Why Does My Dog Dig In Bed?
Typically, a dog that digs in furniture displays unwanted dog behavior, not unnatural or naughty behavior. It may be an expensive problem, but it is normal and not a sign of disobedience or spite. Usually, dogs scratch a couch or bed because it is instinctive to dig a big, comfy hole to sleep in.
How big the problem is depends on how severely your dog digs and scratches and on the furniture they may be damaging. A dog scratching a little before settling down on hardy, chew-proof dog beds is no issue.
But you’d be forgiven for being slightly more annoyed when your canine is frantically or enthusiastically scraping a crater in your expensive leather sofa or memory foam mattress.
Of course, sometimes a good dog chewing deterrent spray is enough to keep them away from any expensive furniture you want to protect. But to fully know how to fix the issue, we need to get to the root of the problem, and there is more than one reason for dogs digging in your belonging.
3 – Dogs May Dig to Seek Safety When Anxious
A couch is a soft, warm surface. If your dog is feeling scared or anxious, it may begin digging and circling on the sofa in an agitated way, almost like it is trying to dig itself inside to hide.
Keep in mind that domestic dogs evolved from wild ancestors who lived in dens, and they would need to scratch the ground to make it softer or create shelter. If your dog digs on the couch when a storm is approaching or during loud activity, it is trying to stay safe.
This type of couch digging is usually marked by a lowered tail, hunched posture, and sometimes cowering. The dog looks like it is trying to make itself smaller and get the couch to swallow it up.
Boredom & Destructive Behavior
As discussed above, most dogs will scratch a little bit at their sleeping spot before circling a couple of times and going to sleep. This includes anything they can sleep on, such as your bed, couches, sofas, and their own beds.
But some light dog digging before sleep can sometimes escalate. For many dogs, the sound of a rip or the sight of some stuffing they can rip out activates their instance to shred and tear. Again, this is not being naughty. Ripping something apart is also instinctive behavior, mimicking ripping apart prey in the wild. It is immensely satisfying for dogs.
Like popping bubble wrap for humans, feeling something tear and sending all that marvelous stuffing inside flying is fun and stimulating. Again, they don’t do this to be naughty; it’s just irresistible, especially for young dogs already prone to mouthing behavior, such as biting your hands.
So what may have started as a little scratching at a sleeping spot can quickly escalate into a frenzy of destruction when the first barrier is breached.
Again, this is more likely to happen with young and bored dogs looking for something to keep them occupied. The act of destroying a mattress is great fun for them.
No, they do not feel guilty afterward because they don’t understand that it’s “wrong.” They simply have great eyebrows that give them a face designed to look sorry when you come home angry.
Just like boredom and frustration can encourage destructive behavior like scratching and digging on furniture, so can any form of stress and anxiety. Dogs with anxiety over being left can display all kinds of problem behavior, such as howling, crying, digging, defecating indoors, and scratching at furniture.
Just like digging out of boredom, digging from fear or anxiety is called displacement behavior. It’s an outlet for a dog with such strong feelings of fear, stress, boredom, frustration, etc. that they don’t know what to do. When they don’t have an appropriate outlet for these behaviors, it manifests as “displaced behaviors,” such as destroying furniture.
Another reason that dogs dig in beds and on their favorite couches is that the sweat glands in their paws allow them to add a bit of their own scent to their sleeping spots. This is a subtle way of marking their territory that we humans may not be aware of.
We usually think of dogs marking territory as something they only do when they pee against a tree. But truthfully, dogs love to leave their scent everywhere and use their whole body to do it, much like cats. The stronger the scent, the better.
The most obvious example of using the glands on their paws to leave a scent behind is when dogs scratch the grass or earth after relieving themselves. Although they are mostly digging at sleeping spots to make it comfortable, the extra scent from their paw pads signals to other dogs that this is “their” spot.
Why do dogs dig and scratch on couch or Sofa
It’s no surprise when a dog digs in the backyard. Digging is one of the most signature dog behaviors that’s engrained into your canine’s brain. But what about when they start attempting to dig into the carpet or couch?
Indoor digging is a quirky little behavior that can cause some confusion among owners. It’s obvious that digging will get your dog nowhere when they’re in the comforts of home.