Symptoms to Watch for in Your Dog: Walking in Circles/Circling

Going around in circles isn't an effective way of accomplishing anything. Circling, may or may not be normal--and from your dog's point of view--useful behavior. How do you tell which is which?

Symptoms to Watch for in Your Dog: Walking in Circles/Circling

Walking around in circles before laying down


Does your dog do that? Most dogs do. Mine do that sometimes. This instinctual behavior does--or at least used to have--a useful purpose. Before dogs started living indoors, this was their way of making the bed. It would not only pat down the vegetation, but it would also give them the chance of driving out snakes or large insects and so on. It could even had been their way of calling dibs on the spot.



Your dog can also walk in circles before depositing their essence, or trying to identify which way to follow a scent. An excited dog can run around in circles from sheer excitement. All of these are perfectly healthy reasons for such behavior.



When should you, then, be concerned about your dog's circling? 


When it doesn't match any of the above reasons.

One thing I'd also like to note is the emotion the dog is expressing while circling. Are they calm, focused, excited or happy? Or does their body language express anxiety and distress?

Anxiety or pain


What if you felt like you had to run away, but there was nowhere to run? The urge is there, the space is not but you need to keep moving. You'll end up walking in circles. Interestingly, walking does help relieve both anxiety and pain. Pacing is one of the tell-signs of pain. Space constraints might turn that into walking in circles.

In some dogs, the obsessive-compulsive disorder could be the cause but that is not normal or healthy either. As well as I'd want to have any potential medical issue ruled out first. If confirmed, OCD should be addressed as well.

Neurological issues


The brain coordinates and manages all voluntary movement. When the brain is in trouble, it can present in various ways, circling being one of them. The reasons can be anything from brain inflammation, tumors, even severe liver disease.



Vestibular disease


The vestibular system includes the parts of inner ear and brain that are in charge of balance. Vestibular disease messes with balance and the sense of spatial orientation. Head tilt, walking in circles and even falling over are some of the signs.

Causes include trauma, inner ear infections, tumors, hypothyroidism, even certain drugs. If no underlying cause can be identified, it is then diagnosed as an idiopathic vestibular disease. Maybe one day, science will figure out the reason because there ought to be one whether it has been identified or not.



Cushing's disease


While I feel that it's a good idea to see the connection, describing Cushing's disease as a cause of circling is not really right. Rather, [pituitary] Cushing's AND potential neurological signs such as circling are both caused by the same thing--a tumor on the pituitary gland.

Cognitive dysfunction


In an older dog, their brain might become unable to process the world properly. Perhaps the dog doesn't know where they are. Or maybe they find themselves in some alternate reality. Pacing and circling are one of the signs of the old brain being confused and distressed.



Can it be an emergency?


Yes. Continuous circling, particularly accompanied by other serious signs such as head pressing needs immediate medical attention.

How the heck can you tell the difference between normal behavior and emergency? Like with most other symptoms, the big picture--circumstances, severity, duration, and accompanying signs.

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Do you know what your dog is telling you about their health?

Symptoms to Watch for in Your Dog

Symptoms to Watch for in Your Dog now available in paperback and Kindle. Each chapter includes notes on when it is an emergency.

Symptoms to Watch for in Your Dog is an award-winning guide to help you better understand what your dog is telling you about their health and how to best advocate for them. 

Learn how to see and how to think about changes in your dog’s appearance, habits, and behavior. Some signs that might not trigger your concern can be important indicators that your dog needs to see a veterinarian right away. Other symptoms, while hard to miss, such as diarrhea, vomiting, or limping, are easy to spot but can have a laundry list of potential causes, some of them serious or even life-threatening. 

Symptoms to Watch for in Your Dog is a dog health advocacy guide 101. It covers a variety of common symptoms, including when each of them might be an emergency. 

An award-winning guide for dog parents

Comments

  1. This has been so useful post for the moment. I must be more careful about my dogs. Thanks for making me more Carey for him/his health. Thanks for sharing.

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    1. Thank you, Emma. My goal is to teach people how to see and think about what they're seeing.

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  2. Interesting. I never really thought of circling as a potential symptom of something, but yes it can be!

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    1. Everything needs to be considered in context and in respect to what is normal for any individual dog.

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  3. Informative post! I always enjoy learning the reasons behind animal behavior. Our dog circles more than he used to, probably because finding a comfortable spot is harder to do in his senior years.

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    1. Yes, that could be ... trying to make the bed more meticulously. Did you consider an orthopedic bed? Or the Cooling bed which is also orthopedic and our girls have always loved it.

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  4. Interesting post! I have two dogs, one of which circles a lot more often than the other. He does it at more 'normal' times like before laying down and before going to the bathroom, but also sometimes does it when he gets overexcited. He's a very emotional dog, we've been working with him (with the help of a vet behaviorist) on his impulse control and on how to stay a bit calmer even when he's experiencing strong emotions.

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    1. It's interesting how individual dogs are so different, isn't it? Even within the same breed.

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  5. Layla circles and digs before lying down but my vet told me not to worry as it is a normal thing and thank goodness she is healthy

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  6. I love watching dogs circle when they make their bed or run around excited. I have anxiety and sometimes it makes me feel like running in circles

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    1. Yes, I too have personal experience how either stress or pain can make one run or walk around--in circles when indoors.

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  7. Interesting post. I wouldn't have thought as circling being a symptom of an underlying condition.

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    1. Normal and abnormal circling do look different; that's why I included some video examples

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  8. We have cats so I don't see this circling. I would be concerned though if i was a dog owner as this is not 'normal' as your bigger picture implies. It's what is happening in relation to the rest of your dogs life. Owners need to be constantly aware of that.

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    1. I don't know what cats normally do; probably hard to circle when setting oneself up in a box ;-)

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  9. Wow all this time I thought circling was only related to playtime or making preparations for bedtime. I didn't realize it can also be tied to cognitive dysfunction. Thanks for sharing this very helpful in depth post. I'm sure it will help inform and educate many pet parents.

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    1. Many things can be either normal ... or not. I hope the included videos illustrate the difference.

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  10. My old dog had what I thought was vestibular disease, but it ended up being a brain tumor. There was a really slight head tilt that got worse over time.

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  11. I'm always glad to learn these things, while at the same time hoping I will never have a real life application for the knowledge. Walking in circles is probably a symptom that I would have ignored at first if I hadn't read this.

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    1. Here is hoping you never need to use the knowledge.

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  12. Such an informative post.My Huskies love to go in circles and nest...but, as you stated, it can also be a sign of so many other things...great to have this as a reference to help others. Pinning to share!

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  13. I knew if a dog pressed his head to the wall that it was an emergency. I didn't think about circling being a reason for concern.

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