All dog owners have noticed their dogs circle over a grassy area for a seemingly longer-than-necessary amount of time before they take a seat. For most of us, it's a matter of sense of smell or instinct or just plain stubbornness. However, a 2013 study titled “Dogs are sensitive to small variations of the Earth’s magnetic field,” published in the journal Frontiers in Zoology, suggests that there could be another influence: that of Earth's magnetic field.
The study, conducted by Vlastimil Hart of the Czech Republic, included a total of 70 dogs from 37 breeds, and the scientists recorded almost 1,900 defecations and over 5,500 urinations during the two-year period. The central finding, which sparked interest beyond the Czech Republic, was that when the Earth's magnetic field was calm and stable, the dogs would regularly turn their bodies north-south whilst defecating and showed a strong statistical preference against turning east-west. The preference completely disappeared if the magnetic field was fluctuating. The study drew attention in part simply because it was peer-reviewed research that took canine magnetoreception seriously as a subject.
