Maggie, Skip, Jim and I are just back from a lovely hour-long walk this morning. All four of us were serenaded by the songs of a newly-arrived migrating birds, including Yellow and Palm Warblers.
Bird photos from Wikipedia, such a great resource.
Jim and I gloried in the sights of these gorgeous birds, the French-blue sky after a day of rain, and baby leaf buds springing forth, full of life and promise and hope.
While we walked and looked, the dogs walked and sniffed. And sniffed and sniffed and sniffed and sniffed. Yes, they got some physical exercise–especially good for Skip now that he can take longer walks along with his physical therapy exercises. But mostly what they got was brain food, and I can’t think of anything more important for a domestic dog than that. There’s a lot going on between those adorable ears, and we neglect it at our peril. Using their noses engages a dog’s brain in vital ways, and can prevent a raft of behavioral problems. Lots of interesting sniffing has been critical to keeping a just-turned, three-year old freight train of a Border Collie sane during his extreme physical restrictions. (Not to mention my sanity. Just saying.)
I was reminded of a post I wrote in 2016 titled Take Your Dog on a Sniff, and I thought today would be a good day to repeat it. There are so many people with new dogs out there, along with so many people with dogs/kids/jobs/life/pandemics taking up massive amounts of our time and energy. The best way I know to tire out a dog out in a healthy way is not to get it physical exercise, but to give it mental exercise. Tricks are one way to do that, but letting a dog use its nose-brain connection is another. You can do that by playing scent games, or going on walks (especially in new places), and the pay off is huge. Skip and Maggie came back to chew on stuffed Kongs, and are now sleeping at my feet while I write.
Here’s the post from 2016, Take Your Dog on a Sniff:
Recently I watched someone walking his dog close to my office in Black Earth. Every ten feet or so the dog tried to stop to sniff the ground, and every time she did, the man at the other end of the leash pulled her forward so that he could continue walking. Ah, the canine-primate disconnect, which never fails to appear if we just pay attention. I wrote an entire book about this, The Other End of the Leash, and yet I’m still discovering ways in which we struggle to merge our ethological needs.
Primates love to walk, at least, terrestrial ones like humans do. Not only that, but we like to walk side-by-side with our friends, to face the world together and exchange the news of the day. While we’re walking we spend a lot of energy looking around—enjoying the view and noting what has changed in the neighborhood. Dogs, on the other hand, primarily want to learn about the environment through olfaction, a sense that we humans are better at than we think, but often pay little attention to. But how many of us insist that our dogs don’t stop to smell the roses, but walk or trot happily by our side? It is why, in Family Friendly Dog Training, I suggest that dogs define heeling as “walk slowly and ignore all interesting things”. This photo, by the way, is Susannah Charleson’s Search and Rescue dog Puzzle, with Susannah in the background. (If you haven’t read her books yet, you’re lucky–because now you get to. Don’t miss them, they’re great.)
Dog owners aren’t alone in ignoring the olfactory needs of animals. Birte Nielsen and colleagues published an important paper in December of 2015 titled “Olfaction: An Overlooked Sensory Modality in Applied Ethology and Animal Welfare.” They argue, compelling, that we do animals a disservice by not acknowledging the impact of odor on their behavior and wellbeing. These odors can both cause suffering or improve lives. Jenna Bueley, DVM, found that air captured from a busy, stress-filled urban veterinary clinic increased stress-related behavior in dogs, reported at the 2012 IFAAB conference. Clark and King, noted in Nielsen’s article, found that olfactory stimulation increased behavioral diversity and activity levels in captive black-footed cats. But note… the same study found that odors had little effect on the behavior of captive gorillas. Ah, that primate thing again.
You don’t need me to tell you how important smell is to a dog. None of us are surprised that years ago, Bradshaw and Lea found that the vast majority of a dog’s interaction with a new dog related to olfaction (1992). But I think we all, me included, need to be reminded of how much “going on a walk” can be defined by us as “walking while looking and perhaps talking,” while to a dog, “going on a walk” means moving from one interesting smell to another.
It is important, but not natural, for us to acknowledge the essential nature of the sense of smell. Examples of its importance abound: Wells and Hepper (2006) found that day-old pups preferred the scent of aniseed if their mother’s food had contained it while they were pregnant. Think about that—it means that dogs can learn to associate emotions, and thus behavior, with a particular smell even before they are born. (Breeders take note.) It also appears that the perception of scent is lateralized in the brain in dogs. Sinischalchi and colleagues (“Sniffing with the right nostril” 2011) found that dogs preferred to use the right nostril when sniffing new scents, and switched to the left when the scent became routine, or non-threatening. Dogs who smelled arousing stimuli (adrenalin, sweat) never switched to the left nostril. Since the right nostril is linked to the right hemisphere of the brain (it’s an exception to the usual switch, left eye to right brain for example—if that stopped you for a moment, it did me too…), this suggests that olfaction in a dog’s brain is lateralized, and that the sympathetic HPA axis (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal, or “on alert!” axis) is primarily mediated by the right hemisphere in dogs.
[Addendum added in 2020: And now we now that a dog’s nose can sense heat. Who knows what else they can do with their noses!]
This all circles around to the title of the blog: Take your dog on a sniff. I’ve written before that dogs need autonomy to be truly happy. I’m arguing here that what they most need is the freedom to use their noses. That is easy for us who can walk our dogs off leash. But leashed dogs need owners willing to compromise—an invigorating primate walk with our dogs trotting alongside part of the time, and the rest includes the dog getting, finally, the freedom to go from scent to scent and all the stimulation and information that entails.
Full disclosure: I’ve been good for years about letting my dogs stop to sniff when we are walking on leash, but lest I sound smug, guess how many photos I have of my dogs sniffing something? Three. Only three. That’s compared to literally hundreds of photos of my dogs playing together or with toys. Ah, that primate thing again. (Happy to say I updated that this morning, in May 2020, when I took a lot of sniffing photos.)
MEANWHILE, back on the farm: Skip is progressing by leaps and bounds, and we got a green light from UW physical therapist Courtney Arnoldy to give him a bit more freedom. Here she is working on weight loading Skip’s back right leg through a series of exercises that we replicate in the garage. (I watch on FaceTime, can’t go into the building. The photo was taken by assistant Haley, who was invaluable in keeping Skip focused while Courtney set up some of the exercises.)
Half of our walk this morning was with Skip on a long line rather than a short leash, so he got lots of time to trot rather than just walk fast. I’ve tried letting him off leash for a brief period of time and it’s pretty much what I thought it’d be: Two seconds of Skip standing still, and then exploding as if out of a rocket for twenty strides–the time it takes me to say Stand! and call him back to me. It’s just impossible to ease a young dog into getting a graduated amount of exercise, but I’m doing the best I can. Our next PT appt is next Monday, and I have hopes that his leg will be sound enough that I really can let him run for a few minutes without causing a set back.
Here are the dogs wearing out their brains while we listen to the birds.
If you follow the blog you know I love to cook, and I’ve done even more of it since Jim and I are staying Safe at Home as much as we can. Saturday I made the dough for these cinammon date rolls, and Sunday morning I got up early to make up the rolls and let them rise a second time before baking. (Or, “proof” if you’re British, says the woman binge watching The Great British Baking Show over and over and over again) . They look pretty good in the photo for sure, but I have to say, they taste even better. Healthy? Uh, nope. I’m making amends by making a lovely chicken/asparagus dish tonight, but I just picked fresh rhubarb and I have this recipe for rhubarb cake that is out of this world . . .
Friend and kick ass photographer Stephn Dahlgren came out to the farm last week to take some more photos. We haven’t seen most of them yet, but here’s one of Nellie, who, of course, managed to photo bomb what had been a great opportunity for a Trisha/Skip photo in lovely light. Nellie is highly displeased that twice a day I have to keep her out of the garage to do Skip’s physical therapy. She is making it clear by ripping the hell out of the wooded frame to the garage door, the message being clear: This is MY GARAGE. CAN YOU NOT READ THE SCENT MARKS AND VISUAL SIGNALS?
I hope you are hanging in there during this challenging time. As a dear niece said to me recently, “We’re all in the same storm but in different boats.” I hope your boat is keeping you afloat safely and without too much suffering.
Chris from Boise says
So glad you posted this. I, primate that I am, finally figured out last week how Rowan can sense a dog that’s making no noise behind a wooden fence. We’re working on leash reactivity, and if I spot a dog before she does, I can usually manage the situation to keep it under control. It’s when she senses the dog before I do, and escalates (barking and lunging, which is almost guaranteed to rev up the other dog), that things go down the tube. Well – duh: she smells the other dog. So now I actually believe her when she indicates the start of a problem, even when I don’t see it, and we take whatever measures are necessary to stay under threshold. It’s REALLY hard (for me, at least) to imagine what an animal with a different suite of senses is taking in.
I completely agree that a good sniffing walk is terrific for the dog – and helps me tune into my surroundings as well. It’s a mindfulness time for both of us.
So glad that Skip’s improving so well. May running be in his near future. In the meantime, thank goodness for long lines to control his enthusiasm.
OMG, those cinnamon date rolls! I can smell them from here!
Nikki says
I hope you plan to share your rhubarb cake recipe. I’m farther north so still a few weeks from getting to pick mine, up once I do I’ll be inundated with it.
Barbara says
Trisha, you are not alone in enjoying the Great British Baking Show. It’s one of my favorite shows on TV. I love Mary Barry and Paul Hollywood but Paul’s steely-eyed stare would make me too nervous to bake! I have been doing more baking during this pandemic and mostly rotate between 3 cookie recipes; molasses ginger, snickerdoodles and chocolate chip. BTW your buns look great! And thanks for the lovely warbler photos. I can never get enough of those spring birds.
Frances says
I am one of the lucky ones who can walk my dogs off leash, even during lockdown – they sniff, I watch the leaves and flowers opening and listen to the birds – it is what is keeping me sane! But I have also come to appreciate the power of scent games to work a dog’s brain – 3 rounds of hunting for tiny treats hidden around the room will settle my two for several hours, a great blessing when the weather is foul or human injury limits walking time!
Dogmom2 says
I love the pic of Skip and PT; I love that PT for dog exists. My BC is doing acupuncture and PT for mobility issues and his doc sends me photos and video; not being allowed to be there is hard. We also do exercises at home, and recently started swim therapy. Exercise is a big deal for keeping him mobile, so we do two walks per day, with the early walk being just me and him. He can sniff all he wants as long as we make some forward motion and I truly believe it helps his brain as well as his body.
My little dog (chi/terrier) is the only dog I’ve known who does not like walks. At best she mopes along behind us looking sad, at worst we end up carrying her. She transforms into a mighty hunter when we get to the campground near home, where SQUIRRELS! happen. Then she makes her dad run around with her checking all the squirrel holes til she’s exhausted and then, yes, makes him carry her home. Who’s training who? 🙂
My mom used to make cinnamon rolls that looked like your photo, so I know they taste good. 🙂 Thanks for your blog, I don’t comment often but I read regularly and appreciate the food for thought.
Nan S says
My ancient Lab has lost a lot of seeing and hearing, but his nose seems to be going as strong as ever. Our walks are hardly even a stroll, progressing at less than a mile an hour. In my suburban neighborhood, dogs are getting walked more than ever, so messages get updated several times a day, it seems. I have fancied I can see his brain expand as the nose goes wild during our interminable stops on our slow progress around around the block. I’ll have to look for the left/right nostril thing!
Gayle Leader says
I’m pretty sure all the dogs in my neighborhood are desperate to smell each other – and we are desperately trying to keep them (and us) away. Some are newly adopted and perhaps starved for canine interaction. Sadly, it does seem to be compounding the already reactive/leash aggressive/electric fence situation.
Imagine us being deprived of our ability to see and hear other humans … thanks for your insight, Patricia!
MinnesotaMary says
Boat safely afloat with my two pups! I’m very grateful for being able to work from home. Thank you for the reminder to allow sniffing on our walks. I walk twice daily – a long fast one in the early morning (5:15 start time usually) and a shorter slower one in the evening where sniffing is encouraged. It’s always good to be reminded though – the primate tendency to ignore smells is strong, especially when I’m concerned about physical distancing from neighbors.
Barb says
Thank you for the sniff reminders! I recently bought a 15 ft leash so I could do some slower sniff walks with my dog-reactive youngster. But I tend to hesitate to take her since the reactivity is a work-in-progress and I try not to put her in situations that send her over threshold. Today’s blog inspired me to get out there later today. She needs it. And I’m sure I’ll benefit too from slowing down and being more present to the nature rather than scanning for other dogs on a typical neighborhood walk. Thank you for the gentle nudge and the gorgeous photos 🙂
Ellen Michael says
Here’s another reader hoping you will share that recipe for rhubarb cake, Tricia!
Hoping, hoping, hoping….
Trisha says
Ellen and Nikki, re rhubarb cake. I’ve looked for the recipe on line, but couldn’t find the exact one. When I have a minute I’ll write it out for you, but I can tell you that my card (which I got at a farmer’s market) says “Recipe by Theresa Stevens of Dairyland Cook, with a logo beside it that says Wisconsin Whisk. Let me know if you find it on line!
Anne Johnson says
The need to sniff is so important to my Aussie when exploring the trail as well as venturing on his cruise through the back yard. I recently took Tank to Dr. London’s neighborhood to walk with her, and yes, he was given many opportunities to stop and sniff as we walked. Mainly because I don’t use walks as exercise as much as I do training for him to deal with new places and how he reacts to each distraction. He is so reactive that I found he needed these opportunities to show me why and how he was reacting instead of me making him conform to my expectations. We are working on his fears and apprehensions. And I’m learning so much about my companion’s personality!
Martin says
My golden retriever loves scent games and other brain games and I make sure to play some with her every single day. That said, they do NOT make her tired. Even after 45 minutes of searching for treats, she says she’s not tired and really does have problems falling asleep for her afternoon nap. When I teach her tricks, the part of her mind that’s responsible for processing words/commands gets tired fairly quickly (5-15 minutes) – at least, I assume that’s why she starts offering tricks semi-randomly even though she’s obviously trying – but she is not ready to settle down and can still solve non-verbal puzzles with ease. That goes for both new and old tricks.
The only way to get her tired is to give her actual, vigorous exercise. That was true when she was young and is still the case now that she’s 10. 7-25 minutes of running games will wear her out, depending on how fast she needs to run and how much of the game is actual movement vs. waiting for the next round. Whether or not she played a brain game beforehand makes no difference whatsoever.
Mind you, some of her favorite games combine mental and physical stimulation. We have a pole with a string on the end. At the end of the string is a toy that can hold a piece of duck jerky. It’s basically an industrial strength version of the well-known cat toy, except that there’s a real treat to be had. Speed, agility, and strategy are all needed to catch it. Chasing tossed treats is also a hit.
She loves a recall game where she needs to go back an forth between two people – who are far apart and find a new hiding spot every time she’s trying to find the other person. Since we actually call her to practice recall in a fun way, she uses her ears and eyes more than her nose. (We use whistles for both the command and for the marker when we’re very far apart so that we know when she got to the other person. And there are treats involved to make it extra fun.)
Of course, the aforementioned searching for hidden treats with her nose is also a favorite, which is why we play it frequently. We just have to follow it up with actual exercise so she can nap instead of getting grumpy.
The other two dogs I had also relished brain games, but needed physical exercise to tire out. Yet I keep reading that dogs in general get more tired from the former than the latter. This puzzles me. Are my dogs so different from other dogs?
Kristin says
I love this post so much! I have tried to give Aki as much autonomy on walks as I safely can while he is still on leash, inspired by your words. When we walk, we are on sniffari. There is an undeveloped industrial park near our house containing a combination of low brush, wetlands, forest, and walking trails. We practice loose-leash walking, with me asking him “Which way?” when there is a choice. So we vary our route and which ground we cover each time, depending on where his nose takes us. There are exceptions, since a lot of people let their dogs off leash there and we have had some unpleasant run-ins. So I occasionally have to gently guide him a different direction to keep him away from potential trouble ahead (particularly now so, since we’re social distancing). Sometimes we hit the wooded trails for an extended (but mild) hike while he occasionally pauses to investigate that fern or this bit of tree branch. I generally let Aki set the pace – sometimes we’re downright leisurely and others, he strides with purpose – and I’m quite content for him to walk ahead of me. I’ve read you’re not supposed to let the dog lead you, but I feel like I am in control of so much of Aki’s life, I can at least let him determine the flavor of our walks. That’s his time, as far as I’m concerned – I am out there for him. (That’s not to say I don’t enjoy walks, but my preference would be a route that involves stops for coffee and pastry.) 🙂 Glad to read Skip is on the mend.
Diana Clark says
Thank you so much for your wonderful posts.! You reminded me that I should be more patient when walking my Golden Retriever who constantly wants to sniff everything. (I’m pretty good but after a while I’m like come on! Mommy needs to get some exercise too!) I’ll try and do better. I am so glad that Skip is improving. He looks great and those cinnamon rolls look amazing!
Rebecca Rice says
Hi!
I finally got a lovely 30-foot long line just to be able to do sniffaris with my young rat terrier. He’s high prey-drive, so I totally don’t trust him off-leash in semi-wild areas, plus I don’t think it’s fair to the wildlife to be stressed by my off-leash dog. So, it’s a compromise. I live in a relatively suburban area, but there are patches and pockets of nature around, with some nice paseos (walking/biking paths) that go to and through them, and I have managed to find a somewhat hidden one that goes down to a river bed. Rigger loves to be out there, going where his nose leads! And I delight in watching him “be a dog”. He’s a gorgeous boy, and just watching him move and figure out how to navigate the terrain (over this log… under that bush, splash through the water?) is delightful and relaxing. I highly recommend people do it as much as they can!
Ellen Goldman says
My young Aussie Ruby spends half her life sniffing the entire backyard which is quite large. It really is her job. Sniffing out all the lizards under every bush and chasing away the birds who invade her property. And we always allow sniffing time during walks.
I also made cinnamon buns, first try and they didn’t look perfect but we’re perfectly delicious!
I tried to paste a pic but it didn’t work so you’ll have to imagine them.
Sherry says
https://www.foodfanatic.com/recipe-box/recipes/rhubarb-coffee-cake-dairyland-cook/
Is this the recipe you were looking for?
Katie Z. says
I’ve been really enjoying following up on all of your resources! 🙂 I found and read some of your books last year, but didn’t realize you had this website until I stumbled across your facebook page earlier this month.
I’m watching Lost In Translation? at the moment, and realllly enjoying it; thank you for making it available! I noticed that there are credits listed for the seminars. I am not a professional, but the idea of acquiring credit for the learning effort is very tempting.
I have a lot of blogs to catch up on; this one is especially timely. I’ve been working with my dog on heeling (we’re a bit rusty), and trying to find the right balance or timing; when do I give her a nice sniffing break versus when do I ask for a heel? It’s something I’ve been playing around with, and is a bit tricky as I’m a novice, and she is full of zest. What we’ve been doing is working on keeping the heel nice and attentive, then eventually rewarding with some nose time, then going back to a nice heel. We’ll see how it goes!
P.S. I don’t suppose you can share your cinnamon roll recipe? They look delicious!
Gayla says
Thanks for the reminder! I may seldom comment, but I never miss reading your blog.
And for about the sixth time; Nellie is the most beautiful cat I’ve ever seen! It’s a real shame you’re allergic to her and she can’t live in the house with the rest of the family…
Ellen Michael says
I think Sherry found the right recipe for the rhubarb cake, but the link to display the full recipe doesn’t work for me. So, Trisha, I sure hope you find that recipe card! My mouth is really watering now…
Louise Wholey says
What was Skip’s diagnosis?
Trisha says
Gayla, understatement of the year! I adore Nellie and her daughter Polly.
Trisha says
Re Skip’s diagnosis: Probable tear of quad muscle and possibly hamstrings, grade 2 or even 3. Or, serious contusion to one or both. Trauma to knee, possible tear of cruciate, but seems unlikely given how well he is doing.
Donna Baker says
Thank you, Trisha….I needed to read this reminder today! My boy Charlie is a big-time sniffer on walks and as much as I know and understand how important and mentally stimulating that is for him, I confess that I do get frustrated at times and can be guilty of pulling him along if the sniffing gets excessive (excessive as defined by me, of course). The problem is that I view our walks as a chance to burn off some calories and work towards my daily step goal, which obviously is not compatible with stopping every few minutes for an extended sniff session. I’ve tried to combine our walks with times of briskly moving forward and times of leisurely strolling and sniffing, but that still seems to be frustrating for Charlie. And, since he is can be reactive to other dogs, trucks, and even some people on walks, frustration only exacerbates his potential for reactivity. A few times I’ve just allowed him to sniff to his heart’s content and then when we get back, he stays home while I go back out for a power walk on my own. As much as I hate to leave him behind, that may be the ultimate answer and compromise to allow us both to meet our needs. In any case, your post will help me remember how important it is to give my boy the freedom for relatively unrestricted olfactory exploration on our walks!
Nicola Brown says
Trisha, have you ever done scent games with Nellie or Polly, or do they get their fill sniffing mice in the barn? I’ve seen some interesting articles on cat enrichment recently and wondered if you do any.
I wish I had known about dog physiotherapists when my kelpie x broke her right front humerus into five pieces. We might have had better luck avoiding the arthritis which set in after a vet advised too much exercise too soon. Of course that was 15 years ago and it was a very new field then. Good luck with Skip. Having had a 4 year old kelpie x on ‘toilet walks’ only for 3 months I know what you’re going through!
Trisha says
Enrichment sooo important for indoor cats! But Nellie and Polly have 12 acres of country, so no need for that for them!
Maria says
On our walks, my dog pees on almost everything after he sniffs it. We started limiting his potty stops (which also means then, his sniff stops) in part because I don’t want him to pee on everything, and also because I want to be sure he’s actually emptied his bladder before we go back inside. I so want to let him sniff to his hearts content, but how do I change the marking behavior?
Kat says
Our wonderful integrated medicine (Chinese and Western) vet has offered a couple seminars on dogs and sniffing that I’ve attended. The thing that struck me the most is that the nose down sniffing posture is truly the least stressful posture there is for a dog. In one of the seminars she used vegetable dye to paint the major muscle groups on her Golden Retriever and as he assumed various postures (or was lured into them) you could see which ones stretched or contracted. When she dropped a piece of kibble for him to find and his nose went down you could see all the muscles perfectly in balance. That’s when I realized that sniffing is literally what dogs were designed to do.
I’m fortunate that D’Artagnan likes to track on walks. It means his head is down he’s sniffing away but he’s also moving at a very brisk pace. I’m never sure what he’s decided to track but we start out for our walk and he’s hurrying here and there reading the pee-mail then suddenly he finds something he wants to follow and off we go. I get a good work out trotting behind him and he’s getting lots of brain/nose exercise there are occasional stops when he loses the trail and casts about for it and the times I have to tell him he needs to abandon it since I’m pretty sure none of my neighbors would be thrilled having him tracking whatever through their property but when that happens he’ll cast about and find a new something to track. With everyone walking their dogs lately there are lots of dogs and people to track through the neighborhood.
Layne says
Your cinnamon buns look amazing. I swear I could smell them looking at the photo!
Thank you for the reminder! We do several walks a day and try to have half an hour at the dog park at least a couple of times a week where I can let him safely off-leash to get his zoomies out. I will try to do this more often. His recall is unreliable when a squirrel is taunting him so I feel safest when we’re in a fenced area. The first 15 minutes at the park is all about sniffing. He noodles around checking out all the usual places; gate post and gate, the bench, picnic table and then scouts the far corners. A long stop at a very specific patch of grass for a salad break is absolutely essential at this time of year. Of course this noodling stops if another dog enters the park. Even if he knows them he has to sniff them all over. Then the zoomies, if we are alone, or the running game with another dog. I know he’s had enough playtime when the sniffing and running end.
Grace says
Love this post! Our basenji won’t poop on our 3-acre fenced property so we do A LOT of walking; he gets to pick the direction of the sniff walks & we tag along. Rules are no pulling on leash (we use a 20-foot long line) and no rolling in stinky things or eating anything that doesn’t come from our hands, and he can leave as many pee-mails as he has the urine for! We also do scentwork and tracking whenever we can fit them into our schedule. Who knew something so simple could make such a huge impact on behavior / home manners. Those rolls look so yummy. I was also baking – French baguettes – until the stores in my area ran out of yeast!
Trisha says
Kat, fascinating about the muscle groups and sniffing posture! I’ve noticed that Skip can walk and sniff for hundreds of yards at the same time. No wonder.
Elizabeth says
I love your articles and your books! My dogs live on a farm with me in Southern Ohio. It’s very rural here. We go on daily walks on an old Rail Trail where they can sniff everything and hunt rabbits to their hearts content. They VERY RARELY catch a rabbit. Rabbits – it turns out are VERY smart and adept at avoiding capture. When they’re done with hunting or need a cool down – they take a dip in the pond. I’m so happy to be able to give them the chance to ‘be dogs’, use their noses and lead a happy doggy life!
Wanda Jacobsen says
I fostered for a rescue several years ago and I would always label some dogs “city dogs” because when I took them for walks through the woods on the trails, their heads were always UP, never on the ground sniffing. When I saw those noses down on the ground, going to work, I knew we had turned a corner. The foster was now acting like a real dog! Sniffing and sniffing some more. While walking our dogs, their noses are what decides if we move or stand still. They sniff, I look around. I always figure the walk is for them, not for me, so that means sniffing and sniffing, and then sniffing some more.
Trisha says
Love Wanda’s point about dogs who took time to use their noses. Our rescue Cav, Tootsie, was the same way. Took her a while to put her nose down, but once she did it was like a biblical transformation. I AM SPANIEL! Beautiful and heartwarming to watch.
NS says
A poem I found while reading – E. B. White on Dogs edited by Martha White:
DOG AROUND THE BLOCK
Dog around the block, sniff,
Hydrant sniffing, corner, grating,
Sniffing, always starting forward,
Backward, dragging, sniffing backward,
Leash at taut, leash at dangle,
Leash in people’s feet entangle —
Sniffing dog, apprised of smellings,
Meeting enemies,
Loving old acquaintances, sniff,
Sniffing hydrant for reminders,
Leg against the wall, raise,
Leaving grating, corner greeting,
Chance for meeting, sniff, meeting,
Meeting, telling, news of smelling,
Nose to tail, tail to nose,
Rigid, careful, pose,
Liking, partly liking, hating,
Then another hydrant, grating,
Leash at taut, leash at dangle
Tangle, sniff, untangle,
Dog around the block, sniff.
– E.B. White
Caroline says
Ha Ha. We occasionally take our dogs for on leash walks on our dirt road instead of off leash in the woods. These are sniff walks and apparently there is a link for my male dog between nose and bowels because he always poops.
Melanie Hawkes says
Interesting. My current dog and previous dog always sniffed more intently after it rained. Why would that be? The rain washed away smells and they have to sniff harder? Or new smells have replaced old, familiar smells and are more interesting now?
My current dog, Upton, a Lab x Goldie, can only find a treat on the floor unless he saw me drop it! His nose is terrible in those cases. But he can smell a dog a block away, or so it seems to me when he goes to react but I can’t see anything. Selected smelling, as well as listening 😄
Rebecca Rice says
I also wonder how weather affects sniffing. When the Santa Ana winds are blowing, does that just mix up the local scents? Or does it allow a dog to smell farther away? “On a windy day, you can smell forever?”
Thea says
NB thank you for sharing that e.b. white poem… it is fantastic!! What a phenomenal observer and empath to write a dog poem that really does seem to come from the dog’s umweldt rather than our primate perceptions of canine behavior.
Michael says
The early mornings are our time as we leisurely wander through the neighborhood. Giving Stumpy and Rocket time to explore and sniff what I am sure they have sniffed many times before.