October 21st, 2008
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So, why do dogs scratch with their hind legs after defecating? You might think the dog is trying to cover up his poop like a cat does, but it’s actually a way to mark territory, with the scratch marks in the ground pointing to the scent the dog has left. |
interesting. i always wondered. but… um, what kind of dogs (wait–is this a shitsu thing?
and how many were surveyed to reach this conclusion? how did they signify their responses? i mean really… how could you know this for sure?
One thing I think one would do is look at the personality of the dog. My submissive lab never scratched the ground until I got my dominant coon hound. The hound really tears up the ground and now that the lab is starting to show some signs of dominance, he’s scratching at the ground as well.
John’s comment is hilarious – but no, nobody stood behind a thousand dogs after they pooped and took a poll of why they scratched backwards afterwards!! Like so many dog behaviors, social scientists have deduced information about their behavior by studying wolves in captivity. And I myself have noticed that only a small number of dogs actually engage in this mark-scratching, and those who do will also sometimes do it after they mark with urine. As for Becky’s comment, there is not really any relationship established by those researchers between a dog’s place in his pack and marking where he defecated. The Lab may just have learned this behavior from watching, as dogs learn so very many other things – when you say “submissive” Lab, was he submissive to the Hound or to all dogs? or to you? this word and description is so misunderstood, but we’ll save that for another time. I also would suggest you check out THE DOG BIBLE or other publications that explain what “dominant” means, since it is a word misused by many people, especially even trainers who have not done much studying, and it can get in the way of really understanding your beautiful Hound’s true temperament.