Question:
We have two granddogs, both Lhasapoos and both belonging to different members of the family. They usually visit us at separate times, and the first thing they each do when they get here is bark to be put on my bed, where they roll around on my husband's pillow. They seem to snuggle into it, lie on it for a bit, and then they jump off and are onto other things. They do this at various times during weekend visits with us. I wash the bedding after each visit. My pillow is next to my husband's, but they'll have nothing to do with mine. My question is: "Why only his pillow?" After staying over at our daughters' houses, they will do the same to the pillow my husband used.
B.S., Fort Ripley, MN Nov 29, 2009
Answer:
Having researched canine behavior, my educated guess is that the dogs like the scent or pheromone from your husband's scalp. They enjoy it so much while on his pillow that a kind of "olfactory bonding" occurs. Rubbing on the pillow puts their scent there and at the same time gets your husband's scent on them.
Human-scalp scents are quite distinctive, in part influenced by age, diet, sex hormones and age. Note how parents cuddling their infants instinctively sniff their scalps. This is one reason why I advise people (especially away-at-college students) to send a well-worn cap or an unlaundered T-shirt home for the dog or cat to sniff and lie on as a way to alleviate separation anxiety. I should add that it might be better still to rub the shirt in one's scalp first; then put it in a plastic bag for mailing. Do not shampoo before this. An alternative, on the basis of what your dogs are enjoying, might be to send a well-used pillowcase.
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