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Wat d’Lëtzebuerger schonns ëmmer woussten, huet elo eng wëssenschaftlech Etüde ënnermauert. Dat geet op mannst aus engem rezenten Artikel vun amerikanesche Fuerscher, deen am “Journal of Zoology” publizéiert gouf, ervir:
We tested the hypothesis that urine marking is a dishonest signal in male dogs. We examined whether raised-leg angle is a proxy for urine mark height and whether small dogs exhibit larger raised-leg angles than large dogs. We videotaped urinations of male dogs and measured height of urine marks and degree of raised-leg angles. We found significant positive relationships between both raised-leg angle and height of urine mark and body size and height of urine mark; raised-leg angle was a stronger predictor than body size. We found a significant negative relationship between body size and average raised-leg angle. Our findings support raised-leg angle as a proxy for urine mark height and provide evidence that scent marking can be dishonest. Assuming body size is a proxy for competitive ability, small male dogs may place urine marks higher, relative to their own body size, than larger male dogs to exaggerate competitive ability.
B. McGuire, B. Olsen, K. E. Bemis and D. Orantes: Urine marking in male domestic dogs: honest or dishonest? Journal of Zoology, version of record online: 25 JUL 2018 | DOI: 10.1111/jzo.12603, https://doi.org/10.1111/jzo.12603
