By Dr. Mary Fuller
Weimaraner sniffing the groundEvery
day, all over the world, dogs repeat the same ritual: Nose to the
ground, they sniff along a dotted line of an invisible treasure map,
stopping at that "X" marks the spot where they can finally get down to
business. What's with all this sniffing, anyway?
The simple answer: It's the way dogs have been communicating with one another for centuries.
Scent Marking Is Serious Business Scent marking is an instinctual behavior in which a dog deposits his own odor - in the form of urine or feces - onto his environment to mark territory or make a statement.
See Also: Why Does My Dog... Roll in Poop?
Other dogs who come upon the scent can discern a lot about fellow canines in the neighborhood. With one whiff of urine, a pup can determine how many dogs have been there, how long ago they were in the area and, best of all, if there's a female in heat nearby.
Anal Gland Aromas While urine marking is the most common form of scent marking, feces can also be used to leave a message. When a dog defecates, pressure against the glands on either side of the anus can cause the glands to expel a unique, musky scent onto the feces.
Since dogs can also express their anal glands when scared, the scent may also serve to alert other dogs to danger. On a more mundane level, dogs may just sniff the feces to determine what another canine has recently eaten, telling them that ingestible goodies may be close at hand.
See Also: Why Does My Dog... Eat Poop?
Once they've garnered all the information that they need from urine or feces, most dogs return the favor by leaving their own deposits. It's their way of saying, "This is my turf, so stay out!"
More on Vetstreet.com:
* 5 Pet Behavior Myths That Drive Vets Crazy
* 11 Unique Pet Names That Will Whet Your Appetite
end quote from:
http://shine.yahoo.com/pets/why-does-dog-sniff-ground-pooping-133300628.html
I had a funny experience with this in the last year or so. My daughter's Corgi learned when she was about 3 to fetch sticks from my older (now 14 year old long hair german shepard australian shepard mix). So now, she is now 9 years old and still fetches sticks while he follows slowly smelling everything in sight. One day I picked up a stick to smell it before throwing it to make sure it didn't have poop or pee on it. My daughter's dog looked at me and said loudly and telepathically to me, "Everything has poop on it!" It was such an intense thought for her and full of joy for her that I picked it up as a human. And it sort of through me for a loop because this isn't usually the level of communication that I have ordinarily with dogs. But as I thought about it, "Yes. Everything does have poop on it from bugs, birds flying through the air, animals peeing and defecating on it etc. So, if you are outside there is literally nothing that doesn't have poop or pee residue on it at all ever. So, that is the world we live in which I found sort of overwhelming in the moment to consider because mostly I just don't think about life outside ordinarily that way. I suppose to some degree that is true inside a house too because of insects or pets there as well too.
So, it is something we all have to get used to if we ever think about it at all. However, the above article helps people understand better the world dogs actually live in. They are carrion eaters like vultures and so naturally are one of nature's clean up tools for the carcasses of dead things. However, they have also been great friends and helpers for thousands or more years too.
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