Can Dogs Navigate With the Geomagnetic Field

A team of researchers from the Czech University of Life Sciences, Virginia Tech and the University of Bari have found evidence that dogs can use the earth’s magnetic field as a navigational aid.

Previous studies have shown that dogs tend to orient themselves in a north-south direction when urinating–a finding that suggests they may have the ability to sense the earth’s magnetic field. In the new study, the researchers set up two experiments to further study the dogs’ ability to sense magnetism and whether they use it for navigation.

The two experiments were essentially the same - both involve connecting GPS sensors to multiple dogs, bringing them into the natural environment and allowing them to move freely. In all cases, dogs return to the person who released them. The only difference between the two experiments was the number of dogs involved–four in the first and 27 in the second.

In studying the dog’s route, the researchers found that they used two methods to find their way. The first is called tracking. Dogs using this method follow the same path (probably with their noses) back as they had come. The researchers call the other method exploring because dogs adopting this method follow unfamiliar paths back to where they had started. The researchers also noticed something else–while exploring the path, these dogs showed some strange behavior. Before returning to their starting point, they run south several times, about 20 meters each time–this seemed to help the dogs get his bearings as these dogs found their way back faster.

The researchers believe that running from north to south is evidence that dogs use magnetic fields to orient in unfamiliar environments. Further experiments included owners hiding when their dogs trekked, testing wind direction and speed, recording the dog’s sex and other potential influence factors. It turned out that none of those factors had an impact, further supporting the claim that dogs could use the earth’s magnetic field for navigation.