Do dogs like novelty?

June 24, 2013 6:23 AM

Do dogs like to go new places on their walks? Do they get bored of the same routes?

I walk and run two German Shepherds a few times a week. I'm idly wondering if dogs like exploring new places on their walks. Do they get bored doing the same routes?

The younger one (five years old, unneutered male) in particular is very smart and energetic, and my main goal is to give him enough to do so that he's not bored at home! (Any side tips on that also appreciated.)

posted by quadrilaterals to Pets & Animals (17 answers total)

My dog likes smelling new things but he also likes smelling all the same old things to see if they smell the same or if they need to be peed on.

Consistency is important (you don't want him to be so excited/scared by a new place that he doesn't feel safe pooping), but it never hurts to mix it up a bit.
posted by phunniemee at 6:28 AM on June 24, 2013 [5 favorites]

Bear in mind that smelling gives dogs an almost time-travel-esque quality to their sensory experience -- for instance, we can see that something just got peed on, but our dogs can smell that pee and the pee of several things before it and the fact that something rubbed against it before all that peeing, etc. So for them, "the same routes" are constantly changing panoplies of new smells and experiences.

At the same time, dogs have very different senses of time than humans do, so for them, it's not "Oh, this street again -- weren't we just here yesterday?" but "Good GOD it's been fucking FOREVER since I was here ohmygodohmygod I can smell THAT ONE SPANIEL!"

If they seem less enthused at the same routes, feel free to vary it up a bit, but they're experiencing the world in a totally different way from us.
posted by Etrigan at 6:34 AM on June 24, 2013 [7 favorites]

I once lived in a neighborhood where an older neighbor would let her little terrier out to go on his walk by himself. You'd see him happily trotting along, always following the same route around the block. I think that is unusual, though, for off leash dogs.
posted by thelonius at 6:46 AM on June 24, 2013 [3 favorites]

I have two dogs.

One could walk the same route every day forever, and not only would he still never learn the way home, he'd never know it was the same route. He's kinda dumb. good dog, and a very good hunter, but... not that sharp

My other dog see profile pic gets bored of the same thing and loves, loves, loves walking new places and seeing new things. It's the same with his toys - we rotate his toys in and out, because he gets bored with them and is interested in new things.

So.... It varies by dog.
posted by Pogo_Fuzzybutt at 6:46 AM on June 24, 2013 [1 favorite]

My mum's dog is really bright and energetic, and when I was dogsitting for a week I thought she'd like a new walk near my house. But she really hated it. It's a busy towpath along a river with lots of dogs and I'm guessing so many new smells overwhelmed her. She normally trots along happy as Larry but she was really nervous and jumpy. She's done pretty much the same walk with my mum every day for 5 years and she gets just as excited every time. So maybe think about doing different things on your walk - throwing in a few fetch games or something - rather than changing the walk itself?
posted by billiebee at 6:54 AM on June 24, 2013

We do the same walk every day but change the side of the street sometimes. She doesn't seem to mind at all.
posted by mrfuga0 at 6:55 AM on June 24, 2013

I think it depends on the dog. My dearly departed Oscar loved routine - he liked to pee and poop in the same places, even in the yard.

One time he got out, and he took himself on his walk, and just stopped and sat at the corner when he couldn't figure out which way to go.

When we traveled with him, he liked to smell and pee on everything new -- so I think he enjoyed the stimulation, but not as his exercise/bio needs routine.
posted by hrj at 7:05 AM on June 24, 2013

I worked with a trainer who told me dogs do get bored, and that boredom can result in aggression! Getting too territorial!

I have a really big dog who is kind of overly-friendly to tiny, aggravated, type-A white doggies. My concern (because it, you know, happened) has been that in his, um, enthusiasm to say hello, he is going to pull me the eff down and drag me along the pavement.

Trainer said one of the ways to dismantle his friendly-aggression ('cause it is a form of aggression) is to vary his routine. Her theory is that the same route, day after day, reinforces the king-of-the-hill mentality.
posted by thinkpiece at 7:20 AM on June 24, 2013 [1 favorite]

I try and keep consistancy in our walks with the time and the length but often shake it up a little by taking different streets or heading off in a new direction, then the dogs have the consistancy of the routine but the stimulus of new things to smell. I do have a dog prone to anxiety though so find this is a great way to keep him interested but feeling safe. I usually either walk in the same neighbourhood but then once every few weeks we'll head off to a park for a nice long walk there and make an afternoon of it.

We take our dogs with us in our car a lot to visit family etc at least twice a week, and they usually just sleep on the drive, unless we make the slightest detour for any reason, if we turn even a road too soon up will pop their heads to see what the change is all about. So dogs know when you change routes.
posted by wwax at 7:33 AM on June 24, 2013

My neutered male dog clearly enjoys checking the status of his pee markings and updating them. He also loves new places with new smells and room to run. His attitude is mostly Out? Out!!!! We're going out!!! Yippeeeee!! and sometimes In! Let's go IN! and mostly You want to spend time with me! Us, Together!! This is the Best! so just interact with them on walks for maximum goodness.

Train the younger one to stop and sit at intersections and other tasks. If there's anyplace where they can run offleash, that's always a treat, and a good place to practice recall (coming when called). Both are useful for safety.
posted by theora55 at 8:19 AM on June 24, 2013

My two dogs definitely like novelty. I'm always hunting new places to walk them, and different types of places to walk them. They enjoy our routine morning walks but they get especially enthusiastic when we go someplace new.

I imagine this isn't the case for all dogs, though. Fearful or anxious dogs may value routine above novelty.
posted by workerant at 8:25 AM on June 24, 2013

My neutered male dog clearly enjoys checking the status of his pee markings and updating them.

Or as my neighbor calls it, Pee-Mail.
posted by Room 641-A at 8:31 AM on June 24, 2013 [5 favorites]

My Beagles absolutely love new trails. There's new sights; new smells; new plants; new terrain. Very much more stimulating than doing the same thing day-in and day-out.

On top of that, I would get bored doing the same walk with them every day. I'm fortunate that I have a half-dozen metroparks within a ~20-25 minute drive and each metropark has 7-10 different hiking trails. So we do different ones each day. Makes the walks more enjoyable for all of us.
posted by jms18 at 10:13 AM on June 24, 2013

My friend told me her vet says that taking a dog to a new area to smell new things can function almost like giving the dog more exercise in terms of helping to wear them out, and that if she can't take the dog on a super-long walk she should at least take her to a new place in the neighborhood.
posted by needs more cowbell at 10:36 AM on June 24, 2013 [3 favorites]

Just one data point. My Boston Terrier brothers were fine with the routine places to walk. But they displayed noticeable excitement, interest, and enthusiasm when exploring a new location.
posted by Fortnight Bender at 1:25 PM on June 24, 2013

My dog is fine with routine and likes to check his regular pee spots but he is definitely excited about exploring new areas. I think he's a smarter, more balanced dog for having new experiences and encountering different people, animals and situations.
posted by shoesietart at 4:08 PM on June 24, 2013

Yeah, I usually let my dog choose. Either we go around the pond or we go the other way. It's really her choice because she'll just stand there and not move if we don't go the way she wants to go.
posted by thylacine at 6:04 PM on June 24, 2013