We all love our dogs, but sometimes they do weird things, which are also incredibly cute, we dog owners just cannot understand. That is, until now! Below is a list of questions you have probably asked yourself about your dog followed by an explanation to further enlighten you about your furry friend.
1. Why do dogs smell each others’ butts? (Yuck!)
You would think that with a such strong sense of smell dogs would want to steer FAR away from each others’ derrières, rather than getting up close and personal with their noses! However, this is a way for dogs to greet one another. By sniffing each other they essentially receive a biography of scents and pheromones that consists of their dog-friend’s health, diet, cleanliness, and emotional state. Crazy, right?!
2. What vendetta does my dog have against the mailperson?
As excited as we may be to see the mailperson approaching our house with our packages and letters our dogs do not feel the same way as us. Rather, they feel threatened. From a dog’s perspective the mailperson, or even a pizza deliverer, is an uninvited intruder trespassing onto their property. So your dog is attempting to guard his territory.
3. Why does my dog run in circles before laying down?
Tracing back from their wild dog ancestry, running around in circles is a way for dogs to “pat down tall grass” and get comfortable for a good night’s sleep. Then dogs curl up in a circle to stay warm and to protect their organs while asleep.
4. How many tricks can a dog learn?
Some dogs, such as Lassie, seem to be like prodigies. Yet other dogs cannot even recognize their own reflection. This is because some breeds are proven to be smarter than other breeds based on how they were bred years ago. Overall, dogs can understand about 165 words/tricks, but their learning is only limited by their exposure to new experiences and their owner’s imagination.
5. Why do dogs have whiskers?
Sometimes we even forget that our dogs have whiskers because they seem so impractical. However, dog whiskers are used to be able to detect vibrations in the air which notifies the dog if something—danger—is approaching them.
6. Why does my dog roll in smelly odors and poop?!
Dogs are weird. However, our best theory is that this behavior also traces back to dog ancestry of wolves. By rolling in the odors, our dogs are covering up their own smells so they will not be sensed by their prey. Another theory is that our dogs, oddly enough, enjoy the scent.
7. Are dogs really color blind?
Yes and no. Although dogs cannot see all the colors of the rainbow-like humans, they can see more than just shades of grey. In simple terms, dogs can see shades of yellows, blues, and violets. Yet dogs also have larger pupils which allows them to have much better vision at night time than humans do.
8. Why do dogs lick EVERYTHING? Even my feet!
There is no better feeling than being licked by your furry friend, but why do they lick everything?! Licking is a natural and essential behavior of dogs used for many reasons: to show affection and love, to soothe an ouchie, to groom and clean, to mark something or someone as his/hers, as a way of play or simply just because!
9. Why do dogs have to sniff before going potty?
Sometimes it feels like your dog has been walking around forever with his or her nose stuffed in the grass sniffing every blade of grass. This relates back to their instinctual behavior of odor and scent. By going potty they are not only defecating, but are also marking their territory or making a statement for future dogs to discern.
10. Why does my dog lay on my clothes or shoes?
Our dogs are considered part of the family, and from a dogs’ perspective, they also believe that they are a part of the pact. To feel close to their owners/pact, they enjoy lying on top of our distinct scent which we discard on our clothes and personal belongings. Also, I think most of us could agree that a pile of clothes is much more comfier than the floor.