Why do dogs like stinky stuff?
Savanna McGlynn
2025-07-09 13:52:17
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Just because our dogs can smell 100,000 times better than we do doesn’t mean they’re better arbiters of smelly goodness. Foul as they are, animal feces (especially those of wild carnivorous mammals like raccoons and opossums) clearly offer dogs a scent sensation. So, too, for cat poo, a delicacy few dogs will turn up their noses at. But it’s not just poop. Rotting corpses, decaying flesh and fetid bodily fluids elicit similarly delighted reactions. Turns out there’s a biological rationale for this. It’s been suggested by scent scientists and wildlife biologists that they engage in this behavior so they can mask their own canine scent. The strong aroma of carcasses and decay creates a sensory explosion for animals who rely on their snouts for sustenance. Rolling in the stuff means they can throw predators off their trail and keep prey in the dark about their doings. All this so they can eat well, unencumbered by the competition other carnivores might offer.
Amy Quitzon
2025-06-30 00:39:11
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: 7
Dogs use that powerful sniffer just to find a rotten corpse to roll in or to dig up cat poop. Turns out there might be some science behind a dog's penchant for all things rank. By rolling around in dead stuff for example, dogs mask their own scent. Covering themselves with the aroma of decay can create a confusing sensory event for predators, throwing them off the trail so to speak, and it can also keep prey from noticing they are roving about the area. Not only will a little Eau de Squirrel Corpse impress all your dog's buddies, it might even score him a new girlfriend. So, gross as it may be, your dog has some pretty good reasons to find, and then cover themselves, in as much stinky stuff as they can dig up.
Reuben Mraz
2025-06-22 23:01:00
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Though experts aren't sure why dogs like to roll in stinky stuff and eat rotten things, some believe that pets are marking themselves with their most prized possessions, guaranteed to impress all their two- and four-legged friends. It's like being a furry Fabio with a big gold chain and a shirt unbuttoned to below the rib cage. Wearing stinky stuff is like a designer label for pets. Dogs not only have millions more scent receptors than humans do, they are also polar opposites from us when it comes to choosing scents that attract rather than repel. Though we like aromas that are fresh, floral and fragrant, our dogs prefer the dirty, dead and disgusting, or the rank, rancid and revolting. To us it's disgusting — to them, it's divine. After thousands of years of evolution, dogs continue to go boldly where no man (or woman) has gone before on the journey to find the scent-sational.
Rosalee Cartwright
2025-06-18 19:10:16
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One suggests that dogs try to mask their own scent to hide from predators. Another theory suggests, that dogs, like wolves, roll because they smell something that to them is sweet. Wolves exhibit this behavior so everyone else in the pack knows what it has just found. Others say that scent-rolling — that's what they call it — is a defense trait. There are many hypotheses out there from environmental camouflage ... to seeking a group odor (often all members of a family unit will roll in the scent), to an exploratory behavior. If you watch wolves, coyotes or dogs doing it, it seems pretty obvious to me that they love it, Try to stop them! Sometimes animals do things for no other reasons than 'it's fun.'
Jessika Stokes
2025-06-05 09:36:18
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: 6
Many believe it's instinctual behavior, harkening back to the days when your dog’s wild ancestors would mask their scent to help them sneak up on their prey. Wolves, for example, have been observed rolling in animal carcasses or the droppings of plant-eating animals, to cover up their own smell during the hunt. Here’s a related theory that also conjures up the pre-domesticated past of canines: wild dogs may have rolled around in smelly things to “tell” their pack mates where they’ve been and what they’ve encountered in their adventures. It’s his way of saying, “Hey, smell where I’ve been!” As a result, as soon as your just-bathed dog gets the chance, he finds something that smells more acceptable to him—garbage, dog feces, animal carcasses—and starts rolling around in it. Have you ever caught your dog rolling around in poop? Believe it or not, this behavior is quite common—and very natural.
Read also
- How do I stop my dog from rolling in smelly stuff?
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