ohmidog!

Tis the season for putting ornaments on trees, hanging stockings from the mantle, and, if you’re a dog, placing your nose directly into the crotch of any and all visitors who drop by the house for a bit of Christmas cheer.

Ah yes, the crotch sniff, next to the leg hump about the most embarassing behavior — for us, anyway — that our dog can engage in.

If you’ve ever wondered why your dog, while showing little or no interest in your crotch, is so fascinated by the laps of visitors, help is on the way.

That sketch on the left shows where dogs sniff their owners — mostly, as you can see by the lines and darkened areas,  the arms and face.

The one below shows where dogs sniff strangers, and there seems a much greater focus on the groin.

This comes courtesy of our friend Julie Hecht, who produces the blog Dog Spies. She’s nosing through existing research, and has posted the first of a two-part series on the phenomenon.

Hecht works with Alexandra Horowitz at the Dog Cognition Lab at Barnard College, which regularly tries to figure out why dogs do the things they do — the scientific reasons, as opposed those we tend to arrive at anthropomorphically.

She  cites a study done in 1991, by Filiatre, et al, that had this title:

“Behavioural variability of olfactory exploration of the pet dog in relation to human adults.”

(Riotous bunch, those scientists.)

For their sniffing simulation, researchers had human volunteers lay motionless on the floor with their eyes closed for five minutes.

The researchers first observed pet dogs sniffing their owners. Then they watched as dogs sniffed an unknown person. They kept count of the areas sniffed, and made charts. (I’m guessing they didn’t use those red arrows, though.)

Dogs spent more time sniffing strangers than their owners, and, with strangers,  more time poking about the crotch zone. 

The simple explanation: Your dog already has a good sense of how you and most regular visitors smell. With a new person though, they tend to want to get better aquainted. They do that primarily with their noses.

As for why they sniff where they sniff, I don’t know — and I’m hoping part two of Julie’s post will clear the air and explain the allure of the crotch; whether it’s a matter of going for the most pungent spot, or the most personal and guarded one, or if maybe it, scent wise, it’s simply the most revealing.

Dog only knows.

Sure, we frown upon the humanization of dogs, and the new heights it keeps reaching.

On the other hand, we do have a funny bone, and this — moreso than the many others of its ilk on the Internet — hits it.

So, if you haven’t already seen it — and it has gone way viral — here’s “”Two Dogs Dining in a Crowded Restaurant.”

The video, starring NoNo, the yellow lab, and Sia, a Danish Broholmer, was posted in January and is nearing 8 million views.

The video’s makers say they’ve received mostly good comments, but a few from people expressing worries that the dogs were “forced” to take part, or might have hurt themselves on the forks and knives.

“Firstly the dogs loved it – they are best friends and really like getting all the attention,” they say on YouTube. “We practiced with the cutlery in advance, and both dogs very quickly figured it out. Besides the ‘waitress’ kept on talking to them and encouraging them. They are very well behaved, and know when to sit still, take it slow and wait.

“Enjoy and don´t be worried – both dogs love it, and we love them.”

Two dogs found mutilated along some train tracks in northern California bring the number of mysterious dog deaths in the area to at least seven — by some reports nine — since August.

Foul play is considered a possibility the newest cases, involving a Labrador retriever and a German shepherd, because of the way the dog’s carcasses were positioned, authorities said. At least one of them had been decapitated, according to news reports.

The two dogs were found along the railroad tracks east of the Marysville City Cemetery. Marysville is about 40 miles north of Sacramento.

The discovery of aroused suspicion about a possible link to five other dead dogs found in the town of Linda, according to the Appeal-Democrat in Marysville. All five were found within 10 days in August, and at least two had been shot.

Fox News, meanwhile, reports there have been nine mysterious dog deaths in the area, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Neither of the latest two dogs found were shot, according to post-mortem X-rays conducted by a veterinarian.

Marysville Police and the Yuba County Sheriff’s Department are investigating, and have asked for help from investigators with the Union-Pacific Railroad Police.

“We still need to determine if all the damage was caused by a train or if there was evidence of mutilation prior to them being struck by the train,” sheriff’s Lt. Damon Gil said.

Gil said no definite links between the case have been established. “We don’t want people to panic about their pets,” Gil said. “But it’s certainly piqued our interest and we’ll certainly be looking to dive into those questions and examine the case further.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Marysville Police Department at 749-3900.