I have been told that I am controversial in my vision about our coexistence with the dog. This is something that seemed strange to me, as I didn’t perceive it that way, at all. But I do understand that when I say things like training the dog (that is only meant to live with me) obedience, is not only obsolete, but it becomes directly harmful to the relationship. And that I don’t care if or when we train the dog, we use the carrot or the stick. It seems to me that the conditioning of the dog to do something that is acceptable to me and thus inhibit him from expressing a behaviour that is natural for him, is to euthanize him behaviourally. And yes, that is misstreating the dog.
This clearly collides, and hence is controversial, with a large part of the canine industry.
Ok – I get it…
Well, now I’m going to drop another one…
We have to let dogs pee
We are talking a lot about the importance of letting our dogs sniff and one of the reasons is that we must not forget that smell is a very important part of the way dogs communicate.
We might feel frustrated and impatient when our dog wants to sniff out every lamp post in the neighbourhood. They generally only observe the scent marks of other dogs around. These scents let them know if a female or a male has passed by, if it is someone they are familiar with, and if they are nearby or not. Certainly, they can also receive information about the emotional state of the other dog, when he put the mark.
My personal opinion, which has no scientific basis, is that if we know that the sense of smell is by far the dog’s most highly developed one, it is also very likely it is the most important means of communication. To the extent that, for me, it becomes absurd to think that the sense of smell has an inferior role in canine communication.
That we humans do not understand olfactory communication is an entirely different matter.
So if we should let our dog sniff, we should also let him pee. And that is something that definitely collides with the way we see the dog, in our society.
The Problem
Out of sheer self-interest, I googled and typed in ‘dog urine marking’. It turns out that nearly 100% of the articles are about the “problem” of excessive marking or marking in the wrong places. And, of course, the problem with territory marking. All the articles dealt with how to avoid these problems and in terms of possible remedies, castration is the winner. By far…
Yes – in the middle of all these articles, there was also one dealing with a very interesting study on the marking of dogs in shelters. One observation made was that small dogs tend to mark more frequently than larger dogs. This may be because they prefer to interact from a distance rather than directly, due to their smaller size.
The funny thing is that in almost all the other articles they start with recognizing the incredible importance of markings in terms of communication between individuals. But for us, it is a problem and it has to be eradicated.
Dear reader, I invite you to reflect on dealing with the problem of our dog’s markings. To me, inhibiting the dog from marking is equivalent to repressing his ability to express himself. Passing this on to us, a scene in a well-known film comes to mind:
Because, in the end, that’s what it’s all about. Inhibition and repression of the ability to express oneself.
It must be said that there is very little study on the subject and I have not been able to see that anything concrete can be concluded about how much castration influences the number of markings. A study that was done with dogs in two shelters (in the USA), something that conditions the result, said that “Individual differences characterized male behavioral response to castration: while one male showed a very slight increase in mean rate of urination after castration (4%), the remaining sixteen males differed in degree of response, with percentage decreases in mean rate of urination after castration ranging from14% to 72%.”
This study has not been replicated and, at least as I see it, does not show that castration solves the marking “problem”. Even so, it is what is recommended as a universal remedy.
I can tell you that my three dogs are castrated, as they have come from rescues and that is how the protocol establishes it. On a normal walk my dogs mark four to six times (not counting bladder emptying) and I can’t say I see intact dogs marking significantly more.
Is this a problem?
Really?
Marking on the walk has absolutely nothing to do with marking territory. I see it as normal for a dog to mark territory in its most immediate environment, but outside of there definitely not. It even seems absurd to me, to think that a dog after being in a car for half an hour, to reach an unknown place, when leaving the car begins marking territory. Bearing this in mind, territorial marking is a minor part of this behaviour.
Is it necessary to castrate a load of dogs, to prevent territory marking?
Dog Social Media
Then we can conclude that the dog marking on a walk, is communication with another purpose. I (and other colleagues) usually compare these markings with social media. A dog posts an entry on his wall, telling a little about who he is and how he feels. Then another reads it and, if he thinks it appropriate, puts a comment on it. Or maybe, a little further down, goes and publishes a post of his own. Humans must be careful and not abuse social media, but in the canine world this is not a problem. So, we must let them read, comment and publish their posts, as much as possible.
Dog Meetings
Another moment of important markings is in meetings between dogs. Here, after greeting each other, with more or less intensity, dogs usually mark with urine. The meaning of these markings depends so much on the situation and the environment that I will not go into detail here. (In fact, there is a very good range of courses and seminars on this subject, in case you are interested.) But I do think it is very important that we recognize that this is an integrated part of the presentation between dogs and that it is essential in their way of communicating.
Dog Dishonesty
Another study says (I haven’t seen it replicated) that there can be dishonesty in marking due to the angle of the raised leg (males) and the size of the dog. That small sized dogs tend to lift their paw more than larger dogs. This is supposed to mislead about its size. (This would debunk one of the myths about small dogs. That they don’t know they are small. AN) This would mean that there is a clear intention in the marking. The dog has a very clear perception on why and for what he is marking.
Laws and Hypocrisy
In Spain we have a certain stigma about marking and every day I see nervous dog handlers yanking the dog, so that it does not stop for too long sniffing and then marking. We are also supposed to carry bottles of water (mixed with vinegar or some detergent) to clean up where the dog has put his mark. Honestly, I think we have gone too far.
If we are passing laws to improve animal welfare on the one hand, but at the same time inhibit the animal from living as full a life as possible, we are guilty of tremendous hypocrisy. I say this to make you reflect and to perhaps open a debate on the subject.
So
For mammals, leaving humans out, olfactory marking through urine (and faeces) is a fundamental part of communication between individuals and groups. That is why we have to let our dog sniff and pee because if we don’t, it is comparable to us walking around gagged and blindfolded.
#givepeesachance
If you don’t like what I have written in this article and/or you are in any way offended, you can send an E-mail to:
youhaveoffendedmesomuch@jonasthulin.com
I will answer. I promise.