Nothing is more likely to cause blush as much as seeing your dog’s good manners suddenly turn into a ferocious derriere-loving detective, pushing his eyes into the dark areas of pets and humans. What is the reason it happens that dogs smell like butts? Does there any reason?
Based on Melissa McMath Hatfield, MS, CDBC, CBCC-KA CDBC manager of Loving Dogs in Fayetteville, Ark., there are plausible reasons that your dog might be a crotch examiner or a butt sniffer (we use this phrase most gently). There are ways to alter this behavior in the event of need.
How Do Dogs Get Their Smell? Each Other’s Butts?
The act of dogs sniffing one another’s bums is usually called the handshake that dogs use to greet each other in the world. “If you witness a typical meeting and greeting among dogs,” Hatfield explains, “one will be sniffing the back of the other, and the two dogs will swap places and then turn the gesture around. This process usually takes about three seconds and is considered a polite greeting.”
But Hatfield claims it’s much more than meets the eye because dogs don’t just greet each other through their noses; they’re capturing crucial information from them due to their ability to smell like superheroes.
“While humans’ brains are controlled by the visual cortex,” Hatfield says, “dog brains are controlled by the Olfactory cortex and its sense of smell their most powerful sense. The dogs have up to 300 million receptors for olfactory stimulation within their noses, compared to approximately six million human brains.”
It’s been suggested that dogs’ perception of scent could be 10 to 100 times more sensitive than our noses. Researchers in dog cognition Alexandra Horowitz put their abilities in the context of a more specific way, stating that a dog’s snout can detect one teaspoon of sugar in two Olympic-sized swimming pools of water.
The dog’s high sniffer gets into contact with the distinctive and potent smell released by the other canine’s anal glands (two tiny sacs located in the rectum), and a great degree of communication happens. Hatfield states that by sniffing the back of a dog, your dog can get information about the other dog’s health, food, sex, diet, social status, and, most crucially, mood.
“Dogs can smell adrenaline and pheromones,” Hatfield says, “which helps them decide if they are interacting with a person who is an adversary or a friend or if they need to flee, fight or even play.” Because dogs are adept at recollecting scents, they can use their noses to determine if they’ve ever met this bottom dog.
What causes dogs to sniff humans In Private Spaces? How can I stop this behavior?
Unfortunately, dogs do not limit their sensitive noses to those from their particular species. They will often “greet” you and your human guests similarly and for the same reason. It’s to gather vital details.”
A brief sniff is all the dog requires,” Hatfield says. “Otherwise, it’s rude, rude, or simply sniffy.” (Pun intended.) How can you softly limit a dog’s personal investigation work? Basic cues Dear Watson.
Related What Causes Dogs to Lick Their Humans? A Vet explains
Hatfield recommends distracting your dog from the human crotch using one of the signals he recognizes. “This will allow the time to pass and allow the dog with something more suitable.”
Although any trick can be used, Hatfield offers the following simple clues that can be used as a way to divert attention:
- “Come”
- “Watch me”
- “Sit”
- “Fetch”
- “Touch” Touch” hand-targeting
And if you need a diversion to help your friend/neighbor/coworker forget that your dog’s snout was just in their crotch, why not spout off some of your newly acquired trivia regarding canine sniffing abilities?
Do I have to let my dog sniff other dogs’ butts?
“It’s completely acceptable to allow your dog to sniff another pet’s private parts, and in reverse,” Hatfield says. “But be aware that a socially-adjusted friendly greeting usually lasts anywhere from 3 to 5 minutes. If the sniffing goes on for longer than that, you should think of it as a red flag and keep the dogs separate.”
Other indicators that the sniff is about to transform into a tiff are high-pitched growls, a raised head, and one dog with his head in another dog’s neck.
A dog that doesn’t like to be petted may lie down to prevent one-way communication. If you observe your dog is trying to get a sniff from a dog who prefers to be left to its own devices, you can use the same techniques of redirection described earlier to get them involved in a better pursuit.
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