Chewing behaviour in dogs-A survey-based exploratory study

Chewing is a behavioural element of feeding, but dogs also chew on or dissect non-edible items. This can cause considerable problems to owners if directed at household objects. Nevertheless, the provision of chewing material, associated risks and relationships with chewing behaviour and other owner-dog activities have not been investigated so far. The aim of this online survey was to explore how dog owners manage the chewing behaviour of their dog and whether there are relationships to other owner-dog interactions. Of our self-selected participants (1439 filled in the entire questionnaire), 94 % provided their dogs with edible chewing material (e.g., rawhide, dried innards, meat), 83 % provided inedible chew toys, 73 % provided chew toys filled with food and 51 % provided hard chewing material (e.g. wood, antlers). Edible materials were provided four to six times a week by the average dog owner. Regarding risks, 67 % of respondents stated that their dog never had a problem caused by the use of chewing material, whereas veterinary treatment due to a problem with chewing material was reported by 3.6 %. Chewing daily on soft household objects was observed in 2.5 % of dogs (other common objects for daily chewing: resting places 2.2 %, clothes/shoes 1.4 %); dogs up to one year of age did this more frequently (p < 0.001). Chewing on objects was not substantially related to reported motivation of the dog to play or the frequency of activities with the dog (all rs < 0.2), but was reported to occur in contexts that may cause negative emotional states such as leaving the dog alone (rs = 0.63, p < 0.001) or changes in routine activities (rs = 0.47, p < 0.001). The average reported frequency of provision of chewing material correlated positively (rs >= 0.2) with motivation of the dog to play, chewing on objects, human-dog play and calm activities such as petting. Dog owners think that chewing material is important for puppies and even more for adult dogs (p < 0.001). However, it remains to be investigated how motivated dogs are for chewing on different types of materials and whether chewing, as proposed by dog professionals, reduces stress. This seems particularly important for assessing the trade-off between risks and benefits of different chewing materials and its impact on dog welfare.