Have you ever caught your dog in the act of wiping her feet after pooping? Or maybe you keep coming back to a ruined lawn that shows your dog has been kicking up dirt?
It may even look confusing to you if you are witnessing this for the first time. The good news is that this natural behavior is no cause for alarm 99% of the time.
This behavior is triggered for a variety of reasons, none of which includes your dog doing it because they want to ruin your lawn or because they picked up a bad habit.
So why do dogs wipe their feet? Is it a cause for concern? That is exactly what we are examining in this article so sit tight.
We’ll quickly take a look at what this behavior means before exploring the reasons why dogs wipe their feet particularly after pooping or urinating.
What Does This Behavior Mean?
Commonly referred to as ground scratching, dogs generally wipe their feet to disperse pheromones for a variety of reasons.
Dogs have scent glands underneath their paws which are released as pheromones when they wipe their feet.
These pheromones are not visible to the human eye but they can be perceived by other dogs and can also affect their behavior when perceived.
In one way, the scent deposited when dogs wipe their feet can be used to communicate to a network of other dogs.
The scent is more effective in triggering social interaction or behavior and lasts longer than the scent of poop and urine.
There is no reason to panic here, your dog has a valid reason for wiping its feet. Additionally, apart from the scent, it also serves as a visual marker.
The visual imprint on the ground is also another signal to other species of dogs that might be in the area.
You should only worry when the behavior is excessive or triggered without cause in less ideal spaces like a sofa.
This could serve as an indicator of something else troubling your dog. If your dog suddenly stops wiping his feet and shows signs of limited movement, it could indicate problems with the joints or a hidden injury.
Why Do Dogs Wipe Their Feet After Pooping: Reasons To Consider
Dogs Want to Mark Their Territory
The first and most common reason why dogs wipe their feet in an attempt to spread their scent is to mark their territory.
Similar to how a wolf marks its territory by raising its leg to urinate or a bear marks its territory by clawing against a tree.
This type of behavior will often ward off other animals, in this case dogs, away from the area.
You may notice your dog exhibiting this behavior in your yard whenever it sees another dog in the area or other places your frequent with your dogs, such as the park or a vacation house.
Though this is not necessary for a domesticated dog who lives alone, if you ever bring home another dog, your dog may start exhibiting this behavior.
It dates back to before dogs were domesticated. In the wild canines have to mark their territory to warn other animals off. You can’t fully train this behavior off. Its an underlying nature of domesticated dogs
Your Dog is Trying to Keep its Paws Clean
Other times the reason might be as simple as your dog trying to wipe its paws. If your dog is not fanatic about wiping its feet and you suddenly notice it trying to wipe its feet, dirt or something else could be stuck under its paws that want to be removed.
Some dogs also don’t like the feeling of dirt on their paws so they may also attempt to wipe their feet after pooing or urinating outside as a means to get rid of the dirt.
Spreading Its Scent
Your dog may also try to wipe its feet to spread its scent to interact socially with other dogs.
It may resort to this to signal to another dog that it’s in heat or even adopt the behavior to keep other dogs away if it is an aggressive dog.
Burying Its Poop
Another rare but possible reason is that your dog is trying to bury its poop. This is a mostly cat-like behavior as dogs will rather bury bones than bury their poop.
However, in dogs, trying to bury their poop and kicking up dirt is mostly related to marking their territory further by mixing the pheromones released from their paws with the scent of the poop or the scent of urine to create a stronger scent.
Should You Stop Your Dog From Wiping Their Feet?
Dogs normally wipe their feet after going to the bathroom for natural reasons so there is usually no reason to stop your dog from wiping its feet.
We only recommend you take action when the wiping becomes more of an unnatural problem. By unnatural, we mean when your dog starts wiping its feet in every situation, indoors and outdoors on your carpet and the sofa.
If the behavior is repeated it could damage your property and also lead to injured and sore paws in your dog.
Causes of this unnatural behavior could be the result of a sharp object stuck in your dog’s paw, a hidden injury, stress, or anxiety.
In such cases, it is best to find the cause of the behavior by examining your dog’s front paws, and hind feet for foreign objects and injuries. If you can locate an object embedded in your pup’s paws, remove the object that may be causing an increase in stress and anxiety.
Although not all dogs do it, wiping their feet can also be an underlying behavior that cannot be trained off completely.
Many natural factors can still trigger the behavior so the best way to curb it if it’s becoming a problem for you is to use other practical commands to replace the behavior when noticed.
Teaching your dog new tricks and commands would help you immediately interrupt the behavior and reduce it over time. You can also try consulting with a veterinarian to ensure that the behavior is not related to an underlying condition. They may also have some tips and advice on curbing this behavior.
Conclusion
Now you know the answer to the question “why do dogs wipe their feet”. It’s normal dog behavior and usually should not raise any cause for alarm.
Dogs wipe their feet to release pheromones as a scent marker which can either serve to mark their territory, communicate with other dogs, or maybe signal you to a foreign object or dirt in their paws.
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