Taking a hard look at perpetual puppy syndrome

Dr. Michael Fox

Question: We have a wonderful 3-year-old miniature poodle who is a delight in almost every way. Despite getting lots of exercise and having many chew toys to gnaw on, he still likes to chew our bed linens and decorative pillows. He’s put holes in sheets and pillowcases.

What can we do? — N.M., Gainesville, Virginia

Answer: There are many reasons why your little dog engages in such destructive chewing. I would advise a veterinary wellness examination to rule out any chronic inflflammatory condition, oral or abdominal, that could make your dog want to chew things all the time. If this behavior most often occurs when you are away from the home, your dog may be suffffffffffffering from separation anxiety coupled with obsessive-compulsive behavior — resulting in a neurotic need to chew.

Being bored and in the home alone all day can lead to destructive behaviors. Small dog breeds have varying degrees of paedomorphosis — the perpetuation of puppylike physical traits into adulthood, including disproportionately large heads; protruding, “appealing” eyes; malformed jaws and dentition; and misshapen and misaligned limbs. All these paedomorphic traits can lead to a variety of health problems later in life.

Many dogs — and not just smaller breeds — also inherit, through human selection, what I term paedopsychic traits. The behavioral repertoire associated with extreme paedopsychosis, or behavioral neoteny, consists of predominantly infantile or puppyish behaviors normally seen just in brief episodes of spirited playfulness and moments of anxiety in most adult dogs.

These behaviors include almost continuous attention-seeking behavior, excessive vocal and oral activity (chewing and licking) and searching behaviors, all of which can become obsessive- compulsive disorders.

Along with the physical ailments associated with paedomorphosis, these poor dogs do not have the best quality of life with-