Dogs learning behavior – why do dogs smell each other’s buttocks?

Learning and understanding dog behavior is not an easy task for humans. The four-legged friends understand each other through their own language and certain behaviors. Whether Labrador or Chihuahua – all dogs like to sniff. But why do they sniff each other’s butts while getting to know each other? Why not the feet or the ears? There is of course a very logical explanation for this, which we will reveal to you in our article.

Understand dog behavior

The nose is the dog’s most important sense organ and their sense of smell is at least 10,000 times stronger than that of humans. Depending on the breed, a dog has around 300 million olfactory cells. By sniffing, they perceive the environment much better than with their eyes. Basically, the four-legged friends smell each other’s buttocks as a kind of greeting. The animals learn a lot of important information about each other via the so-called pheromones that emanate from the anal glands in dogs. In addition, our friends have a very special organ, the Jacobson organ. It is located on the palate, just behind the incisors, and specializes in perceiving these fragrances. While that sounds weird, don’t worry – dogs have selective smelling skills. That means that luckily they can filter out certain smells.

The dog behavior – why do the four-legged friends smell each other’s buttocks?

It’s amazing what information dogs can find out by sniffing. You can smell the sex of the other dog and whether he is ready to mate. You can also learn a lot about the other animal’s diet and health in this way. You can only find out whether the person opposite is in a good or bad mood by just sniffing. In addition, each dog has its own and unique smell and by sniffing two dogs can determine very quickly whether they have met before.

The way two dogs smell each other’s buttocks can tell us which of the two is the boss. The dominant dog starts sniffing while the other quietly waits for his turn. If the four-legged friend is afraid, he simply pulls back, sits down and in this way reduces the odor that he gives off through the anal glands. This in turn means that the other animal can find out almost nothing about him.