[Westhighlander]

At our house, my dog likes to lie down near the patio glass doors which leads to our backyard. She likes to look outside and watch the trees and leaves. Every once in a while, she will see a chipmunk which then gets her up and she barks a little and follows it. Then she'll sit down and wag her tail while watching it. I've taught her to greet other dogs by sitting first and she seems to be in the same sit position when she sees the chipmunk.

Keep in mind my dog is very friendly but at the same time has very high prey drive. So if I let her out, do you think she will eat Mr. Chipmunk or play with Mr. Chipmunk?

 

[Jessieanne]

I would think she would want to play with it but even at her size still can hurt the delicate little critter lol

 

[Marsh Muppet]

Your dog may want to play, but it likely wouldn't go well for Mr. Chipmunk.

 

[RonE]

We, and a red squirrel in our yard, underestimated the prey drive and quickness of my daughter's miniature schnauzer and the squirrel paid the ultimate price. None of the more formidible hunting breeds I've had has ever been able to catch a squirrel.

Zeke will spend hours watching some pet mice in an aquarium but, I'm quite sure that they would be doomed if they ever escaped.

I don't think a chipmunk would enjoy meeting your dog close up.

 

[Shaina]

Wanting to play with and and wanting to hunt Mr. Chipmunk are not necessarily mutually exclusive...both are awfully fun for the canine side of things

 

[mostlymutts]

I tend to agree with RonE.

 

[ColoradoSooner]

Yep...hunt = play. Our rat terrier, Ranger, has taken out more then his share of field mice and you should see how happy and proud he is when the little critters meet their demise. He thinks it is the most fun EVER.

 

[trumpetjock]

Most likely, she isn't exhibiting any play language with the sit and wag. You've taught her an operant ability that gets her what she wants. What she wants this time is to savagely tear apart a chipmunk.

Terriers were bred for a LONG time specifically to hunt this type of animal. I highly doubt she wants to play.

 

[Marsh Muppet]

When I was a kid, we had a mutt who looked like a Fox Terrier (or JRT) X Whippet cross. That girl was on an anti-rodent Jihad. She was the fastest dog I've ever seen with my own eyes, and her onboard computer was infallible for calculating when a squirrel/chipmunk/ground hog was beyond his safe zone for returning to shelter. If she launched, it was already over. She never missed.

I'll bet that if you let your Westie "play" with chipmunks, your life will never be the same...to say nothing of the chipmunk's.

 

[Westhighlander]

Most likely, she isn't exhibiting any play language with the sit and wag. You've taught her an operant ability that gets her what she wants. What she wants this time is to savagely tear apart a chipmunk.

Terriers were bred for a LONG time specifically to hunt this type of animal. I highly doubt she wants to play.

The only thing is that when I have her sit for other things like, waiting for me to open the door, or for food she does not wag her tail. She seems to wag it when she is going to meet another dog or when I have her sit before I throw the ball for a game of fetch. So her sit combined with wagging seems to be reserved for play.

 

[winniec777]

http://vodpod.com/watch/692958-alvin-and-the-chipmunks-who-let-the-dogs-out-clean

 

[Westhighlander]

When I was a kid, we had a mutt who looked like a Fox Terrier (or JRT) X Whippet cross. That girl was on an anti-rodent Jihad. She was the fastest dog I've ever seen with my own eyes, and her onboard computer was infallible for calculating when a squirrel/chipmunk/ground hog was beyond his safe zone for returning to shelter. If she launched, it was already over. She never missed.

I'll bet that if you let your Westie "play" with chipmunks, your life will never be the same...to say nothing of the chipmunk's.

I guess Mr. chipmunk will not have a play date then. I wonder what my dog will do when Mr. deer pays us a visit...

 

[GeorgeGlass]

The only thing is that when I have her sit for other things like, waiting for me to open the door, or for food she does not wag her tail. She seems to wag it when she is going to meet another dog or when I have her sit before I throw the ball for a game of fetch. So her sit combined with wagging seems to be reserved for play.

She wants to kill the bugger.

 

[trumpetjock]

The only thing is that when I have her sit for other things like, waiting for me to open the door, or for food she does not wag her tail. She seems to wag it when she is going to meet another dog or when I have her sit before I throw the ball for a game of fetch. So her sit combined with wagging seems to be reserved for play.

What drives would you say are involved in fetch?

Simulating a scurrying little rodent or a bird on the ground that the dog can catch, kill, and return to you.

All "play" is in our dogs is us finding suitable outlets for natural drives like prey drive.

Think about it:
tug = tearing apart a kill
fetch = hunting, killing and returning to pack
find it = hunting
etc etc

I've seen Rocky exhibit the same behaviours he would before playing with a dog before he attacked my sisters ferret (whom I TOLD not to let near him).

I've seen dogs wag their tails like they were really happy right before they attacked another dog/person.

Look at any dog attack video on youtube, the dogs tail is wagging like CRAZY.

There's nothing wrong with your dog (especially not a terrier!) wanting to catch and kill small prety, it's completely natural. Look at it this way, at least you know if she ever escaped she'd be able to feed herself

 

[Marsh Muppet]

I wonder what my dog will do when Mr. deer pays us a visit...

A short legged dog like a Westie has zero chance of catching a deer. If the dog successfully ambushed a healthy deer (or intitiated a chase with a rutting buck) there is a high likelihood she would get stomped until there was nothing but a greasy spot where she used to be.

 

[mostlymutts]

I had a little Beagle mix who was the bomb.

My cats were forever bringing playthings (mice, packrats, etc) in through the cat door. That dog put them to shame. If they let the mouse get away, it was his. One chomp, and gone.

 

[Westhighlander]

etc etc

I've seen Rocky exhibit the same behaviours he would before playing with a dog before he attacked my sisters ferret (whom I TOLD not to let near him).

I've seen dogs wag their tails like they were really happy right before they attacked another dog/person.

Look at any dog attack video on youtube, the dogs tail is wagging like CRAZY.

There's nothing wrong with your dog (especially not a terrier!) wanting to catch and kill small prety, it's completely natural. Look at it this way, at least you know if she ever escaped she'd be able to feed herself

Yes but dogs that are about to strike have a different wag . Usually their tails are pointing up with only the tip wagging. Your right there is nothing wrong with a terrier wanting to hunt/kill rodents but I was just surprise she seem like she wants to play with it.

A short legged dog like a Westie has zero chance of catching a deer. If the dog successfully ambushed a healthy deer (or intitiated a chase with a rutting buck) there is a high likelihood she would get stomped until there was nothing but a greasy spot where she used to be.

Kind like the dog who actually catches the bus!

 

[katthevamp]

Well, he may not want to kill it, it's just a side effect of the play.

 

[Donna5503]

My Dog loves playing with anything......and he's very fast --- he's always on the lookout for squirrels --- he's already caught one & a bird --- unfortunately they didn't survive ....

I like to think he was only playing & not trying to do them in..........but I can't get mad at him --- it's his instinct ....just make sure your dog has his rabies shots ....