This would normally be accompanied by embarrassing photos of King Max, but for some reason my phone has stopped sending to my laptop. I'm thinking some sort of electronic lovers' quarrel, but who knows?
What I need is some insight, so anyone who understands the canine psyche might help shed some light on this.
I just gave him his weekly whether he liked it or not bath, and like every other bath, he patiently waits for the tub to drain, gets out, patiently waits while I towel dry him, and then he explodes in a frenzy of rubbing. Against me, cabinets, furniture, the Cute Chicks, me again, across the quilt on the bed, then runs to the door to go outside, runs around the yard before finding a spot to flop down and wallow in the dried grass.
So what's up with the frenzied rubbing? Aside from drying, which he's pretty dried by the time I turn him loose, I can't figure it out.
13 comments:
Scent
I pretty much go into a frenzy anytime I get a good bath and a rubdown.
^^^ What he said
Terry
Fla.
Way I've heard it explained, dogs are scent-based animals (thus all the stop-and-sniff during the day). They communicate by scent, and "lavender and periwinkles" sends all the wrong messages. So they run around rubbing and rolling to get their favorite scents back. "Hey, mutt....you smell this furniture polish? With the subtle hint of spilled orange juice? Yeah. That's my cabinet, buddy. MINE!!!"
Ex and kids used to have a couple of ferrets, and they did the same: get them toweled off, turn them loose and watch the show.
My dog is the same way. He gets outside, in the snow, now, and he is like an otter, sliding down every plowed little bank he can find. He is all white, so I have tried to get a picture of him, and people just say, uh, yeah, nice. I have no real knowledge of the reason, but the other folks sound right, about scent. I just know my dog is the same as yours, after a bath, he runs around like he is on some kind of drugs, or something.
Unclezip, you win the Comment of the Day.
combining the scent issue and the fact that they have 2 layers of fur, the rubbing is in response to intense smell and skin wetness
All dogs roll and rub and scrape. CharlieGodammit finds something nasty to roll in.
What smells good to us weird people critters just doesn't do it for our canine family members. Rolling on dead critters or in a pile of excrement is like dog scratch and sniff camo that appeases their predatory instincts.
It's also very possible that the shampoo can cause the dogs skin to become very itchy because it strips away all the natural oils that are produced to protect the skin in nature. Try a milder dog specific shampoo or wash less frequently. http://www.purina.com.au/puppies/care/grooming/dog-washing
Scent and skin oil production are both correct. They rub to produce and spread more oils into their skin and hair and spread their scent or pick up scent from where they have been to tell their story. Having many Labs I've just about seen it all. A dog covered in thick nasty mud is completely clean and dry an hour later all by itself. any dead animal carcass is just begging to be rolled in the nastier the better.
Now really Angel, who wouldn't want to rub up against you after a nice bath?
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