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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsDogs poop in line with Earth’s magnetic field, says study(not the Onion)
A study published this week in the journal Frontiers in Zoology suggests that dogs choose to relieve themselves along a north-south axis in line with Earths magnetic field. The Motherboard blog reported on the studys findings, saying that the research was carried out by a team of Czech and German scientists.
Dogs are sensitive to small variations of the Earths magnetic field, said the research team. Dogs preferred to excrete with the body being aligned along the North-south axis rather than the East-west axis.
The study examined the daily habits of 70 dogs during 1,893 defecations and 5,582 urinations over the course of two years. Consistently, during times of calm electromagnetic weather, the dogs chose to eliminate while facing north or south.
Dogs are not the only animals that are sensitive to the Earths magnetism. When it comes time for them to mate, salmon use their sense of the Earths magnetism to find their way back to the spawning grounds where they were born. Birds, similarly, migrate along magnetic lines. Even ants have been proven to have a sense of the Earths alignment and to distinguish between north, south, east and west.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/01/02/dogs-poop-in-line-with-earths-magnetic-field-says-study/
Not as "mysterious" as crop circles, but still pretty interesting...
Xipe Totec
(43,890 posts)Butterbean
(1,014 posts)Berlum
(7,044 posts)The same notorious claque which callously clings to the Orthodox 'Belief' that Crop Circles are created by the thousands each year OCCULTLY by anonymous beer drinkers dragging boards.
Beware - do not let Scientific Materialists defecate near your brainpan.
zappaman
(20,606 posts)You are a hoot!
I'm glad you are only joking or I would be worried!
geardaddy
(24,931 posts)Saw the same. Posted earlier, but two is better than one! Especially Number 2.
Tom_Foolery
(4,691 posts)zappaman
(20,606 posts)Skittles
(153,214 posts)I WILL SET HIM STRAIGHT; yes INDEED
Tom_Foolery
(4,691 posts)I always bet 26 black.
Skittles
(153,214 posts)KurtNYC
(14,549 posts)and I have always heard that is an instinctual remnant from the days when wild dogs lived in tall grasses. This could be something similar as knocking down the grasses would help avoid getting their own poop on themselves (via the vertical grasses) (?)
MineralMan
(146,338 posts)of my dog's orientation during defecation, and will report my findings in due time.
G_j
(40,372 posts)Electric Monk
(13,869 posts)which direction. East-West is just the same to him.
adirondacker
(2,921 posts)Tyrs WolfDaemon
(2,289 posts)Her shits are off axis by at least 20°
Glassunion
(10,201 posts)Magnetic Declination
CANDO
(2,068 posts)And he faces whichever direction he chooses.
seveneyes
(4,631 posts)It all depends on which way the vehicles are parked.
pnwmom
(109,001 posts)get the red out
(13,468 posts)Is what I'm thinking for a few blocks on my walk with our dog every morning. Now I know that she is making careful poo placement calculations based on the Earth's magnetic field. Damn! All that brain-power and she still eats cat turds.
Response to zappaman (Original post)
Bobbie Jo This message was self-deleted by its author.
pintobean
(18,101 posts)murielm99
(30,777 posts)to pick a spot to poop.
pinboy3niner
(53,339 posts)"You spent two years of your life doing WHAT???"
NRaleighLiberal
(60,026 posts)Now gotta see how our other chocolate, Buddy, organizes himself!
TMI! TMI!
SidDithers
(44,228 posts)See the turtle of enormous girth
On his back he holds the Earth
Sid
BlueToTheBone
(3,747 posts)Here I just thought my dog (now deceased - RIP sweet Lily) was lazy!
LibertyLover
(4,788 posts)prefer an east-west orientation when defecating. For micturation it's pretty much whatever tree, stone, piece of yard furniture or the side of the shed is available.
msanthrope
(37,549 posts)RadleyJ
(37 posts)hughee99
(16,113 posts)"Cindy, you have to meet Melissa's husband Dave. Dave follows dogs around with a compass and watches them take a shit."
"How did you get that job, Dave?"
"I used to work as a trader at Goldman and spending all that time with assholes and dogshit was a big resume booster."
ProdigalJunkMail
(12,017 posts)she always faces west to pee or poop...
sP
DirkGently
(12,151 posts)??????????????
progressoid
(50,000 posts)zappaman
(20,606 posts)PasadenaTrudy
(3,998 posts)I noticed when I took her out at noon. Interesting!
irisblue
(33,036 posts)between their own yard and walking the neighborhood/park? hmmm, notes will be taken this next week.
KurtNYC
(14,549 posts)Both of mine just faced north. I have tried to teach them to face up hill when they pee with moderate success (it keeps their feet dry) and on gravel (which avoids killing grass). But for poop I just do the hand signal and they can circle and pick their alignment -- they choose north.
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)She'll shit anywhere facing any direction.
Wait... SHE... never mind.
Blue_In_AK
(46,436 posts)And too much information.