Is it true or false that dogs sniff each others butts to say hello?  The answer is actually false.

Dogs have two anal glands in their rectums, which emit a strong scent. Dogs sniff each other’s butts in order to get a whiff of it. The aroma they smell gives them detailed information about the other dog.

The aroma emitted from a dog’s butt tells other dogs vital information about him. It tells his sex, health status and temperament. Therefore, on a first meeting, two unacquainted dogs know if they want to befriend each other or not. So what does that mean to us? It means we need to trust our dog’s instincts.

Interesting information, although I think I’ll stick to shaking hands. Anyone have any funny improper sniffing stories?  I know you do, fess up.  Give me a bark and share your story.

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When I first saw this article I was very excited.  It was about a gene that has been linked to exercise-induced collapse.

I could now explain to Lisa why I fell to the ground after exercising, it wasn’t simply because I was out of shape.  I was sure I must have this gene defect and I was going to have to give up exercising for the sake of my health. Life is good.

As I read further I discovered this has nothing to do with humans, I’m on my own, and everything to do with a mutated gene that has been found in Labrador Retrievers.

PARIS (AFP) – Genetic scientists said on Sunday they could explain why Labrador retrievers, the most popular dog breed in the world, may be prone to suffering a collapse of their rear legs after having exercise.

The answer lies in a mutation of a gene called dynamin 1, or DNM1, on the dog’s ninth chromosome that controls a key chemical in the nervous system, they said.

The syndrome, called exercise-induced collapse, was first spotted by vets in the 1990s among a group of Labradors who were undergoing training.

Some five to 15 minutes after getting strenuous exercise, some of the dogs would develop a wobbly gait and a high temperature, followed by a near-complete loss of control over their rear limbs.

This is actually a very important discovery and is the first naturally occurring mutation of this gene identified in any mammal.

“Its discovery could offer insight into normal as well as abnormal neurobiology in both animals and humans,”  stated James Mickelson, a professor of veterinary sciences at the university.

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I think it’s safe to say we all wish we could understand exactly what our dogs are saying, don’t we? Sure reading body language works wonders, and sometimes a well timed whimper or bark will get a point across, but I still prefer the spoken word.

I remember one year for Christmas Lisa gave me the Bow-Lingual dog bark translator.  I’m sure many of you have heard of the device, but if you haven’t here’s a little snippet of marketing material for you.

The device is billed as a “translator” but it might more precisely be called an emotion analyzer. It is said to use technology to categorize dog barks into one of six standardized emotional categories.

Then, for fun, Bowlingual also provides an often humorous phrase representative of that emotion. But the product package clearly notes that the phrases “are for entertainment purposes only” and it seems that they are not meant to be true translations of each bark.

I’m sure you’re wondering, how well does it work? Well, while it may be an amusing toy for a child, for adults it’s one of those gifts, after a few hours use,  that you want to re-gift.  In fact, ours ended up on eBay. If I remember correctly, most of Bo’s barks translated into “I want treats”, something we already knew.

The Bow-Lingual does lead to a few interesting questions.  Just what words are in a dogs vocabulary and which command words do they respond to best?

So, in the name of scientific research, Dogster decided to create a poll on its homepage to determine what command dogs respond to the most.  The final statistics, results based on  3101 pollsters, are: Come! (31.57%),  Stay! (26.67%),  Shake (23.12%), None of the above (14.80%), and Heel! (3.84%).

Oddly, my suggestion of “Gotta Go Pee Pee?” didn’t make the list.  In retrospect, it is more of a question than command so I’ll let it slide.

Regardless,  you can still vote if you want, or head on over to check out the new poll.   As a dog owner which presidential candidate are you most likely to vote for?

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We all know that when you’re in a room and one person yawns it will set off a series of yawns.  Now, according to a scientific team from Birkbeck College at the University of London, dogs can also “catch” a yawn.

The copying activity suggests that canines are capable of empathizing with people, say the researchers who recorded dogs’ behaviour in lab tests. Until now, only humans and their close primate relatives were thought to find yawning contagious.

Dr Senju and his team were questioning whether dogs could read the human yawn signal, which could support a finding that dogs have the ability to empathize. The team set up a study using 29 canines.

The team found that 21 out of 29 dogs yawned when the stranger in front of them yawned – on average, dogs yawned 1.9 times. By contrast, no dogs yawned during the non-yawning condition.

The researchers believe that these results are the first evidence that dogs have the capacity to empathise with humans; although the team could not rule out stress-induced yawning – they hope to in future studies.

That is good news.  Lisa and I figured  Bo, Copper, and Logan were yawning because they thought we were boring.  Perhaps, that isn’t so.

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I was reading the news this morning when I came across this article about the RNL Bio Company in South Korea.

A woman in California paid $54,000 to RNL Bio to have her Pit Bull, Booger cloned.  Originally, the company was going to charge $162,000 but they came down in price to celebrate their first commercial deal for a dog.

This is a miracle,” said Bernann McKinney from Hollywood in California, hugging five clones of Booger at Seoul National University’s veterinary school today.

RNL Bio, the company that arranged the re-creation of Booger through his refrigerated ear tissue, hailed the event as the world’s first commercial cloning of a pet dog.

McKinney  stated “They are perfectly the same as their daddy. I am in heaven here. I am a happy person”.  She went on to recall an experience from years ago where Booger had saved her life by chasing off a mastiff who had attacked her.

There is no doubt in my mind how much McKinney loved Booger and that is why she chose to clone him.  However, the whole idea of cloning does bring up some very serious questions in my mind.  The first being, why would anyone name their dog Booger?  Second, what assurances do we have that we won’t be faced with a Pet Semetary situation?  And finally, with the thousands of homeless dogs that are out there in desperate need of homes,  what would happen to them if people just stopped adopting and chose to clone?  I realize the price of cloning is very expensive and unaffordable to most,  but it does make you think about the question.

But lest ye think that the cloning stops at our best friends…

“For my next project, I will consider cloning camels for rich people in the Middle East,” he said.

Hmmm…grandpa’s getting kind of old.  I wonder…

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