Dogs Rolling In Shit And Vile Things: They 'All' Do It:

[Guest Ditch_Shitter]

Probably one for those of ye who lap up what 'Wolf Men' have decided through their studies of wild packs? Though foxes do it ~ and they're, of course, Vulpine.

 

I believe I can quite see the fasination with Eating ruminant shit. My lot are buggers for it just now - maybe helped by the fact that there's so much about? And they appear to favour a certain, ealy vintage. But why Roll in it? Today I watched as one of mine had a quick taste, then she slid her face, followed by her whole body onto it. Back down. That was one happy Dog! Why??? Give a Dog a pile of flesh and bones? They eat it. They don't f*cking smear themselves in it! What's the attraction with cow shit?

 

Foxes again; I have very good reason to believe - though I've never personally observed it - that a fox, for one, can't resist a good roll on a dead cat!

 

Anyone reckon they have a theory for this sort of thing?

[bshadle 5]

IIRC, Ditch, it's an instinctive behavior that no one completely understands yet.

 

Some say it's to disquise their scent so they can sneak up on prey more easily. Others say it's to carry the scent of something interesting back to the pack. Some say it's like people who like the scent of certain perfumes - they just enjoy a particular scent. Does that make it clear as mud?

 

I think the reason they do it is because they can.

[cúagusgiorraí 57]

My dogs favourite smelly shite is otter scat. They also like dead fish. Also dead frogs, bird droppings and dead animals of all sorts.

I believe the dogs really like the smell and want to be covered in it to smell appealling. The same way we like perfume. It is obvious how much pleasure they get from rolling in it. They just love the smell. The same as cats like catnip. We have our smells that we like but they dont like. For example citrous smells.

[sulurian 3]

I like lemons , but i dont rub my face in one , well not often ....I think it masks the smell of humans on the dog. My weaton cross was shining last summer , she found a dead sheep whose insides had turned into a green soup , straight in , head to toe....matted her coat like syrup.stank like death .dont know how they stick it, thier sense of smell so much better than ours. freash sheep sh*t , mmmh her favourite treat.urrggg!!!

[BlueCoyote 0]

Give a Dog a pile of flesh and bones? They eat it. They don't f*cking smear themselves in it! What's the attraction with cow shit?

 

 

well....... lol actually.....

i gave my bull dogs some fish a while back (remember when i posted in the forum about feeding frozen fish?) i thawed it out, handed a palm sized fish to the bulldog bitch.. she sniffed it... took it.. dropped it.. sniffed again and then fell on her side and rolled around all over it! somewhat exasperated i said "No! dont do that!" ... she got up and looked at me as if to say "what else am i supposed to do with it??" that was the first time i had ever given her fish(i dont know about her past), so maybe it was a whole new experience? it WAS fresh fish.... not nasty smelly salt water fish.

 

and the german shepherd puppy.... i gave her a freshly killed chicken and she rolled in it, then played it to pieces the rest of they. but... as far as i know that was her first time with any kind of raw meat.

my terrier is bad about shit diving though. you cant let her out of the house for ten minutes unsupervised or she'll come back with duck shit from her neck to her breast. she eats it as well..... yeeuuucck!

 

and yes i've always heard its a scent thing..... but i don't know if i believe thats the ONLY reason.... i mean wouldn't you think walking through the forest smelling like carrion would be more likely scare off prey?

lol maybe they're onto something there??

[skycat 6,172]

Sosmething I've noticed is that certain of my dogs only roll in certain types of shit. My old white bitch only ever rolled in goose shit (flocks of Canadas and Greys round here), we joked that it was because she wanted to disguise her shining white outline LOL.

Some of mine only ever roll in fox shit, and they are always the dogs that 'liked' foxes. The dogs that don't 'like' foxes ignore fox shit: so could that have something to do with using the scent of their foe to attract them? Who knows, but that particular theory might seem to fit, and I've had no exceptions whatsoever on that one.

 

Has anyone else noticed that fox shit thing with fox dogs?

[socks 32,253]

i was always under the impression that it was to mask scent ... there is also a school of thopught taht rolling on a carcas is to let the rest of the pack know taht they have found something ???

 

DITCH if you want the dogs to stop eating shit then put some rock sulpher in their water bowls and they will stop in a week .............

[Malt 379]

My 6 month old JRT has just found the 'joys' of a good roll in piles of fox shite! She's also taken to rolling in piles of freshly cut grass, and turning herself green!

[gwhite80 0]

I had a Dalmation that liked nothing more than a good rub in decomposing rabbit (full legs in air body shaking rub). But then he was a bit nuts

Edited May 27, 2008 by gwhite80

[COMPO 54]

dogs do it to piss their owners off!

 

simple!

[lurchergrrl 1,441]

Thankfully mine haven't discovered the merits of rolling in shit - yet. But I've been teaching them to jump lately, and the other day the saw something on the other side of a fence, hopped it and had a right good roll. I watched them and thought sod it, what's the point in calling them off now.

 

Well! They came back with what looked like bits of mince and great long snotty-looking clods of mucus all over them :sick: The stink made me heave and it takes a lot to turn my stomach.

 

I'm with compo on this - whatever the primal instinctive reason, I think they mostly do it so they can have a laugh at us.

[Tiff 36]

a few of ours are terrible for it, both rolling in it and eating it :sick:

[SNAP SHOT 194]

check this out ditch i think you will like it, look under scent rolling. It's a trait dog's also do it is seen moreso whenever a dog is washed with dog shampoo, it goes straight out and rolls in something strong smelling..............

http://www.wolfcenter.org/education/wolfbehavior.html

[littlefish 549]

My bitch is very enthusiastic about rolling in stinky things, dung etc. She usually finds the weirdest things on the local beach - dead fish, hedgehogs, seagulls and even shitty nappies left behind by dirty b*****d tourists. The oddest thing yet was a dead dolphin that was decomposing on the beach, its abdomen was burst and there she was in the distance rolling like she never rolled before, looking up when i called her before diving in again head first. I then had to spend about 20 minutes throwing sticks into the sea for her to swim and retrieve to try to get her cleaned up a bit before the drive home to the fairy liquid and hosepipe.

[comanche 2,799]

If I was a dog why would I roll in smelly substances?. To cover meself in predator stench so I can creep up on prey . Makes perfect sense ...Not! But to cover meself in predator stench so that a herd of prey animals will notice me and instinctivly come towards me out of a mixture of curiosity and desire to threaten and chase me away.Hence present an oppertunity for a kill to be made by me or one of my pack-members ... Maybe. Roll in rival predator spoor to mask the rival's scent and replace it with my own as a warning to the interloper? . Carry the scent of poo,carrion, etc back to the pack to let the others know what or who is on our patch?. I'd certainly enjoy the attention as they licked and groomed me clean......If I was a dog you understand .(Whatever you've heard it was a misunderstanding ..Slipped in the shower .The goat was merely passing the soap.....) F*ck - it COMPO's sussed me .I do it to piss me owner off!

Edited May 27, 2008 by comanche