why do dogs piss on trees

[dlish]

been wondering about this question for a while.

i was sitting at a set of traffic lights when this dog walks up besides the car, up to a tree, lifts his leg and takes a leak on the tree..then i got a cloud formation over my head and i asked myself, "why do dogs piss on trees?"

i know its not just trees, also poles etc....

trying to work it out, maybe its to mark their territory? not sure.. anyone have any idea?
maybe this may seem silly to those dog owners, but ive never owned a dog.

[Gilda]

You have it exactly right; they're marking their territory. Remember dogs have a much more sensitive sense of smell than humans, and can differentiate between their own urine and that of others.

Cats do the same thing. Have you ever had a cat rub up against you, or watched it do the same with a piece of furniture? Cats have scent glands that are activated when they do that. Hence, when the cat rubs you, it's claiming you as itss property.

[eribrav]

In dogs it's generally the males that do the marking. Not sure if that holds true for cats.

[Borgs]

Originally Posted by Gilda

Cats do the same thing. Have you ever had a cat rub up against you, or watched it do the same with a piece of furniture? Cats have scent glands that are activated when they do that. Hence, when the cat rubs you, it's claiming you as itss property.

Awww, I thought that it was just loving on me

[TexanAvenger]

Originally Posted by Gilda

Cats do the same thing. Have you ever had a cat rub up against you, or watched it do the same with a piece of furniture? Cats have scent glands that are activated when they do that. Hence, when the cat rubs you, it's claiming you as itss property.

I do the same thing, but it really just doesn't come off nearly as cute.

You don't know how hard it is not to be able to claim you guys...

[kramus]

Tex, if you ever found yourself in this beautiful home with these antiques and such, I would sure appreciate if you allowed the property to remain unclaimed. Really.

[Seaver]

Trees are easy markers to look for as opposed to random grass. It's marking territory and/or posting they've been there. Dogs can tell age/health/verility just by urine smell.

[kramus]

Have you read "Never Cry Wolf" by Farley Mowat? He relates his territorial claim experiment and how many pots of tea it took. Great stuff.

[lindseylatch]

And (unnuetered) males are the ones who usually do it the most, and thus are more noticable, because the more territory they claim, the more breedable females with be within it.
You know how tiger's have territory? Same thing. Only, you know...not as violent.
That's one reason people fix male dogs. Small ones will start marking in the house.

[ratbastid]

Yeah, they're not relieving their bladder. They're sending p-mail.

[Gatorade Frost]

Originally Posted by ratbastid

Yeah, they're not relieving their bladder. They're sending p-mail.

Buh-dum-chh

[ratbastid]

Originally Posted by Gatorade Frost

Buh-dum-chh

Thank you! I'll be here all week!

[Martian]

Cats actually spray as well, for the same effect. It's like tagging, it says 'I was here'.

Neutering a pet won't stop it, although it will reduce the frequency.

[MsNobody]

I always thought it was, just because they are there.

[dlish]

thanks guys..quenched my curiosity..it did kill the cat afterall

just another question though..so dogs and cats only piss to mark their territory? so they hold it in, until they mark it out.. i mean i take a leak when i need to go, why wouldnt animal instinct work the same way?

[lindseylatch]

a little of both.
and actually cats have special pee, I think. Like a special gland that they add to the urine(?) so it smells especially nasty.

[CandleInTheDark]

I recall hearing a piece of information; male dogs can only piss on verticle objects.

[ratbastid]

Originally Posted by CandleInTheDark

I recall hearing a piece of information; male dogs can only piss on verticle objects.

Not true! My buddy Ender, a Border Collie (and yes, he's named after the Orson Scott Card character) hunches to pee. His Native-American name is "Pees Like a Girl". And my buddy Samson, a Lab mix, just stands there and pees. No leg lifting for either of those boys.

[Charlatan]

Ratbastid... you have girly dogs and should be ashamed to walk them.

[Charlatan]

Originally Posted by lindseylatch

a little of both.
and actually cats have special pee, I think. Like a special gland that they add to the urine(?) so it smells especially nasty.

It isn't pee. It is a gland that sprays another "marking" liquid.

[feelgood]

Originally Posted by lindseylatch

a little of both.
and actually cats have special pee, I think. Like a special gland that they add to the urine(?) so it smells especially nasty.

I once scared my ex-gf cat and it put out some werid liquid which I assume is a natural reaction to fend off predators. Kinda like what Skunk does, only, it's not so bad smelling.

I'm not entirely sure if that particular liquid is specfically for marking their territories.

[Charlatan]

It isn't for fending off predators...

1) when I was a kid, my friend's cat used to spay his hockey bag on a regular basis... we figure the cat thought the smell was that of another cat trying to claim its territory (i.e. my friend's house). His cat was just asserting his place.

2) When I was at the zoo I watched a full grown Siberian tiger chace a squirell up a tree. Once the squrriel was treed, the cat turned around and let loose with a spray of stuff (seeing that the cat was very big it was very noticeable). It wasn't pee and was clearly coming from the area of its anus...

[Ambient1]

Originally Posted by Charlatan

the cat turned around and let loose with a spray of stuff (seeing that the cat was very big it was very noticeable). It wasn't pee and was clearly coming from the area of its anus...

Spraying is accomplished by squirting a powerful jet of urine backward onto vertical features of the environment--doors, windows, drapes, walls, etc.--about 8 inches above the floor. Both male and female cats, whether neutered or not, can do this. Cats regularly revisit sprayed areas to "freshen up" the scent when it starts to decline. When investigating another cat's urine mark, the cat will display a curious, grimacing pose with its mouth partly open. It is using the vomeronasal, or Jacobson's organ, which is located behind the incisor teeth in the roof of the mouth. This extra sense allows the cat to smell and taste an odor at the same time and sends a powerful signal to the cat's brain activating a territorial response.

I have 3 cats (2 males, 1 female - all fixed) thank god they don't spray! Although when I bring something home that has a good smell on it (ie: another cat has been on or around the object), I do see the "grimacing pose"...

[lindseylatch]

My parents have 4 male dogs, and 3 of them lift their legs to pee, but only two of them actually go around marking territory, and it's the little ones.

[BigBen]

Originally Posted by kramus

Have you read "Never Cry Wolf" by Farley Mowat? He relates his territorial claim experiment and how many pots of tea it took. Great stuff.

Dude, You are sooooooo Canadian right now...

What reply were you expecting? "Oh, you mean FAR-ley Mowat. Shit yeah, everyone reads him!"

You get a free double-double the next time I see you for quoting him though. I spit my maple sugar candy on my desk when I read that

[StanT]

The only thing "marked" around my house is me. My Newfoundland will come up and sniff me everytime I come home. If I've been "unfaithful" (played with another dog) she rubs against me, sniffs, and slobbers until I'm adequately marked as hers.

I swear it would easier to explain lipstick on my collar.

[kramus]

Originally Posted by BigBen931

Dude, You are sooooooo Canadian right now...

What reply were you expecting? "Oh, you mean FAR-ley Mowat. Shit yeah, everyone reads him!"

You get a free double-double the next time I see you for quoting him though. I spit my maple sugar candy on my desk when I read that

At least I didn't go off on some riff involving Margaret Atwood or Roberston Davies

[Charlatan]

You could have quoted Margaret Lawrence... doesn't her aged protagonsist squat and take a pee in the woods in the Stone Angel...

I totally missed that Mowat reference the first time around... good one.

[ratbastid]

Not to bring us back on topic or anything , but:

Originally Posted by Charlatan

Ratbastid... you have girly dogs and should be ashamed to walk them.

Neither of them is my dog, they belong to friends. My dog actually IS a girl, and she pees the proper way for a girl.

[TexanAvenger]

Originally Posted by ratbastid

My dog actually IS a girl, and she pees the proper way for a girl.

Technicalities... still a girly dog.

[kramus]

Originally Posted by TexanAvenger

Technicalities... still a girly dog.

funny stuff

[kramus]

Originally Posted by Charlatan

You could have quoted Margaret Lawrence... doesn't her aged protagonsist squat and take a pee in the woods in the Stone Angel...

I totally missed that Mowat reference the first time around... good one.

I just remembered Donald Jack in his inimitable Bandy Papers tells of the time Bandy urinated on a neck wounded soldier while in the desert as part of the medical treatment he was providing. The soldier was not impressed - and eventually he died.