You can spay a dog while she’s in heat, but the surgery may cost more and the recovery time may be longer. Credit: Scott Heaney | Getty Images
It is possible to spay a female dog in heat, but most veterinarians recommend waiting until your dog is between heat cycles. Spaying during a heat cycle is more involved, meaning increased anesthesia time, possibly a slower recovery after surgery, and often a higher cost for the spay surgery. Your dog is also more likely to experience dramatic mood swings and behavior changes during the recovery period.
My Dog Is in Heat Now and Bleeding
While it’s no fun to have a dog in heat, it’s not an emergency and not impossible to manage. You can discuss the risks of in-heat surgery with your veterinarian, but chances are the recommendation will be to wait. What should you do? The choice is yours, but you can carefully handle a dog in heat with proper management and the use of doggie panties. A dog’s first heat cycle may occur between 4 and 6 months of age. Once she’s through that first heat, you can schedule the spay surgery for a couple months out. Dogs generally go in heat twice a year.
How Risky Is it to Spay a Dog in Heat?
While in estrus (heat), the dog’s reproductive organs are swollen, and additional hormones are circulating through her body. All these changes make the female dog receptive to males and prepare her body for pregnancy.
Unfortunately, the swollen in-heat uterus and ovaries have a lot more blood traveling through them and can be more fragile. This makes the veterinarian’s job more difficult when trying to perform spay surgery. The surgeon must go carefully, avoiding tearing delicate tissues and addressing excess bleeding as it occurs. These factors make the surgery take longer, which in turn leads to a higher bill.
The Spay Procedure
The medical term for a spay is ovariohysterectomy, or removal of the uterus and ovaries. It’s a major procedure. The veterinarian makes an incision into the abdomen and extracts the uterus and ovaries. Once the surgeon is confident that there is no bleeding in the abdomen, the incision is closed with sutures. Spay incisions typically heal in 10 to 14 days. During that time, you will need to prevent your dog from licking or chewing her incision and limit her activity. After this initial healing period, the skin and tissues will continue to get stronger over the next several months.
What Does an In-Heat Spay Do to My Dog?
Spaying a dog in heat puts your dog on a hormonal rollercoaster. She goes from maximum reproductive hormones to very little in a short time. This can cause moodiness, clinginess, and some increased anxiety or irritability for several weeks. These behavioral changes generally level out over time.
Remember that removing the sex organs also removes hormones. Estrogen and progesterone contribute to a female dog’s confidence, mood, appetite, and how she handles stress. Most female dogs retain their base personality traits after being spayed, but you may see changes in your dog’s confidence or energy level. Rarely, female dogs will become more aggressive toward other dogs after being spayed.
Ideally, plan to spay your dog between heat cycles. Talk to your veterinarian about the best timing for your dog, be that before her first heat or when she has fully matured and gone through a few cycles. Scheduling the spay for two to three months after your dog has come in heat generally works out well.
Situations where it might be necessary to spay your dog while she is in heat include if she has a pyometra (infected uterus), it is difficult for you to reschedule her procedure, or if there are concerns about an unplanned pregnancy. If you find yourself in one of these situations, remember to be patient with your dog during the first few weeks of recovery.
Safety, design, and ease of cleaning are all important qualities when looking for a slow feeder bowl for your dog. Credit: Jae Thomas
If your dog gobbles down their food in 10 seconds, they may benefit from a slow feeder dog bowl. The best slow feeder dog bowls can extend your dog’s mealtime, offer engaging enrichment.
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You can give your dog omeprazole, but with the dosage variance and precautions that come with it for dogs, it’s wise to get your veterinarian’s approval first. Credit: Pressmaster | Getty Images
Omeprazole is an extra-label drug (off-label) medication used to reduce acid in your dog’s stomach and small intestine. As such, it can help with gastroesophageal reflux and gastric erosions or ulcers that might be caused by tumors, infections, or certain medications such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). It is sometimes part of a protocol to treat Helicobacter infections. You may see omeprazole listed as Prilosec (brand name).
Omeprazole Dosage for Dog
Omeprazole is given once a day. It’s usually best to give it in the morning an hour before your dog’s first meal. Some dogs don’t handle medication well on a totally empty stomach, so check with your veterinarian about giving a small amount of food with the medication if your dog vomits or acts nauseous.
The recommended dose is .25 to .5 mg or omeprazole per lb of weight once a day, but your veterinarian may adjust the dose for your dog depending on his overall health.
The medication comes as pills or capsules available OTC (over the counter), however, pills should not be crushed or cut due to the special protective coating to help the medication function best in the stomach, and capsules should not be opened for the same reason. Instead, your veterinarian may arrange to have it compounded to adjust the dose for your dog (especially very small or very large dogs) or have it made into an oral liquid or paste.
How Long to Give Omeprazole to Your Dog
Omeprazole should be given for the full amount of time your veterinarian recommends. If you miss a dose, just wait until the next morning to resume dosing.
Omeprazole can take a couple of days to become truly effective. It is not recommended for use beyond four to eight weeks. In addition, you should taper or wean your dog off this medication if it has been taken for more than a week or two. A sudden stop can lead to a rebound in acid production. Your veterinarian can help you with a dose-reduction schedule.
Side Effects of Omeprazole for Dogs
Being available OTC and having low risk for toxicity may suggest you can simply give it on your own. That is not a great idea! It should be given under veterinary supervision and guidance.
Side effects can include vomiting, diarrhea, intestinal gas, and a loss of appetite. These signs are usually mild but could mask signs of more serious illness.
A major potential problem with giving omeprazole is that it can interfere with other medications your dog may be taking. The list of drugs includes diuretics, some antibiotics and anti-fungals, medications for seizure control, thyroid medication, immunosuppressive drugs like cyclosporine, and some heart medications. Make sure your veterinarian is aware of any supplements, including herbal remedies your dog may be taking.
Caution is wise for dog with hepatic (liver) or renal (kidney) problems, although it can be helpful for both of those conditions. Dosages may need to be adjusted for these dogs or omeprazole avoided altogether.
Since dogs can’t tell us what hurts, it can be difficult to determine where exactly their pain is coming from. Credit: dohlongma - HL Mak| Getty Images
Most of us have experienced a headache at some point in our lives. In fact, more than 50 percent of people worldwide have some form of headache disorder. But what about our dogs? Can dogs get headaches?
There’s very little known about headaches in animals, and that goes for our dogs too. Because animals are nonverbal, we need to rely on outward signs to tell us if a dog might have a headache or if there is some other medical problem. The only true research on headaches in dogs dates back to 2013, in a study done at the Royal Veterinary College Small Animal Referral Hospital in Great Britain.
The 2013 Study of Dog Headaches
The 2013 study focused on a 5-year-old female Cocker Spaniel who presented with a long history of sudden, recurring episodes of vocalization (whining, whimpering, barking) and apparent fear. Just before the vocalizations began, the dog would appear fearful, quiet, and would hide under furniture; once she started whimpering in apparent pain, she would hold her head low, become sensitive to light and sound, and refuse to eat or drink. After each episode, she would remain quiet for 1–2 days and then return to an apparently normal condition.
Eventually, veterinarians came to suspect a migraine-like disorder and prescribed the drug topiramate, first approved in 1996 as an anticonvulsant, but later found to be effective in treating migraines. The dog showed marked improvement in both symptoms and duration. In the end, the study authors had to admit that “To [our] knowledge . . . the current review of literature does not confirm the existence of migraines in dogs. The dog presented here has shown a combination of unusual clinical signs, which could be suggestive of a migraine or another severe headache disorder.”
Research and Veterinary Insights On Headaches in Dogs
Since that 2013 study, scientific research on canine headaches has been essentially nonexistent. While there have been some studies on headaches in laboratory animals such as mice and rats, those animal models don’t compare well to canines, simply because of the significant physiological and genetic differences between the species.
The majority of post-2013 research on head pain in dogs focuses on secondary headaches: that is, pain that’s a symptom of an underlying condition. This is where the diagnostic challenge lies, notwithstanding innovations in the tools veterinarians can use to quantify and classify pain. The fact remains that headaches fall into the category of difficult-to-diagnose pain. Despite this, science and insights from veterinarians suggest that dogs might indeed suffer from headaches.
Causes of Possible Headaches in Dogs
Dehydration and Heat
We humans can get headaches while outside in hot weather and as a result of dehydration. The presumption is that the same could be true of dogs. Both dehydration and heat can cause the brain to shrink in volume, which causes pain: lack of fluids reduces brain volume and can even damage the brain cells directly. Dehydration and overheating can also affect cognitive function such as alertness and memory.
Dental Issues
As with humans, dogs can develop dental problems, which can create pain in the jaw and head.
Blunt force injury to a dog’s head—falling, being hit by something hard, a car accident—could cause a concussion or, in the worst case, traumatic brain injury. Any kind of head injury, even if it’s asymptomatic, calls for immediate veterinary care.
Allergies
Allergic reactions to everything from dust and mold to food to medications have the potential to cause headaches.
Neurological Disorders
Conditions affecting the brain, such as tumors, infections like meningitis or encephalitis, neuropathy, or stroke, can result in symptoms similar to headaches.
Signs of Possible Headaches in Dogs
Humans and dogs share many of the same health disorders and often the signs are similar. However, while we humans can verbalize where our pain is located, to determine the locus of a dog’s pain in the absence of an obvious injury like a broken leg or condition such as arthritis, veterinarians need to rely on observing the dog’s behavior and ruling out underlying causes. Caregivers can play an important role in this, since they are most familiar with the dog’s behavior and will know when something isn’t right.
Symptoms of possible headaches in dogs include:
Seeking out dark, quiet spaces
Loss of appetite
No interest in playing or interacting
Glassy or slitted eyes
Pressing their head against a wall or other solid object
Sensitivity to light and/or sound
Lethargy
Vocalization (whining, moaning, whimpering)
Irritability
The difficulty arises in that along with being ambiguous, these symptoms aren’t necessarily specific to headaches. Rather, they could be the result of a multitude of other conditions. If a dog is exhibiting any of these signs, it’s safe to assume they’re not feeling well, which may or may not include having a headache.
If you suspect your dog is having headaches, the first step is to consult your veterinarian in order to rule out any underlying condition. Secondly, never give your dog human pain medications like aspirin, ibuprofen, acetaminophen, naproxen, and other human NSAIDs, which can be toxic and even lethal to dogs. Finally, if your vet prescribes a pain medication—the most common include gabapentin, carprofen, and meloxicam—be sure to strictly follow the dosing instructions.
Don’t disregard things that you can do to make your dog more comfortable like providing a soft bed in a cool, darkened, quiet spot, and making sure there’s plenty of fresh water nearby. Most dog headaches—like our humans ones—seem to resolve on their own, so simply give your pooch time to recover.
In the end, we can only hope that researchers will start focusing more on head pain in dogs and that eventually they’ll be able to provide a definitive answer to the question, “Do dogs get headaches?”
The test participants, from left, Piper, Flick, Samson, and Merlin. Participants were compensated for their participation in this at-home test with cuddles and treats. Courtesy of Dr. Mary Cope.
While it is impossible to stop shedding completely for most dogs, using an anti-shedding shampoo can help manage the problem and promote a healthier coat.
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Relationship-based dog training focuses on building trust and understanding between dogs and their humans. Credit: Julia Suhareva | Getty Images
What’s the key to happiness for you and your dog? Having a good relationship. That’s why experts say relationship-based dog training can set you and your pooch up for success and help create a loving, trusting, and respectful connection.
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Red inflamed skin and swelling around your dog’s eye could indicate blepharitis, which is painful for your dog.
Credit: Ирина Мещерякова | Getty Images
If your dog has a swollen eye, you should make a veterinary appointment promptly. These issues are usually not an emergency, but eye problems can progress quickly without proper treatment.
Dog Swollen Eye Home Treatment
The things you can do at home to provide your dog relief while you wait for a vet appointment include:
Apply a warm compress to the swollen eye. This should be warm, not hot. Applying heat is soothing and encourages circulation to decrease swelling.
Flush with plain artificial tears. Lubricating the eye can provide pain relief and may dislodge any foreign material that is causing irritation.
Consider giving Benadryl. Diphenhydramine is an antihistamine that can help relieve itchiness and discomfort due to allergies. This is most appropriate if your dog has a history of environmental or food allergies, both eyes are swollen, or if your dog also has itchy feet and/or ears. Your veterinarian can tell you a safe dose for your dog.
Remember, though, eye problems can accelerate and become bad quickly and permanent eye damage is possible. Don’t skip the vet visit. Get your dog in as soon as possible.
What Is Blepharitis in Dogs?
Blepharitis means inflammation of the eyelids. It is uncomfortable, so your dog will probably show some behavioral changes as well as swelling and redness around the eye.
Symptoms include:
Swelling of the eyelids and around the eye
Excessive blinking
Squinting
Rubbing at the eye(s)
Reddened skin around the eye(s)
Hair loss around the eye(s)
Redness in the sclera, or white part of the eye
Pigment changes in the skin around the eye(s)
Discharge from one or both eyes
Pain
When your dog rubs or paws at his painful eye, he could accidentally damage the inflamed skin or even the eye itself. These scratches can lead to sores around the eye or infected ulcers on the surface of the cornea.
Why Does My Dog Have a Swollen Eye?
Many things can cause blepharitis. Possible causes include:
Trauma to the eye
Chalazion, a mass-like inflammation of the meibomian glands in the eyelid
Entropion (folding in of the eyelid, causing eyelashes to rub against the eye or grow abnormally)
Bacterial infection
Parasitic infection such as demodectic mange or sarcoptic mange
Viral infection, including papillomavirus
Tumor on the eyelid such as meibomian gland adenoma, melanoma, or squamous cell carcinoma
Immune disorders such as pemphigus or lupus
Zinc-responsive dermatitis
Metabolic disorders such as hypothyroidism, diabetes, or Cushings disease
Sometimes we don’t know why a dog develops a swollen eye. Brachycephalic dogs and other breeds with facial folds have an increased risk of blepharitis, and certain breeds have increased risk for health conditions that can lead to it. Breeds with an increased risk of developing blepharitis include the Shih Tzu, Pekingese, English Bulldog, Lhasa Apso, Pug, Golden Retriever, Labrador Retriever, West Highland White Terrier, Siberian Husky, Akita, German Shepherd Dog, Poodles, Chinese Shar Pei, Chow Chow, Rottweiler, and Collies. That said, any breed or mix can experience this issue.
Getting a Diagnosis for a Dog’s Eye Problem
Your veterinarian will need to know when you first noticed the swelling around your dog’s eye as well as any other symptoms or changes in your dog’s life and routines. After a thorough exam, the vet will recommend next steps based on what he or she thinks may be causing irritation.
Diagnostics might include a Schirmer tear test, bloodwork, swabbing the eye for a bacterial culture, testing for viral disease, or biopsy.
Treating a Swollen Eye
The exact treatment will depend on why your dog’s eye is swollen.
Your dog may receive topical eye drops or ointment to relieve pain in the eye or treat a bacterial infection. Many tumors and masses can be removed surgically, as can entropion. Parasites are treated with appropriate preventive medication. Zinc responsive dermatitis is treated with diet changes.
Allergies, immune disorders, and metabolic disorders generally require lifelong management. Once the underlying problem has been addressed, your dog’s swollen eye should resolve.
Itchy dogs roll to ease the, well, itch! But if he scratches so much that he damages skin, prednisone may help.
Credit: Eric Lowenbach | Getty Images
Depending on the day, prednisone for dogs can be a miracle drug or a nightmare. If your dog is prescribed prednisone, it’s important that you understand what prednisone does and its potential for side effects in dogs.
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When it comes to finding the best treadmill for your dog, size is the primary consideration. Make sure the treadmill is long enough for your dog to run on in addition to being easy to use and maintain. Credit: Jae Thomas
Extremely hot or cold weather and busy work schedules can impact the amount of exercise your pup gets. In many places in the U.S., it’s often too hot during the day to take dogs out for anything longer than a short potty break during the summer months while in winter, snow and short daylight hours may reduce your dog’s typical exercise schedule.
The best dog treadmills can help you exercise your dog, regardless of the weather or the time of day. Dog treadmills are ideal for high-energy dogs who need extra exercise and busy pet parents who want to keep their pups fit and healthy but may not have the time for long walks or runs outside. Dog owners with physical limitations or injuries can also benefit from a dog treadmill, since they can exercise their dog with little impact on their own bodies.
We tested three of the best dog treadmills and did market research on other options available online. Here’s what to look for before buying your pup their own treadmill:
Traits We Want in the Best Dog Treadmills
Ease of setup and use: The best dog treadmills should be easy to set up and simple to use. Complicated setup when using a dog treadmill will often make you want to use it less, so we prioritized treadmills that could be turned on and adjusted with minimal effort.
Size: Size is the biggest factor you should consider when purchasing a dog treadmill. The running deck of a dog treadmill needs to be long enough for your dog to fully extend their front and rear feet while running or trotting and should be minimum of twice the length of your dog from the tip of their nose to the base of their tail.
Anything shorter doesn’t allow your dog to reach full extension while running or trotting and may make them feel nervous about slipping off the back of the treadmill.
Safety: Features like guide rails, an emergency stop function with a tethered clip that attaches to your dog, and a grippy, secure belt that absorbs impact from running are all paramount to keep your pup safe.
This mid-priced dog treadmill is big enough for dogs up to 179 pounds and long enough for most medium to large dogs to fully extend in a run. It’s a bit loud but is otherwise beloved by the dog sport and dog rehab communities.
The dogPACER 4.0 is a tricked-out version of the original. It features a companion app to help you adjust settings, has incline features (and can be completely flat), and has an improved deck for less joint impact than the original.
Though it’s marketed for dogs up to 130 pounds, the Lifepro PawRunner is really only suitable for small dogs under 30 pounds with short strides. However, it’s lightweight, easy to set up, and simple to use.
Best Dog Treadmill: DogPACER LF 3.1 Treadmill
Although it takes up a lot of space, the dogPACER LF 3.1 is safe, large enough for most dogs, and is one of the more moderately priced dog treadmills on the market. Credit: Brooklyn Pogue
The dogPACER LF 3.1 is the go-to for most dog sport folks when purchasing a dog treadmill. The rehab vet I take my dogs to has one of these in-office and it’s a good option for at-home use, too.
The biggest draw of the LF 3.1 is its size and moderate price. Dog treadmills and slatmills are expensive and easily get into the one to two thousand dollar range for models that fit larger dogs. This option costs $499, which is still a good chunk of money to pay, but a very reasonable price for a large, safe dog treadmill from a trusted brand. I know many people who have had this model for 5+ years with no durability problems.
My colleague, dog trainer Brooklyn Pogue, uses the dogPACER for her Border Collie agility dogs and says she enjoys it for the convenience and ability to get out extra energy indoors. As for downsides, she says it takes up a lot of space and requires quite a bit of regular maintenance for upkeep.
The dogPACER LF 3.1 is suitable for dogs up to 179 pounds and I find that the 71-inch running deck is long enough for most medium and large dogs, though some giant breeds may have too big of a stride to properly run on it.
Best Smart Dog Treadmill: DogPACER 4.0
An upgraded version of the LF 3.1, the dogPACER 4.0 adds an improved running deck, Bluetooth control panel and companion smartphone app, and pre-set exercise programs. Credit: Jae Thomas
The dogPACER 4.0 is my personal choice for a dog treadmill, as I purchased this for my dogs some months ago. It’s a feature-rich version of the original dogPACER with added smart functions.
The main upgrade is a Bluetooth control panel that connects to a companion smartphone app. The app allows you to adjust the settings without having to bend down and use the control panel and lets you track your dogs’ time elapsed, distance, and calories in one place. You can also view logs of your pup’s previous workouts for tracking purposes and select from three advanced pre-set programs.
Other differences between the 4.0 version and the 3.1 version are the incline settings and the running deck itself. The 4.0 has an adjustable incline and can be set fully flat, while the 3.1 is always set at a slight incline. The fully flat setting is a great option for dogs who are working back up to full strength from being injured, older dogs, or dogs who are nervous about being on a treadmill, as it makes the exercise physically easier for the dog.
In addition, the 4.0 version’s K9 cloud running deck reduces impact on joints when running compared to the 3.1 version (and compared to running your dog on asphalt or concrete).
This dogPACER is also foldable for storage (though it’s fairly heavy to move around and fold). My one main qualm with this treadmill is that the running belt itself sometimes gets misaligned when folding and unfolding and it requires two people to lift the treadmill up and adjust the positioning of the belt.
It’s a bit louder than the smaller Lifepro treadmill, but not quite as loud as the original. I have a sound-sensitive dog and she didn’t seem to be bothered by the sound this dog treadmill made when it was on.
Best Dog Treadmill for Small Dogs: Lifepro PawRunner Dog Treadmill
Though Oslo the Corgi technically fits on this treadmill, his rear feet were falling off the back at a walk, so it’s too small for him to use safely. Credit: Jae Thomas
The Lifepro PawRunner Dog Treadmill says it’s suitable for dogs up to 130 pounds on the store listing, but the actual running deck is quite small at 42 inches. Your dog should be able to fully extend their front and rear legs on a treadmill and if the running deck is too short, their legs will fall off the back of it as they walk or run (which is a safety hazard).
Though the description is a little misleading, this is still a great option for small dogs about 25 pounds or less. It’s sturdy, fairly lightweight, easy to put together, easy to move around, and features side safety guides and an overhead bar you can attach your dog to
It also comes with a variety of different pre-set exercise programs that have varying speeds to mix up your dog’s workout routines.
I loved that this treadmill is extremely quiet. Getting used to a dog treadmill can make some dogs nervous, and sound-sensitive pups are impacted by loud treadmills in addition to the movement.
The LifePro PawRunner goes on sale from time to time, with prices this year going as low as $266. If you can wait until it goes on sale, this is a fantastic budget-friendly option for small dog owners.
Other Dog Treadmills on the Market
Though we didn’t hands-on test the treadmills below, they’re top-selling options and may be worth a look depending on your dog’s needs:
Dog Trotter USA Classic Slatmill
You may be wondering what the difference is between a slatmill and a dog treadmill. Slatmills are completely dog-powered and non-motorized and are best suited for high-drive, high energy dogs. But there’s no limit on the speed a dog can reach on a slatmill, since they’re powering the slatmill themselves. Slatmills generally are more expensive and bulkier than dog treadmills but may be suited for dogs who love to pull and have a lot of motivation to run at high speeds.
The Dog Trotter USA Classic Slatmill is a popular slatmill choice. It comes in three different sizes, has an adjustable tethering system, and features dolly wheels for moving it around. Online reviewers say that this slatmill is well-made and surprisingly quiet.
Jog A Dog Treadmill
If you’re in need of a dog treadmill for an XL or giant breed dog, the extra-large size of the Jog A Dog Treadmill may be your best option. This size features an 84-inch running deck that’s suitable for Mastiffs, Great Danes, Newfoundlands, Irish Wolfhounds, and other giant breeds. It also has a width of 24 inches, so giant breeds can walk, trot, and run with a natural gait without having to narrow their stride to fit on the treadmill.
This option is more expensive than other treadmills on this list, but it also comes with thoughtful dog-forward features like a four-position adjustable incline, sturdy side rails, a moveable gaiting bar to attach your dog to while training, and a speed dial for smooth pace adjustments.
Why do some dogs bark while others are silent? The answer is a combination of environment, genetics, and individual personality. Credit: www.bridgetdavey.com | Getty Images
Barking is considered normal behavior for dogs. If you’ve never heard your dog bark, you might find yourself wondering—and worrying—about why not. A lack of barking isn’t always a problem, rather it reflects the dog’s temperament, genetics, and environment.
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A dog’s extraordinary ability to pickup scents as far away as 12 miles have made them invaluable assets in using smell to find lost adults, detecting illness in people, and for law enforcement.
Your world is most often defined by sights and sounds, but for your dog smell is where it’s at. Your dog’s nose is a marvel of biology, capable of detecting scents that are undetectable to us.
How Far Away Can Dogs Smell Their Owners?
It’s quite amazing, really. “In perfect conditions, a dog can pick up a scent up to 12 miles away, so this indicates that some breeds may be able to smell their owners from miles away,” according to PetRadar, a company specializing in reuniting lost pets with their owners.
The distance your dog can detect your scent varies widely and is subject to the same environmental rules as any other scent, which includes things like wind and humidity, as you will learn here.
That said, your dog knows your specific scent, a unique mix of sweat, breath, skin, hormones, laundry detergent, and diet. To your dog, your scent is as unique as a fingerprint. A variety of studies have shown that dogs are powerfully motivated by their owner’s scent, making them far more persistent in tracking it.
Dogs can even been shown to detect disease through scent. High blood sugar spikes in people with diabetes, those battling Parkinson’s disease, even the onset of seizures. Studies are showing they may also be able to detect cancer.
How Far A Dog Can Smell Depends
There is no solid answer to the question of how far a dog can smell, even under “perfect” conditions. That’s because the distance is heavily influenced by factors, including:
1. Air and Wind Conditions
For a dog to detect a scent over a long distance, the wind must be blowing directly from the source to the dog. Scientists refer to the path of this wind-borne scent as the scent cone or plume. That is, the scent starts narrow, billows and begins to dissipate.
How dramatic is the impact of wind conditions? A dog downwind of a scent source could potentially detect it over miles. In contrast, a dog positioned upwind would only detect the odor once they were virtually on top of the source.
In ideal conditions (e.g., a steady, favorable wind, moderate humidity, and a strong, concentrated odor) a dog’s effective detection range can extend many miles. For example, search-and-rescue dogs have reportedly picked up human scent trails several miles away under ideal conditions.
2. Humidity
Scent molecules adhere better to moisture. Humidity helps keep microscopic scent particles suspended in the air, preventing them from drying out and dropping to the ground too quickly. “Increased humidity could be responsible for increased odor intensity, positively influencing the tracking efficiency of dogs,” according to National Library of Medicine.
3. Scent Strength and Concentration
A potent, concentrated odor such as a fresh blood trail will be detectable over a far greater distance than a faint, weak odor The stronger the odor, the greater the number of molecules released into the environment, and thus the farther the scent cone will extend.
4. Ground vs. Air Scent
Most impressive distance feats involve air scenting, where the dog detects airborne particles carried by the wind. Ground scenting—tracking a scent trail left by footfalls—is highly effective for detail, but its distance is usually limited to the integrity of the trail on the surface, which rarely extends past a few hundred yards or a mile before dilution becomes too great. (The sports of scent work and Barn Hunt are rapidly growing as a wide variety of breeds of dogs and mixes excel in this fun new activity.)
Why Can Dogs Smell So Far Away?
“Olfaction [the sense of smell] in dogs is crucial for gathering information about the environment, recognizing individuals, making decisions, and learning. It is far more specialized and sensitive than humans’ sense of smell,” according to the National Library of Medicine (NLM).
Olfactory receptors, according to the NLM, are located on the ethmoturbinates — a complex structure in the nose that increase surface area. The vomeronasal organ is an additional source of odor detection for chemical signals that stimulate behavioral and/or physiological changes
Why Dogs Smell Better Than Us
If our dogs knew how our sense of smell worked, they would feel sorry for us. The average human has about 5 million olfactory receptors in their nose. However, a standard dog breed has about 300 million.
But the difference is more than just quantity. A dog’s nasal structure is complex and highly effective:
Two Streams: When a dog inhales, its nose separates the air into two streams: one for breathing and one for olfaction. This means dogs can continually analyze odors without interfering with their breathing.
The vomeronasal organ ( also known as Jacobson’s Organ): This secondary olfactory system, located just above the roof of the mouth, is dedicated to detecting specific, heavy moisture-borne chemical signals, particularly pheromones, which are vital for social and reproductive communication.
“The nerves from Jacobsen’s organ lead directly to the brain. They are different from other nerves in the nose in that they do not respond to ordinary smells, but to a range of substances that often have no odor at all. In other words, they detect ‘undetectable’ odors,” according to VCA Hospitals, a national network of hometown hospitals.
Exhaling Through Side Slits: Dogs exhale through the side slits in their nose. This directs the outgoing air away from their sniffing path, preventing the dilution of new odors and helping to cycle new scent molecules into their environment.
This complex system allows a dog to detect an incredible range of scents, but distance depends on other factors.
Let Your Dog Enjoy the Sniff
Understanding power and precision of your dog’s nose helps you understand their behavior. When dogs sniff intensely for a minute on your morning walk, they are doing the equivalent of you reading the morning news, scrolling social media, checking the weather, and identifying who walked by last night. Allowing your dog to smell around him is a way to show our love to our canine companion.
Dogs often lick other dog faces or mouths as a sign of appeasement. Credit: Meaghan Browning | Getty Images
One big reason your dog may lick other dogs’ faces is as an appeasing behavior. My past bully breed, Trent, used to groom the other dogs in the house, at least those who allowed it. When done to my female Rottie mix, it was a social bonding thing. They were two peas in a pod. When done to my Doberman mix, it was basically Trent showing respect to the doggie “leader” though my Dobe mix was never bossy or inappropriate acting. He was simply a natural leader. Trent wasn’t, and he was socially awkward, like many dogs who do this.
There are many other reasons why dogs might lick each other, such as saying they are sorry for what they just did when it was likely not well received but, truthfully, that brings us right back to appeasement behavior.
Puppies: Early Life Shapes Licking Habits
Other causes can include when the dog being licked just had a yummy treat and the dog doing the licking wants a taste. Very young puppies also perform this on older dogs because, quite simply, they are hungry and that is how they instinctively got food from their mother. This is a genetic holdover from their relation to wolves.
Some dogs will retain that trait into adulthood often because they are less confident than other dogs. This can be their default “please don’t hurt me” behavior to show that they are not a threat to another dog. It’s universally understood by dogs. So again, we come back to appeasement behavior. This is not a bad thing. It’s simply conflict avoidance. As long as the recipient dog does not object, there is no reason for concern.
Dog Licking As a Sign of Affection
Licking another dog’s mouth or face can also simply be grooming. Many dogs “care for” other dogs or even other animal family members in this manner. It can be considered a sign of affection when done for this reason. An attempt to nurture if you will. Some dogs will groom each other when laying together in a relaxing manner. It’s self-soothing to them.
Yet another reason for licking another dog’s face (or other animal or even a human in the home) is what has been coined as “kiss to dismiss.” That context means “please go away.” It’s a non-threatening ask for space or an exit on the part of the recipient. This is a context that truly needs immediate attention, as in some cases, it can escalate to threatening if not heeded.
Obsessive Licking in Dogs
In most scenarios, if social licking is not seen as a problem by the recipients, you can simply ignore it. The only potential problem with this type of licking behavior can be when it becomes insistent and obsessive. If licking of this type is a new behavior for your dog, it’s a good time to schedule a visit with your veterinarian to rule out a medical issue. Often obsessive licking caused by a medical issue is gastrointestinal related. If you have any concerns over sudden changes in your dog’s behavior, always speak with your veterinarian first to rule out medical causes. Once cleared, then examine the context to determine the behavior category.
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