Why does my dog roll in dead things?

Watch a dog find something rotten and the sequence is nearly always the same: a long, intent sniff, then a dropped shoulder, the neck and cheek rubbed into the find, and a roll onto the back. The AKC's article on rolling in smelly things says scientists have no definitive answer. Older ideas held that wild canids disguise their own scent to stalk prey or to hide from predators, but the article points out that wolves are not typically ambush hunters, which weakens the first theory.

Two explanations hold up better. One is communication: a dog that comes home coated in a smell may be carrying information about it to its social group, and the AKC article calls this possibly the strongest explanation. The other comes from certified behavior consultant Rachel Lane, quoted in the same piece, who suggests that strong, novel smells are simply fun for dogs, a kind of enrichment. Neither theory makes your dog strange. Rolling in something foul is a dog being thoroughly a dog.

The pause after the sniff is your window. The AKC article recommends a strong leave it, so you can cue your dog away from a smell from a distance, and a reliable recall to interrupt and redirect a dog that is about to roll. Both have to be taught on easy ground first; a cue your dog has never heard near a dead gull will not work on the day you need it. Our how-to on teaching leave it starts with a treat in a closed hand.

Until the cues are solid, manage the walk. Keep the leash on along the wrack line and save off-leash time for open sand. The AKC article also suggests extra care at farms, on wooded trails and anywhere with wildlife, which covers most of a Cape Ann winter walk. If your dog does start to roll, move it away calmly rather than shouting, then reward the first step it takes back toward you. Shouting tends to start a chase, and a chase ends with a second roll.

If you would rather not do it at home, our bath and brush is a warm wash, a full blow-dry and a brush-out, priced by size: $55 up to 25 pounds, $65 for 26 to 50, $75 for 51 to 90, $85 over 90 and $95 for an extra-large dog with long hair. Grooming needs no evaluation, so a dog that has never been to 210 Eastern Ave can book straight in online, in the Dogtown app or by phone at 978 491-5922.

Tell us what happened when you book, because a dog that rolled in something may need extra time at the tub, and mention any sore or broken skin. A dog that already comes to daycare can have the bath added to its day, and if it rides the Pup Van, $10 each way in Rockport, Gloucester, Essex and Manchester-by-the-Sea, it comes home clean without a ride in your car. Book the following bath at pick-up and that one costs $5 less.