Where's North? Watch a dog poop. Comments?

[cmyk]

I always poop aligning to magnetic north. But only because my toilet happens to be oriented that way.

[cmyk]

One question: Do dogs on the South Pole shit straight up in the air?

[Ike_Witt]

@TimeWinder

In all seriousness…good for you! The world would be a better place if this was most people’s response to hearing something novel and questionable.

Nobody seemed to think it was a good idea when I proposed controlled tests in the thread about eating shit.

[Cheshire_Human]

So far I have 3 shits. N, E, and N. Still not enough data to say anything…

[Cheshire_Human]

4th shit is West. The dog is still shitting data…

[dracoi]

Yeah… I’m thinking that they’re really reaching on this one. There are too many factors like wind direction and the sun’s orientation that could all affect the direction a dog (or cow) chooses to face.

I know that if you watched me sitting down at restaurants, you’d notice a strong tendency to face north ward when I’m sitting near a window. But that’s because north is the direction that’s always facing away from the sun and I don’t want bright light in my eyes. It’s not because of magnetic senses that get messed up by electric wires when I sit closer to the center of the restaurant.

[gotpasswords]

I watched my dogs, and for a sample size of three defecations, they were each in a different direction - NW, ESE and W. The only apparent correlation was that they faced a house each time- my house, a neighbor’s house and the adjacent fire house.

[cmyk]

What if the turds are magnetized somehow through the digestion process? Or only dogs that eat Science Diet?

Then I wonder which pole would squeeze out first…

[Cheshire_Human]

@cmyk

… which pole would squeeze out first…

North pole for the northern hemisphere types, south for dingoes.

ETA: my dog just shat south, so in 5 shits, he’s now covered all 4 cardinal directions.

[Crafter_Man]

@engineer_comp_geek

IIRC, the effect was first noticed in cows. As pilots would fly over ranches (to spray fields, etc) they noticed that cows tended to line up along the earth’s magnetic field lines.

Am not sure who first discovered this, but here is a recent article on the subject. An excerpt:

German and Czech researchers used Google Earth satellite images to look at 8,510 domestic cattle in 308 pastures located randomly across six continents. They also studied body alignment in 2,974 red and roe deer in the Czech Republic, either by photographing the animals or checking the impressions they left in snow.

[Chronos]

If these guys are claiming a magnetic component to cattle orientation, too, they’re crazy. The mechanism for cattle alignment is known, and it’s not magnetic. Cattle always line up according to the wind.

[KarlGauss]

@JBDivmstr

WHO paid for it? And WHY?

From the link:

The study was supported by the Grant Agency of the Czech Republic (project. nr. 506/11/2121).

As to the ‘why’ (or “WHY?”), shit if I know.

[buddha_david]

@KarlGauss

From the link: As to the ‘why’ (or “WHY?”), shit if I know.

Apparently our gov’t isn’t the only one handing out blank czechs…

90% of the time I shit facing east, but attempting any other direction would create a messy problem. Don’t own a dog.

[EmilyG]

@gotpasswords

I watched my dogs, and for a sample size of three defecations, they were each in a different direction - NW, ESE and W. The only apparent correlation was that they faced a house each time- my house, a neighbor’s house and the adjacent fire house.

@Cheshire_Human

North pole for the northern hemisphere types, south for dingoes.

ETA: my dog just shat south, so in 5 shits, he’s now covered all 4 cardinal directions.

I guess you guys don’t live where the magnetic field is strong… or something.

[Zsofia]

@Sailboat

I wonder if it’s breed-dependent – do Carolina Dogs and Catahoula Leopard Dogs face south while Alaskan Malamutes face north? Of course, Miniature Poodles stick their noses in the air when pooping.

I have a Catahoula mix. He poops any which way. (He does, however, always look you right in the eye when he does it, even if he has to turn his neck to a clearly uncomfortable angle. He doesn’t blink during, either.)

[JBDivmstr]

@buddha_david

Apparently our gov’t isn’t the only one handing out blank czechs…

90% of the time I shit facing east, but attempting any other direction would create a messy problem. Don’t own a dog.

(bolding mine)

<Groan> Nice try.

@Zsofia

I have a Catahoula mix. He poops any which way. (He does, however, always look you right in the eye when he does it, even if he has to turn his neck to a clearly uncomfortable angle. He doesn’t blink during, either.)

(bolding mine)

And that’s way, TMI.

[Cheshire_Human]

Appropriately enough for this thread, my dog’s name is ‘Deuce’.

We’re still at 5 deuces, since he didn’t drop another deuce when I took him out a few hours ago, but I have to take him out again before I go to bed. He might deuce again, tonight.

[Cheshire_Human]

@EmilyG

@Cheshire_Human

North pole for the northern hemisphere types, south for dingoes.

ETA: my dog just shat south, so in 5 shits, he’s now covered all 4 cardinal directions.

I guess you guys don’t live where the magnetic field is strong… or something.

If you drive south on the QEW, (AKA: 401) 'til you hit Kingston, get off on 15 and head south to the Royal Military College, then head directly south from there (bring a boat, it gets a bit wet, at this point), after you go over, through, or around Wolfe island, if you keep going south, when you hit land again, you’ll be within 3 or 4 miles from where I live. The magnetic field, here, is pretty much the same as where you are. My mutt still doesn’t line himself up with anything I can identify.

[Magiver]

I’m guessing the only ones who give a crap about this are in fact… the dogs.

[buddha_david]

@Magiver

I’m guessing the only ones who give a crap about this are in fact… the dogs.

Dogs don’t give a crap. They leave a crap.