Recently, I was talking with a friend who's been navigating the rocky world of new puppyhood. Her latest addition is a Golden Retriever pup named Buddy, now thirteen weeks old. He's a doll, I must say, and my girl Adie is SMITTEN! Brother Killian, of course, is not the least impressed, but Adia can't get enough of the little guy. Buddy's new parents, Kristen and Dave, are already taking their pooch to group training classes - hooray for responsible owners, I really can't get enough of them!
At any rate, Kristen was telling me last night about an interesting discussion her trainer had regarding dogs and butt sniffing. The gist of the discussion? That a dog who greets another dog by sniffing the behind is rude and looking for trouble. Huh? Because I obviously was not part of the initial conversation and so may very well be taking things out of context, let's shift the focus to the question at hand and away from the very troubling notion that a trainer may be giving complete misinformation to his students.
The question: What does it actually mean when a dog sniffs another dog's hind quarters?
There are a few answers to this question, but that action in and of itself is rarely a bad sign. The one instance in which it may mean trouble is if you have one dog who is tensed (tail up, body rigid, ears back) and is not reciprocating in the sniffing, while the second dog misses those clear cues and continues to sniff. This is a clear boundary violation that may well lead to trouble if someone does not intervene.
With that said, in most cases the "butt sniff" is simply two dogs saying howdy-do to one another. According to www.wagntrain.com, "When watching your dog interact with others, the general rule is to let the dogs decide what is and what isn't appropriate. Butt-sniffing, rough playing, barking in each other's ears, mounting, and other actions that dogs do would not be acceptable in human company, but are perfectly normal dog behavior." You can click here for some great, illustrated tips on reading dog body language. As far as the "butt sniffing" itself goes, it is more likely that the real issue is with the human guardian, not the dogs. The textbook "Teaching Dog Obedience Classes: The Manual for Instructors" has this to say on the subject: "...some people find a dog's method of greeting another dog to be objectionable. They are offended that a dog will sniff the genitals of another dog. When they understand that this is normal greeting behavior, that this is how dogs assess each other's status and stature, the behavior becomes a non-problem." (195-196).
So... Butt-sniffing? Not really a big problem, and certainly not an indicator of aggression or impending doom. There are a number of websites, blogs, books, and videos on the subject of dog body language, if you're interested in learning more. And for every dog owner out there, I truly believe that knowledge is power. There is so much information available on the subject of animal behavior today, and much of it is genuinely fascinating. Pick up THE OTHER END OF THE LEASH, by Dr. Patricia McConnell, read a few blogs, ask questions... You'll have a better understanding of your pooch as a result, you'll be more empowered when you get questionable advice from people supposedly in the know, and you'll have a better behaved dog at the end of the day.
For a little more info on this debate, you can read my mentor's blog post on the very same subject. Thanks for reading, and good luck!
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