I didn't know where to post this and since both my dogs ar dobes I decided to post in here. Maybe someone can shine some light on this.

I took my dogs for a romp around my property (about 10 acres). Well they found a dead fox that probably has been dead since the winter and decided to roll in it. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gif" alt="" />

WHY??????

Why make yourself stink soooo bad?

I also have about 1/2 acre fenced in with a creek running through the yard. In the summertime they like to be out there a lot. Well I've noticed that they kill anything that they can catch. Squirrels, mice, birds. And I know that they kill these things because I found where they bury it all . I've found a couple of mice a squirrel and a bird. Why do they do this? I don't want to keep them in the house all the time in the summer because the summer is soooo short here and they really enjoy being out there. My friend says that I shouldn't worry about it and that its good that they control the mouse population. They don't eat what they catch they just bury it. I find that absolutely gross. Any ideas, suggestions..... anything at all.

I want to know why they do these things and what if anything I should do about it.

Dear Danielle,

This is absolutely normal.

Your dogs are predators. If they can smell like a dead prey, then their own smell won't make the preys run away when they're aproaching them.

My first Dobe did the same. He rubbed himself on a dead animal and I couldn't get the smell off him after washing 4 times in a row!!

As fas as hunting and burying the preys, its also their instinct. They have plenty of food, since you feed them, so they just hide their preys for when they need them. If you didn't feed them for a couple of days, which won't happen, they would go and eat those animals they buried.

I don't think you should worry about it.

Best regards from sunny Spain,
Pedro.

Neat. Learn something new every day at Ed's.

Totally neat... so simple and obvious but I never would have thought of that, once hunters, always hunters.

Pedro well spoken....

Are you able to build a large run for the dogs while you can not supervise them?

Dogs love to roll heheh

Danielle
The book "DOGS" by Raymond and Lorna Coppinger(Ed sells it) has a whole chapter that goes into great detail about our dogs ancestral pattern of orient>eye>stalk>chase>bite>kill>dissect>consume.
The book explains how different breeds have developed different variations of this "behavioral conformation". Border collies have a high degree of Orient>EYE>STALK>CHASE but it is taboo to bite>kill. In my hunting terriers it might be ORIENT>EYE>STALK>CHASE>BITE>KILL>DISSECT but most will not consume (terrier taboo). Your dog may very well have the consume behaviour missing or, as Pedro says, they just arent hungry <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> "DOGS"IS GREAT READING!

One side effect from eating varmits can be tapeworm. Their fleas can be intermediate hosts. I had a Norwich terrier that would not hunt a damn thing except mice and he was like a vacuum cleaner with them. We had a few bouts of tapeworm. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

I think that sometimes we forget that the traits that make our dogs good protectors, herders, ratters, sled dogs etc are there because of their heritage as hunters. Can't take the dog out of the dog - though some people would like to.
I guess I'll just have to have Fort Knox fencing as long as I have huskies and a neighbour with chickens! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

tiggy2
I have a close friend with a chicked killing JRT. some "oldtimer" told her to tie the chicken around the dogs neck until it rotted off. By the third day,(summertime) the little dog was strutting around so proud of her ode de carrion, she had everyone in stiches(except her owner of course). That was the end of that correction and she still kills chickens when she can. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gif" alt="" /> :rolleyes: <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

So much for that old "chicken necklace" myth <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> -I had a skunk crawl under the dog yard fence which was a bad move on his part as he ended up in several pieces, but not before he had sprayed everyone in retaliation. My old leader had possession of the main part of the carcass and it took me forever to get it from her as every time I, (gagging all the while) got it on the shovel she would run in and grab it to retain ownership of the "kill". You couldn't catch her when she had her skunk and no way was I picking up with my hands!. Finally managed to round up all the skunk parts, though the scent lingered for weeks. They will kill any small game that gets in their yard and have even managed to nail a couple of crows. One of my females will stalk sparrows for hours.
"Tresspassers will be eaten" seems to be their motto :rolleyes: