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Why Is My Dog Walking in Circles?

May 6, 2019 by Mary Telesz

a man walking his dog that walks in circles in the parkYour dog’s behavior is a good clue as to what is going on inside his or her body. Walking in circles is actually a normal behavior for many dogs just before they urinate, defecate, or lie down. Other than in those instances, frequently walking in circles, or slowly or quickly spinning, is often a sign that the dog has an underlying health issue. If you observe your dog walking in circles, don’t ignore it. Your dog should be examined by a professional veterinarian as a precaution because circle walking could be a sign of a serious health problem.

Identifying Your Dog’s Condition

Walking in circles could be a symptom of any one of these conditions:

Ear Infection: An ear infection is one of the most common reasons why dogs walk in circles. An ear infection usually has one or more additional symptoms, such as offensive smells coming from the ear, redness, head shaking, and scratching at the ear. An ear infection must be treated quickly by a vet, as infections can move deeper into the dog’s ear and cause more serious problems. Treatment for ear infections involve a deep ear cleaning that must be done by the vet to avoid damaging the dog’s inner ear, and prescription medications including antibiotics.

While ear infections are by far the most common, your dog may have an infection somewhere else in the body that is causing discomfort or interfering with their balance. Again, it’s important to work with a professional vet who can examine and determine the issue without causing more harm to your dog.

Vestibular Syndrome: This is a disease that is most common in older dogs. Vestibular syndrome affects the dog’s inner ear and balance. What causes the disease is unknown, but animal health experts believe it can result from a variety of factors such as ear damage due to an injury, nutritional deficiency, infection, or abnormal tissue growth. Dogs needs to be examined by a vet to diagnose vestibular syndrome. Other symptoms include frequently falling down, excessive drooling, walking with the head down, and circling.

Neurological Disease or Bodily Injury: A disease or injury that affects your dog’s neurological system can also likely cause your dog to walk in circles. Common diseases that can cause incoordination include:

    • Distemper: a deadly disease that includes other symptoms such as nasal discharge, incoordination, aggression, lethargy, wandering, and excessive thirst).
    • Neosporosis: a potentially deadly disease spread by parasites found in some raw meat and in the feces of infected animals.
    • Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE): an autoimmune condition that is genetically predisposed to affect the German shepherd, Shetland sheepdog, collie, poodle, beagle, Afghan hound and Irish setter.

Alternatively, a head, back, or neck injury that impacts the neurological system can also cause incoordination, as well as pupil dilation, whining, or loss of appetite. If you spot any of these symptoms, get your dog to the nearest vet right away for a comprehensive diagnosis and immediate treatment.

Ways to Determine What the Problem Could Be

a veterinarian checking a dog for signs of ear infection because the dog walks in circlesYou can try a few things to help you figure out what could be causing your dog to walk in circles. If your dog is spinning in one direction, see if you can get them to move in the opposite direction or to walk normally. If there is a neurological issue, the dog will not be able to change direction easily. Moreover, a neurological issue can also affect your dog’s ability to focus its eyes, making them seem blind in one or both eyes. Also, inspect your dog’s ears. Do you see any signs redness that could indicate an ear infection? Whatever the case, doing it yourself should never take the place of a professional evaluation by a veterinarian. Walking in circles can be a serious issue that may require immediate treatment.

Best Preventions

You can reduce the odds of your dog suffering from many of the aforementioned conditions by taking a few simple steps:

Ear Hygiene: The best way to prevent an ear infection is regular cleaning. Make cleaning your dog’s ears part of your dog’s regular hygiene regimen. This will go a long way toward preventing an ear infection due to wax buildup, ear mites, or injury.

Annual Vet Checkups: Stay on top of your dog’s health by keeping up with annual vet wellness checkups. During the annual wellness checkup, the vet will examine the dog’s vital signs, palpate the entire body for pain or lumps, and check the dog’s weight, skin, vision, and hearing. It will also include vaccinations to prevent deadly diseases, and if necessary, perform blood work to diagnose a developing health condition.

Know Your Dog Well: Most dog parents love their dogs and know what constitutes “normal behavior.” They also likely keep a close watch on their dogs when they are at the dog park or interacting with other dogs or people, as well as what environmental triggers (food, people, other dogs, etc.) their dog responds to. Monitoring their dog like this helps minimize their risk of injury by ensuring that you can discern between normal and irregular behavior. When an injury does occur, dog parents who know their dog will see it happen quickly and can take swift action to give it appropriate treatment.

Contact A Professional Veterinarian Is Your Dog Is Acting Abnormally

If your dog is walking in circles, acting strange, or “not themselves,” you may be noticing the onset of a serious health condition. Catching it early and getting proper treatment can help prevent more serious problems from developing in the future. If you spot any of the signs or symptoms described here, schedule an appointment with your local vet today…it could save your dog’s life!

 

*Paw Pals Pet Sitting provides dog walking and pet sitting services in Northern Virginia.  While we write about many topics concerning pet care, we are not veterinary professionals.  As such, while our articles are well researched and informative, we recommend you talk to your own vet to inquire about conditions specific to your own pet that you may be concerned about.

Filed Under: Dog Walking

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Paw Pals specializes in professional dog walking, dog sitting, and pet sitting services. One of our reliable, adult staff members will keep your pet safe, while providing your pet the love and care they need when you are away. Contact us to learn more!

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Paw Pals Pet Sitting, LLC
14001-C Saint Germain Drive #213
Centreville, VA 20121
(703) 345-1695

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Centreville – 20120, 20121
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Paw Pals Pet Sitting
Paw Pals Pet Sitting
4.9
Taylor Smith
Taylor Smith
21:22 03 Oct 21
I never worry when Mary and team take care of my dog!
Michæl Silva
Michæl Silva
21:38 01 Jul 22
Mary at Paw Pals Pet Sitting is the greatest! She has helped me train my pooch Chico how play nice with other dogs and for that I am extremely grateful! A+A+A+A+A+A
Kwi Kim
Kwi Kim
22:37 17 Jun 22
I hired Paw Pals based on my sister’s referral. Meet & greet was very thorough and detailed. I was surprised that my finicky cat came to check the sitter out. Subsequently, a sitter watched my cat over several separate visits, and it was clear through the visit reports that my cat loved the sitter. All the visits were completed having followed my directions & with professionalism.I would highly recommend Paw Pals to anyone who’s looking for a dependable, personable, & professional sitter.
Joseph Walter
Joseph Walter
19:55 13 Jun 22
Paw Pals provided a large number of photos of our pets along with a personalized message on how our pets were doing with every single visit. I would highly recommend using Paw Pals, we'll be continuing to use them whenever we go on vacation.
Ashley Manning
Ashley Manning
09:50 11 Jun 22
Highly recommend as pet sitters!Initially, a sitter from the company will visit the house to meet the pets and learn where everything is. Tatiana took careful notes and we got her some spare keys.While we are away, Paw Pals sends sitters to come and look after our boys. They feed them, scoop litter, bring in mail and packages, and they will even manage trash, recycling, blinds and lights so that everything is comfortable for our kitties. Each time they check in, we receive an email message with updates and pictures, which is so comforting when we are on the road.Also, if you don’t let Paw Pals know when you are home, they assume something has happened and will continue to care for your babies. If something were to happen, I know they would be okay.Five stars for Paw Pals!
Brian Wood
Brian Wood
04:08 22 May 22
We have used Paw Pals for a number of years now and would highly recommend to anyone looking for help with their pets. Great communication from owner Mary and flexibility to make adjustments in schedule as life changes over time. Have had a consistent set of walkers who have gotten to know our pup and the various walking routes around our neighborhood quite well.
Lesley Bush
Lesley Bush
13:58 18 Mar 22
We can't rave enough about Paw Pals. They took care of our 18 year old Cat and 20 year old Chinchilla while we were away and when our flight got cancelled, they were so accommodating and available last minute for an extra day. We worked with Jen to coordinate visits from Miko and Danny. I loved the pictures and updates on how our Lil geriatric guys were doing. Thanks a million, Paw Pals!! Our special pets were so well cared for.
Sebastian Barnes
Sebastian Barnes
01:06 17 Jan 22
I have used Paw Pals for several trips over the last few months, and they have been phenomenal every time! Mary is extremely kind and responsive, and she makes sure that my cat and dog have the care that they need every time I am out of town. All of the pet sitters that I've had have been incredibly sweet to my pets, and they treat them like their own! Will gladly continue using Paw Pals every time I need a sitter.
Julie Shildt
Julie Shildt
17:45 14 Nov 21
It has been a pleasure doing business with paw pals. We have used this company for several trips we have taken over the past 6 months. They have been wonderful caretakers for our 2 cats. Anytime there is ever a question they don't hesitate to give us a call and they leave the best notes and pictures in the emailed report of each visit. We are so glad have found such a great company.
Andrea Hall
Andrea Hall
22:45 03 Oct 20
I wasn't sure about hiring a new doggie walker service... after all they are our kiddos... my babies were in great hands and I felt relaxed having them in their care. Thank you for everything!
Katie McCune
Katie McCune
19:19 15 Jul 21
I honestly cannot recommend Mary and her whole crew enough! We started using Mary originally about 7 years ago to stop by occasionally when our Aussie Lana was younger. Over the next couple years Lana stayed with Mary and her family for a couple weekends when we went on vacation. When we moved to our new house in Manassas, Lana stayed with Sam, who lives in Manassas, overnight for moving day, and did great. Right before the pandemic, we adopted our second Aussie, Goose, and Mary recommended a fantastic trainer for him.We now have weekly walks for the dogs, and they love all of their walkers! Trevor, Paul, Hazel, Sofie, and probably a couple others have helped Goose get used to more people, and have helped my husband and me when our schedules are crazy.Paw Pals is our go-to for any help with our dogs, so I highly recommend them!
Alexandra Hill
Alexandra Hill
22:43 23 May 21
I was a nervous mommy to leave my cats with a sitter service for the first time. Paw Pals went above and beyond to care for my cats and ease a nervous mommy. I already made a reservation to use them again!
Cindy Welgoss
Cindy Welgoss
13:12 27 Nov 20
We have been using Paw Pals for several years, and through a variety of pets that we have loved. Mary and her team have always been *exceptional* in every way. They are professional, courteous, and truly love our fur family! Mary herself is an organized and stellar administrator of her pet care business, keeping detailed records of our pet’s needs, scheduled pet visits, payments, and balance due easy to keep track of as the pet owner. The pet caretaking team is reliable and trustworthy. When our dogs see any of their Paw Pal friends, they get SO excited to see them! Follow up comments are left via text to keep the pet owner informed of the visit and how the pets are faring. Paw Pals has allowed our family the peace of mind to leave our pets at home, for work, weekend getaways and longer times away when necessary, where they are the most comfortable and familiar. We are grateful to Mary and her team for giving us the ability to enjoy pet ownership without feeling tied down. The responsibility of having pets comes with the need to keep them safe and comfortable at all times, and Mary and her team affords us this when our family has to be away.
Dr Tammy Cashion
Dr Tammy Cashion
21:11 12 Mar 19
We have used Paw pals pet sitting on multiple occasions for our bunnies while we are away. Many pet sitters are not interested in small pets however; Mary and her team, are amazing and we trust her implicitly! We are very happy with the outstanding service we have received from her team including texts and photos of our pets when we are out of town. They always go the extra mile and we highly recommend them!
Kristin Conrad
Kristin Conrad
16:00 16 Nov 19
We are so grateful we found Mary and her team at Paw Pals. They are exceptionally responsive, amazingly organized and detail-oriented.We have such peace of mind when we travel knowing our home and pets are so well cared for. Paw Pals is the best pet sitting service we’ve used, and we’re so happy we found them.
Katie Russell
Katie Russell
15:01 17 May 20
Paw Pals is fantastic! I have had a great experience with Mary! Compassionate, professional, responsive, and prompt! Thank you!
Phillip Evans
Phillip Evans
14:38 11 Jul 20
When we adopted our new dog in January, Paw Pals agreed to walk her and give her some outside time so she wasn't in the crate all day. She loved her dog walker and you could see her excitement every time the walker showed up. We moved out of the area but would recommend Paw Pals to anyone needing someone to care for their pets.
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