Secrets of Dogs: How They Navigate Home

Sense of Smell

Dogs possess an extraordinary sense of smell, with their noses containing an astonishing 220 million to 2.2 billion olfactory receptors, compared to the mere 12 million to 4 million in humans.

Every time you take your dog for a walk, they leave a trail of scents behind, from urine and feces to the very paths they frequently take, all marking their territory.

It's not just a simplistic notion to say that dogs find their way home by following scents; their abilities are far more nuanced.

The Scent Circle

What is a scent circle? It's a unique skill possessed only by dogs.

Imagine a dog urinating on a utility pole; the urine will disperse from the pole, creating a circular scent trail. If a dog becomes lost, finding just any part of this scent circle, even at its outer edge, can lead it back home.

Although the theory of scent circles has been proposed for many years, it wasn't until 2017 that it was scientifically confirmed, in a story that was both heartwarming and humorous.

A British couple, while on a picnic with their dogs, were forced to end their outing early due to unexpected thick fog. As they were about to head home, they discovered that their two Shih Tzus were missing!

Desperate, the couple called for local rescue teams, which included 120 people and two drones, who searched for 96 hours without success. Just as they were about to give up, the couple decided to set up a grill and cook sausages at the last place they saw their dogs.

It wasn't hunger that drove them; their Shih Tzus had a penchant for sausages grilled over the fire.

Before long, the two dogs returned, drawn by the familiar scent of the sausages.

Visual Perception

While we know dogs have an incredible sense of smell, their vision might seem poor at first glance. However, this is not the case.

When you're resting with your dog in a new place, you'll notice them looking around, especially in unfamiliar territory. This is not just out of curiosity; they are creating a visual map, using it in conjunction with their sense of smell to remember certain locations.

Research on wolves has shown that they use visual landmarks to navigate back home. In areas where wolves are commonly found, they even find shortcuts.

Magnetism

This year in June, researchers discovered another remarkable ability of dogs.

They took 27 hunting dogs from 10 different breeds into an unfamiliar forest, where they first introduced the dogs to the scent of a prey. Then, they led the dogs to the forest's center and released them to find their way back to the entrance.

The tall grass in the forest would have impaired the dogs' vision, and the sea breeze blowing through would have dispersed the scent of the prey.

Surprisingly, many of the dogs initially strayed from their path but ultimately managed to return to the starting point. Researchers found that despite their varied initial paths, once the dogs were positioned approximately 65 feet from the Earth's northsouth axis, they all converged on a single route, leading back to the forest entrance.

Even when their sense of taste and vision were compromised, the dogs still found their way back, suggesting that they used the Earth's magnetic field to correct their course.

In whatever way they do it, dogs truly have the remarkable ability to find their way home alone.