Like licking their nose all the time or sneezing while playing or giving our crotch a sniff when we walk in through the door.

Dogs can be very odd.

I often look at my dog, Starbuck, and wonder, "Why on earth are you doing that?"

But well, it turns out that a lot of these odd dog behaviours actually have hidden meanings that I would never have been able to guess.

But now that I know them, I understand my dog a lot more.

One, why do dogs look at us all the time?

Have you noticed that your dog will often glance at you?

Maybe they'll even stare at you.

My dog, Starbuck, is constantly glancing at me.

It made me wonder if he was trying to keep an eye on me, almost like he was a bit suspicious. - Hmm?

Well, it turns out he probably is trying to keep an eye on me, but not because he's suspicious.

Instead, he is just trying to communicate with me because it turns out that dogs aren't very good at understanding words.

On average, a dog can learn a maximum of 165 words at one time.

However, they are very intelligent and are experts at interpreting human body language.

They are so good that in some studies, dogs score higher on average than toddlers at interpreting adult human body language.

They are amazing at it because they have been living with us for a very long time.

There are fascinating art pieces from Egypt of domesticated dogs working with humans.

And by living with us for so long, they have become incredible at reading us.

That is why it is faster to teach your dog a new command by pairing it with a hand gesture.

Once I started using hand gestures with new commands, Starbuck learnt them so much faster.

Two, why do dogs sniff our crotches when they say hello?

So recently I took Starbuck to a dog park, and while there, we met some beautiful French bulldogs.

They came up to say hello, and as they did, they each gave my crotch a sniff.

And I know that a lot of people would be worried if a dog did this to them,

they're worried that they must have a really strong body odour, but you don't have to worry about that.

Dogs sniff our crutches for the same reason that they will sniff another dog's butt.

It is because for dogs, their apocrine glands glands are concentrated in their butts,

whereas for us humans, they are concentrated in our crotches and our armpits,

which is why I caught Starbuck sniffing my armpit the other day.

And dogs are very interested in our apocrine glands because they release a chemical called pheromones.

And we can't smell pheromones, only our dogs can, because they have a special organ that lets them detect them called the vomeronasal organ.

And dogs like to use the vomeronasal organ to smell our pheromones because they can learn a lot about us, because pheromones change smell for many reasons.

For example, are you tired or are you happy?

That will change how they smell.

Are you feeling sick or healthy?

That will change their smell too.

And so don't worry if you smell funny if a dog starts sniffing you,

they're actually just trying to get to know you better in their own special way.

Three, why do dogs sneeze all the time?

Have you noticed that your dog sneezes a lot more than you do?

Starbuck sneezes so much that I began to wonder if he might have allergies.

Well, we took a trip to our vet, and she confirmed that he doesn't have allergies and that sneezing is really normal for dogs.

And a big reason why they sneeze more than we do is because they use it as a form of communication.

Dogs will sneeze when they're feeling happy or in a playful mood.

They even sneeze during play fights.

These sneezes are meant to be funny to their playmate, and that their way of saying,

"Hey, I'm just having fun. I'm not actually attacking you."

I would never have guessed that.

Four, why do dogs circle before lying down?

At night, Starbuck will often do a little circle before lying down and going to sleep.

You might have noticed that your dog does it too, and like me, wondered what does it mean?

And it turns out that they are doing it because they're instinctively trying to protect us.

Because you see, their ancestors, the wolves, do it too.

They circle an area before lying down on it, and there are two reasons why animal behaviour experts think that they do this.

The first is that when they circle an area, if there are any bugs or snakes hiding in the area that the wolf plans to sleep in, they'll probably run away.

But the second reason is that it helps the wolf protect its pack.

When they circle, they take note of which direction the wind is blowing in.

They can then lie with their head in a position that will have their nose be in the same direction as the wind.

That way, they can smell any predators before they reach their pack.

And so even though chances are there is no wind in your bedroom, your dog is still doing its best to protect you, which is very cute.

Five, why do dogs turn away from us when sleeping?

A lot of dogs when cuddling will turn away from you and put their butt in your face.

Starbuck does this all the time.

Well, it turns out that wolves do it too, and they've left this instinct in their DNA.

When they go to sleep as a pack, they will lie away from each other and have their heads lined different directions.

That way, if a predator tries to attack them, at least one of them will smell it and alert their pack to keep them safe.

And so if your dog like Starbuck likes to turn away and put their butt in your face,

try to not take it personally because they're actually instinctively trying to protect you, which I appreciate.

Six, why do dogs eat grass?

A common myth is that a dog will eat grass if they're feeling unwell to make themselves vomit, but this is not true.

Studies show the opposite.

A dog will usually eat grass because like my dog, Starbuck, they enjoy the taste.

Wolves also enjoy it.

Up to 70% of wolf poop samples contain grass.

That proves that eating some grass is normal for a wolf.

They aren't carnivores, they are omnivores.

They have a diet of both meat and plants.

It seems that wolves enjoy crunching on some grass from time to time, and they've left this desire in our dog's DNA.

Of course, if your dog starts eating lots of it, maybe then talk to your vet.

Just in case your dog is lacking fibre in their diet and is instinctively eating grass to add it back in.

But when I talked to the vet about Starbuck eating it, she just shrugged.

She said not to worry about it.

So I don't, he just likes the taste.

Seven, why do dogs sleep at our feet?

Do you ever look down and notice that your dog has snuggled up right by your feet?

Oftentimes I can't help but notice it because Starbuck will literally be lying on top of my feet.

It's very cute, but there are some people that don't find it cute and instead worry that their dog is doing it because they're anxious.

But trust me, it is unfortunately very easy to tell if your dog is feeling anxious.

I had to take Starbuck for a ride in the car recently, which makes him very anxious.

You can see he was shaking, he was panting, and his ears were tight.

But when he's lying at my feet, you can see that he is calm and relaxed.

If your dog looks relaxed, they're just trying to be close to you.

Eight, why do dogs lick their noses so much?

I'll be honest, this one really surprised me.

It turns out that they do it for two reasons, and both of them enhance their smell.

The first is that when they lick their nose, they lick mucus all over it, making it wet and sticky,

which means then that when they go to sniff things, tiny scent particles from it will stick to their nose, which enhances their odour.

But the other reason why they lick their nose is because when they lick it, they lick off the scent particles that are already sticking to their nose, and they eat them.

And when they eat them, their tongue will run against the roof of their mouth,

which is where the bottom of the vomeronasal organ sits, which again enhances their smell.

Now, I'm gonna be honest, when I think about how Starbuck will sniff all sorts of icky things like poop,

it's a bit disgusting that he is basically eating it.

But clearly, it works, because depending on the dog breed,

they can have anywhere from 10,000 times to up to 800,000 times the sense of smell that we have, which is just amazing.

I love dogs so much.

So, does your dog do any of these odd things?

Let us know in the comments.

Starbuck and I really appreciate your support.

We will see you in the next video.