Sniff, mark, sniff, mark

[Ron]

On our walks --more so now that the weather is a bit warmer -- Tie has to stop at every tree and poll. He'll smell it for a few seconds, then mark it.

He'll do it at almost every major tree, poll, whatever for the whole walk if i let him.

Just wondering if this is ok behavior. My theory has always been "it's his walk, let him enjoy it." haha

[KeeperBoy]

Keepers isn't allowed to mark on walks, so long as we are moving. Otherwise we would never make it to the end of the walk. When we are walking I want him moving with me, he is allowed to do his business before we go or if we stop somewhere. I think Cesar (whom I can't stand, don't get me wrong) says something about "travel mode" and how wolves travel, but he says the dog should be focused on walking and moving forward.

[bruinsBoxers]

Titan would mark everything on walks too . So we taught him leave it .
Whenever we got near a post , tree or whatever and I could see him eyeing it I would tell him to leave it and we would keep on walking .

[Ron]

yeah i can say that to tie too and he'll just keep going. I'm just wondering if it's "ok" to allow him to do this

[KeeperBoy]

Originally Posted by Magtie

yeah i can say that to tie too and he'll just keep going. I'm just wondering if it's "ok" to allow him to do this

I really think it's a state of mind thing for the dog. If we are walking fast enough or running Keepers won't mark because he in moving and is thinking about getting somewhere. If we are just sort of meandering then he will try to mark. I can't imagine it's too big of a deal either way though, probably more personal preference.

[bruinsBoxers]

I too think it is a personal preferance .
It really does not matter to me if he pee'd here and there . It just got to be too much when he wanted to pee every few feet .

I just never let him pee on someones flowers or lawn because I hated it when other people let their dogs pee on my lawn & flowers .

[Ron]

yeah that's the issue. Usually i'll let him take his time and enjoy himself, but sometimes i'm in a rush and just want to get through the walk without stopping every 10 feet.

Oh well haha

[superpimp]

the only problem with allowing Tie to mark everything in sight, is that he will view everything he marks as his own, thus if another dog is being walked in "his" area, even if it is nowhere near his home he will become agitated.

[KeeperBoy]

I'm not sure that's true. Both my dogs mark and both also have a very clear idea of what territory is "their own" and it is only the area closest to our home. Dog communication is more complex than simply "I pee on it, it's mine".