English Bulldog Woke up and ‘Chose Violence’ While Playing with Plastic Container

Does your dog ever play so roughly with something that you wonder if they are trying to literally rip it apart? Pancake is an adorable English Bulldog and one morning at the end of August, her mom said that she woke up and 'chose violence' when she handed the pooch a plastic container to play with. It's the cutest thing you'll see today!

With the theme song from the movie Rocky playing along, the video shows Pancake running around outside (it looks like some zoomies happened before the main event) before mom tosses the plastic container to her. Pancake whips it from side to side, wrestles with it, takes a short break, and refuses to let mom have it back. Go Pancake!

And the winner is...Pancake! She looked so proud of herself and her efforts throughout the video. She's a fighter for sure. Commenters also got a kick out of the bulldog's adorable viciousness. @williamdarby117 said, "This music is appropriate!!" @Remygirl shared, "It’s ok Pancake. I choose violence sometimes too LOL!" @Mlyssa716 admitted, "How I feel before I have my coffee." But my favorite comment came from @judyjohnson5981 who pointed out, "Well there's a 16-hour nap," and Pancake's mom replied, "Coming up right after that! LOL!"

Related: English Bulldog Happily Playing with His Monster Truck Is Making Everybody Smile

Why Do Dogs Shake Their Toys?

All dogs play aggressively at times, whipping their toys around from side to side. My dog has a tug of war rope and whips it around so hard that if you're standing too close, you'll get whacked, and it hurts! Why do dogs shake their toys around so hard? It all boils down to instincts.

Dogs are hunters at heart, with strong predatory instincts. Before we kept them as pets, wild dogs had to hunt for their meals and kill what they could find. One of the ways they did this was from shaking their prey from side to side.

Another PetHelpful article explains that when dogs play, they don't know how to play pretend like kids do, "While humans possess quite a wild imagination, especially during childhood, dogs tend to lack such sophisticated creative thought processes. This means that it's highly unlikely for dogs to play "make believe." Play rather happens at a more instinctive level." So, while kids play by pretending to cook or drive a car for example, dogs don't have the capacity to do that, "dogs utilize play as a way to relieve their instincts and practice certain hunting skills. These skills may no longer be necessary for survival nowadays (as humans provide them with shelter, warmth, water, and food), but it’s still hardwired deep in their brains."

When a dog hunts, they do it in steps: search, stalk, chase, bite, dissect, consume. What we see a dog doing when they're shaking a toy aggressively is part of the bite sequence. "The first is the catch-bite where the predator latches on to the prey and stops it from escaping (this is why dogs love squeaky toys). Then there’s the kill bite. This can take a few forms from gripping the throat to severe the jugular and carotid arteries to shaking side-to-side to snap the animals' neck or spine."

Does that sound familiar? I see it every day when my dog is playing. It's easy to why they do what they do once you understand the science behind it. Pretty interesting stuff!

Looking for more PetHelpful updates? Follow us on YouTube for more entertaining videos. Or, share your own adorable pet by submitting a video, and sign up for our newsletter for the latest pet updates and tips.