Top 3 Reasons Why Dogs Chew and Bite Other Dog’s Ears

Chewing and nibbling is one of many ways dog communicate with one another. It’s not much of a harmful behavior unless the dog is doing it to the point of causing irritation in other dogs. Here are the most common reasons for dogs that chew and nibble the ears of other dogs.

1. It’s a playful bite

The dog might be biting the other dog’s ear to engage in play. Biting isn’t always a sign of aggression. There is a good chance the dog is “nibbling” the other dog’s ear to get a response from the other dog. The ears just so happen to be one of the easier targets to bite. This kind of playful behavior might be noticed more with puppies.

2. It’s a sign of affection

We mentioned before that chewing is one form of body language for dogs to communicate with one another. In some cases, gentle chewing of the other dog’s ear could be seen as a sign of affection.

3. It’s grooming time

Some dogs like to groom others. You may notice this happening when the dog isn’t just chewing but licking the other dog’s ears. Interestingly enough, licking is something that can help a dog relax and bond.

How to stop dogs from chewing other dog’s ears

The reasons for this behavior might be harmless but that doesn’t mean it’s something you would want your dog to keep doing. Licking the ears of other dogs could become a dangerous situation if the other dog is showing signs of aggression such as growling and baring teeth. It would inevitably lead to a fight if your dog doesn’t back off.

For this reason, it’s very important for every dog owner to teach their dog the recall command. This command becomes super handy when your dog is interacting with other dogs in an off-leash dog park. Teach your dog to come back to you immediately if you feel the other dog (or the owner) isn’t responding well to the ear-chewing gesture.