Nudge ?

swillia2

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Can anyone one tell me why dogs nudge ? I know its a way of communicating and all that , what I dont get is why the nudge objects . Ellie is constantly nudging me for attention / play / eat / treats / walks etc but she also nudges objects .. T.V , vases , cups of the table . She can't seem to enter the room without her nose pressing against a tall vase that I have or a black pot cat that stands in the corner . I know my friends little dog ( Alfie ) was the same with her slate picture she had in the room and he would come in and knock it over till she removed it . Do your dogs do the same . My other dobe did this as well but Ellie is much worse ...:eekwtf:
 
It is simply comminication. Wolves also do this when they are in a pack. If one of the wolves hear something interesting he wil point his ears and nudge his head. The other wolves will instantly know that there is something to be curious about.

Many animals do the same thing when hunting etc. too. Have you seen video clips of foxes hunting in the snow? It helps determin where a certain sound is coming from before they make a leap at their pray.
 
Interesting Linda!

Ours do it too and Boris was a big back nudger when we had company over and he was just starting to feel at home with them. Being that he had anxiety issues he was very leery with other people, but we always thought it was cute when he got enough nerve to go up behind them to let them know he's here and likes them. :love:
 
Pretty interesting! Paige is a big nudger, not only for attention (which we usually ignore as to not encourage it) but she'll nudge items as if to "test" them. I've watched her walk up to things and give it a little poke...pretty cute. She nudges the poor kitties all the time and it usually ends up with them giving her a pissed off look. :p
 
Buddy is a big nudger into your hand, practically flipping it in the air to get your attention to pet him. But I don't think I've ever seen any other nudging like you guys are talking about. :scratch: I'll be on the look out now! lol But off hand, nope.
 
I'm thinking two things here....first thing is if your dog is nudging you just to get attention it is a form of dominance. Second thing is a just a form of communication.

It depends as to which your dog is doing. Communication is needed and encouraged while the dominance thing needs to be dealt with. I'm betting that the owners with a dog that demands attention has other issues that they also need to address.

Just my .02 worth.

Cya
 
My Pippi is a huge nudger, and is not a leaner at all which is a little strange for a Doberman. She nudges in the place of leaning. Sometimes it definitely is a demonstration of dominance - like when she nudges me behind the knees when she's walking behind me - to make me go faster, or when we're getting out of the car - occasionally she'll nudge my elbow to try to get me to open the door faster (although she knows that doesn't work - I make her sit and calm down when she does that).

She also nudges any and everyone when she wants attention from them, either their hands (if they're standing) or their arms if they're sitting and she's close enough. That seems to me to be not a dominant thing as much as a request which people can grant or deny as they choose. If she's not petted she doesn't continue to demand attention, and will walk away or sit or lie down.

When she nudges objects - like bones, toys, etc. - it's usually to get them in a position where she can get at it best, or to assess what the best point of attack is. I can practically see the wheels turning in her head when she does that.
 
Communication is needed and encouraged while the dominance thing needs to be dealt with.
True. :D When Buddy nudges, it's only to a hand for a pet. While it can be annoying, I don't think of it a dominance but more as a disrespect. If he were to continually 'hit' my hand after a correction, then I would feel like he was trying to be dominant. But his is more of a shy, 'wanna pet me? No? ok, I'll go away' . :) He would never get away with nudging the back of my knees. :nono: Anything that endangers a trip or fall is not allowed with me! He even knows if he is following me too close that he'd better back away. He has come up behind me in the past actually stepping onto the back of my slippers/shoes, thus tripping me. :rp: Not allowed!

CindyBee, I know some dogs seem to get into the habit of nudging 'private parts'. My friends dog always goes for the crotch!!!:pullhair: Once again, it's just my opinion, but that would be corrected in my house. :tap::D
 
Daisy will nudge for pets but doesn't nudge objects much.One of my parents Golden Retrievers nudges every thing.Not so much people for pets(they both do but not as much as Daisy does) but just random objects.If they rattle,or make noise she does it again.She's very curious of these things.One of her favorite things is a lamp in my parents room,she will go in 2-3 times a day just to give that lamp a nudge because it makes a little noise.The other is their recycle trash can.There's always a can or bottle in there so when she nudges it,it makes noise.
 
Can anyone one tell me why dogs nudge ? I know its a way of communicating and all that , what I dont get is why the nudge objects . Ellie is constantly nudging me for attention / play / eat / treats / walks etc but she also nudges objects .. T.V , vases , cups of the table . She can't seem to enter the room without her nose pressing against a tall vase that I have or a black pot cat that stands in the corner . I know my friends little dog ( Alfie ) was the same with her slate picture she had in the room and he would come in and knock it over till she removed it . Do your dogs do the same . My other dobe did this as well but Ellie is much worse ...:eekwtf:
It is a demanding behavior in most dogs. They are either saying "pet me now", or "play with me now". This is an attention seeking behavior that can get worse the more you reward (pet, play, give food, talk to the dog) them when they nudge you. Pawing, sitting on you, and leaning on you are the same types of behaviors. I do not tolerate it in my dogs and tell them "go on" which makes them go out of my space and find something else to do. I had a friend with a Rodesian Ridgeback and the dog would nudge things because it caused the owner to tell her to "stop". The dog eventually got the attention she wanted because the owner would stop doing what they working on, and go and tell the dog to stop.
 
The nudge in the a$$ is affectionately known as a "Nose Poke". Be it a demanding thing from our Dobe's or not it does seem to be a thing our Dobe's like and are good at......besides that it is DAMN funny to watch and or be poked by them.
There's nothing like a GOOSE job from your own dog.:cool:

It's kind of like a right of passage. Get the poke and your "OK" !!!:D

Cya
 
The nudge in the a$$ is affectionately known as a "Nose Poke". Be it a demanding thing from our Dobe's or not it does seem to be a thing our Dobe's like and are good at......besides that it is DAMN funny to watch and or be poked by them.
There's nothing like a GOOSE job from your own dog.:cool:

It's kind of like a right of passage. Get the poke and your "OK" !!!:D

Cya


:D Unless you are wearing shorts.. then, it can be COLD! :p Leia doesn't nudge at the private parts.. just the 'cheeks' so to speak. She is a Goofy Gooser! :rofl:
 
Dylan is a nose poker, too. He used to poke us in the butt while we were walking, but I didn't like that one bit. So for a while, if I saw him following closely, or moving in for the kill, I would either put it in reverse and run over him unexpectedly, or I would walk with my heels coming up really high and catch him under the chin. Never said a word to him. Just let him realize on his own that if he followed too closely, bad things happened. He's not so bad anymore, unless he's just super excited.

His biggest issue is nose poking our cleaning lady in the butt. She's half deaf and he always waits until she's bent over cleaning a toilet or tub, then stealthily creeps up behind her and WHAM! :shock: Right between the cheeks. She never hears him coming and screams every time, then gets mad that I'm laughing. How can you not laugh at that?! :rofl:
 

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