The innate talent of dogs to make wells, where does it come from?

The reasons why a dog digs are varied and diverse, ranging from sneaking under a fence to creating a comfortable heated bed in which they can snuggle and sleep.

Others do it simply because they have a lot of fun. They enjoy the excitement that comes from throwing earth clouds into the air, as a kind of sport or hobby.

Instinct drives dogs to dig not only to have a warm and comfortable place to rest, but also to achieve a safe place to raise their puppies, to trap prey inside burrows and to bury food debris.

If we add to this the pressure of human selection to choose animals that are extremely skilled in this activity in a breeding program, we will see that the Terriers, for example, were bred to control vermin and vipers, and the Dachshund (sausages) chased badgers in their burrows. All of them were selected to increase their willingness to dig.

For hundreds of years, breeders of these breeds chose to breed those dogs that had the greatest enthusiasm in making wells. That can't be eliminated from one day to the next. Today's dogs no longer have a real need to dig, but nevertheless in many cases they retain that innate feature.

Some dogs start digging after observing how another dog does it, or seeing how their guardians do it in the garden. Others need nothing more than an afternoon of boredom and the desire to do something new. By that time, they have already become addicted and will not give up the habit easily.

To prevent dogs from digging it is necessary to understand why they do it. The holes next to a fence mean that they are digging to escape, sharpening this behavior in those who have not been castrated, who naturally have more urgent reasons to leave.

When the wells are shallow and dotted all over the garden they indicate that the dog tries to find a comfortable place, since these digs are cool in summer and warmer in winter. If we provide them with a nice bed in a sheltered place, this will almost always stop undesirable behavior.

In some specific cases, the unpleasant, aversive stimulus may act to dismiss the behavior. To do this, we can set a small “trap” for it by making holes filling them with stones generously sprinkled with ground red pepper or with turgid balloons with some flour inside. The excavation can be discouraged by the unpleasant surprise of the explosion with the cloud of flour or the smell of red pepper that they dislike as much as digging between stones.

*Prof. Dr. Juan Enrique Romero @drromerook is a veterinary physician. Specialist in University Education. Master's Degree in Psychoimmunoneuroendocrinology. Former Director of the Small Animal School Hospital (UNLPAM). University Professor at several Argentine universities. International lecturer.

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