she doesn’t want to play.
If one dog keeps pushing the other too far – maybe the dog has bit the other a little too hard twice now, keep an eye on it. Dogs are pretty good at regulating teeth pressure in play. If one keeps biting too hard, it’s time to step in. The dog may be tired and need a break. Yes, even if the dog is still hyper. Sometimes they need to be brought into a calm situation to turn off the hyper and chill out.
The tail tuck while running – I’m not sure what made Pandora a little skittish, but one day while playing with Roxie, Pandora tucked her tail on a sprint away from her pal. Roxie seemed a little more aggressive, a little more not-so-happy to her snarl. I didn’t see what led to that. But I called the girls in and made them walk with me before giving them a treat and some rest. Pandora usually keeps her tail whipping around while running. The tail tuck was a sign that something wasn’t right.

Signs They aren’t Playing Anymore, or the Play has Turned Bad

Pandora and Roxie know each other too well. They haven’t had a situation that was completely horrible. However, Pandora and I have come across dogs that just aren’t as friendly, usually at the dog park.

I’m not blaming the people whose dog was a little more aggressive than normal. Who knows what set him off? Maybe he just didn’t like Pandora, maybe he was tired, maybe he was feeling a bit overwhelmed with so many dogs at the park. Whatever the reason, he took off after Pandora. He didn’t snar, but there was an edginess. I let Pandora run away from him, I didn’t give chase. Pandora sprinted around, which wore the old pup out. She didn’t come hide behind me. She wasn’t happy, but she wasn’t in a full tail tuck.

The other pooch’s human came and leashed him. Apologized and took him to a different section of the park. I think the situation was handled well. I didn’t jump right to Pandora’s rescue because she wasn’t in total fear, she was uncomfortable, but not terrified. The last thing I want to do is create more fear by running racing over to chase off the other dog.

The situation worked out pretty well. Pandora used her speed and fast cutting ability to wear the other dog down – it only took a minute. And then she maintained a half crouch. She could lie down if the other dog showed a little calm or she could bolt if he continued to approach. No one over-reacted and both dogs seemed okay.

The key sign that something was off, was the tenseness in the other dog’s muscles and the aggressive lurch toward Pandora.

A few other signs that the situation is heading in the wrong direction:

The raised hackles. That’s the scruff of hair that poofs up along mid-neck to the shoulder blade region. I’ve never seen a happy dog do that. It’s almost always a sign of anger, fear, or something not right.
A low growl accompanied with tense muscles. Dogs will growl in play, but there is a difference. The Metro East Humane Society has a post on telling the difference between play and fight postures. It’s a good resource.
Snapping aggressively
A change in the vibe – you know when two people hate each other and a relaxed room gets that edgy feeling? That same feeling accompanies dogs that don’t like each other.

These are things I have noticed. But I’m not an expert, so I’m including a few more links on the subject here:

K9OfMine – Appropriate Dog Play

Hill’s Pet – Dog Aggression or Play