WHY DO DOGS MARK THEIR TERRITORY

We have all seen male dogs cocking their legs to urinate and to mark their territory.  This is a dog's instinctive behavior.  However, you may be asking yourself, "why do dog's mark their territory?"

In wolf packs, it is only the Alpha male and Alpha female that lift their legs to mark their territory.  All of the other pack members, regardless of their sex, from Beta to Omega, squat to urinate.  This is why you will see some male dogs squat to urinate and some female dogs lift their leg to urinate.

A dog's urine contains messages which warn unwelcome visitors and members of other packs of the sheer strength of the Alpha, as well as his age, and how the pack is faring.  Other markings such as gnawing on trees and rubbing ear wax into the ground are also displayed.  Therefore, when you see your dog rubbing the side of his head on the ground, he is marking.

Because many predators are present in the wild, wolves will sometimes roll in caribou droppings to disguise themselves.  This disguise will deter approaching enemies or predators.

Wolves are seen to be mature when they reach the age of 2 years.  It is at this time that they leave the pack in search of a mate or permanent pack.  When a two year old wolf leaves the pack, the Alpha male of the new territory will sometimes roll in caribou droppings and follow parallel to him for some time.  The alpha which is disguised with the scent of caribou droppings will then evaluate those messages and decide whether he will accept the newcomer or not.  If the Alpha male accepts the newcomer, the entire pack will automatically give their acceptance.

Such behavior is imitated by domestic dogs at any time they feel threatened.  It is a sign of insecurity when a domestic dog excessively marks its territory or rolls around in dung.  When a dog is marking its territory, it is actually building its confidence.  You may think that there must be a better way for a dog to build its confidence, a way of correcting dog marking behaviors.

However, when wolves are frightened by something in the wild, they will immediately run to the pack leader and lick his face and chin.  They also bite him in a loving manner under the chin, and the Alpha female will commence with the cleaning of his eyes.  The members of the pack will then lick and clean each other's faces and eyes.  Domestic dogs also show this behavior when they have been put into the same environment and are coming to accept each other.

The Alpha male then releases his glandular scent on the Beta, as the Alpha does not allow any other pack member near his Alpha.  The Beta will then rub his scent against another pack member, and they spread the scent throughout the entire pack.  This stimulates the oil glands in their skin, which heightens and renews their own personal scent as well as keeps their coats in fantastic condition. 

Their scents are also released from the glands at the top of their tails.  However, this scent is not pleasant to the human nose.  This scent has most likely been smelt before when a dog is scared enough.

Patting and pampering a scared dog, just does not work.  Do not pat your dog if you are at home and he is scared.  Neither does dressing them up in fancy dog clothes or cool dog collars.  It is important that you allow your dog to lick your chin and cheeks.  This will automatically relax the dog and strengthen his confidence which will be to yours and the dog's advantage.