The manoeuvre was first spotted in March by owner Graham Watts, after he heard the dog walking differently.
And since then, the pet has insisted on walking backwards every time she leaves the kitchen – despite walking normally everywhere else.
Cookie the miniature Schnauzer first walked backwards out of the kitchen and into the living room of her home two months ago.
The 61-year-old texted his wife a clip of Cookie’s unusual antics along with a message that read: ‘What happened to the dog?’.
Linda said that despite Googling for answers, neither she or her husband know why Cookie started walked backwards.
Theories for Walking Backwards Through Doors
That covers a kibble-bit about why dogs walk backwards in the first place; it can be due to feelings of fear and trepidation, or to gain better traction on the ground to prevent falling over. Though, that doesnât exactly explain why dogs would walk backwards through doorways, specifically. So itâs time to cover some theories on why dogs walk backwards through doors.
Itâs worth first mentioning the fact that thereâs no rock-solid reason known for why dogs walk backwards through doorways. In fact, it may be that different dogs display this behavior for different reasons. With there only being a few theories, by educating yourself as a pup owner about these theories, you can more wisely ponder why your dog walks butt-first through doors. These theories include the fact that your dog may have hip problems, may have experienced some past trauma related to walking through doors, or may have some cognitive dysfunction.
Beginning with the theory that this behavior is due to hip discomfort, its nice since this theory has some real reasoning behind it.
Especially for older dogs, they may have gotten used to pushing doors open with their rear-end because opening doors with their front paws caused their supporting hind legs to slip, causing sudden shoots of pain in their hips.
Owners of this behavior have anecdotally reported their pups displaying this behavior just once, with that single experience creating a lifelong habit afterwards. If your pup displays this behavior, notice if there are other signs of hip discomfort, such as limping or sitting down gingerly. You could speak to your vet about ways to mitigate your pups pain, such as supplements, anti-inflammatory medications, physical therapy, or exercise reduction.
The second theory for why dogs do this is similarly sensible, and probably the most likely of all three of these theories; namely, dogs walk backwards through doors due to some past trauma that possibly you as the pup parent arenât even aware of!
For example, if dogs have gotten their paws caught underneath closing doors, have bonked their heads on glass doors, or had doors closed on them, they might fear a repeat of that accident,hoping that walking backwards through doors will help lessen the danger. As you can imagine, having the door shut on their rear end might still hurt, but it would certainly hurt much less than if they walked forwards and it hit their head!
In this case, probably the best remedy for undoing the behavior is by influencing your pupâs thinking via positive reinforcement; progressively, you can train your dog to associate doors and doorways as positives, for example, give your dog a treat each time she just approaches the door (not even walks through it), and escalate that reinforcement training to walking forwards through doors via baby steps.
The third theory, which honestly comes across as a bit of bogus, is that dogs have some sort of Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome, which apparently is supposed to interrupt a dogâs motor function abilities, resulting in confusion and odd types of behavior.
According to supporters of this school of thought, they say that this behavior also explains seizures and other types of neurological conditions. This theory seems unlikely since it doesnât exactly explain why dogs specifically walk backwards through doors; it might explain why dogs walk backwards (although it still doesnât seem justify much in this regard), but it especially fails in explaining why dogs walk backwards through doorways.
Perhaps this theory of Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome is a way of simply saying that we donât know why dogs do this, which in that case is perfectly okay.
Based on these three theories, it seems that the theory of some traumatic event being the cause of walking backwards through doorways is the most probable, followed by some sort of hip injury, tailed by the Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome theory.
As for solutions, you can try positive reinforcement training in case the problem is due to trauma, and vet-recommended solutions in case the issue is hip discomfort. If itâs because of Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome, you can simply hope that cynologists keep working at this odd issue and tailor their theories to a higher level of understanding.
And there you have it; this article went through some of the reasons why dogs walk backwards in the first place, and more specifically why dogs might walk backwards through doorways. Thanks very much for taking the time to read this article; most importantly, itâs best to remember that no one knows exactly why any one dog might walk backwards through doors, but pup parents can at least try to attribute some most likely theories.
As one note, itâs valuable to keep in mind that these ideas of why dogs walk backwards (for safety), also apply to other questions of why dogs walk backwards on hardwood surfaces, or in specific types of rooms. Also, the first theory covering the fact that dogs do this because of hip problems refers to patella luxation, which causes the knee joint of the hind leg to pop out, causing dogs to move in various directions to pop the joint back in place.
It could be a way of showing dominance
If this is the case, then you need to try to make sure that your dog does not feel threatened when you walk into a room with them.
You should also try and give your dog a treat if they walk backwards out of a room.
Another possible reason for your dog walking backwards out of a room is that they are running away from another animal who has attacked them.
This is often the case when dogs are fighting other dogs.
If you notice your dog walking backwards out of a room but there is no one else in the room, then it is most likely just an accident.
In this situation, you may want to try to reassure your dog by saying, “That was only a silly dog!”
You may even want to consider training your dog to walk backwards out of a room.
This will help to teach your dog that they do not have to run away from every single person or animal that enters the room.
Finally, sometimes your dog will walk backwards out of a room because they think it is fun. In these situations, you can try to play along with your dog and say, “Oh! Look at me! I am so funny!”
This article explains how to stop your dog from walking backwards out of a room.
Do not worry though. Even if your dog is walking backwards out of a room, they still love you very much.
They are simply expressing themselves as best they can.
For more information on dog behavior, see our articles about:
What Is The Sign Of A Good Dog?
How To Make Your Dog Stop Barking At Strangers?
Dogs Are The Most Honest Animals On The Planet, Right?
What Do Dogs Think About Cats?
What Is The Difference Between A Dog And A Cat?
Can A Dog Be An Obedient Pet?
Are Puppies Really Smarter Than Adult Dogs?
Dog Training Tips: How To Train Your Dog To Sit Or Stay
How To Teach Your Dog Not To Jump Up On People
The Secrets Behind The Dog Whisperer
How To Know If Your Dog Likes You More As A Friend Or Family Member
What Is A Good Name For A Newborn Puppy?
If your dog walks backwards out of a room, this is most likely because they feel threatened or uncomfortable in the room.
They may be trying to show dominance over you or other people in the room.
Dogs who walk backwards out of rooms are often dominant dogs.
In order to show dominance, your dog must have an aggressive streak.
This means that they will fight for territory or food when they think it’s necessary.
Dogs with higher levels of aggression tend to walk backwards out of rooms more than dogs who aren’t as aggressive.
This makes sense if you think about it.
An aggressive dog needs to prove itself to others in order to gain access to things that they want.
In order to do this, they need to scare off other dogs so they don’t interfere with their plans.
If you see your dog walking backwards out of a room, you should try reassuring them by saying, “Good boy! Good boy! You did great!”
The more you praise your dog for doing something good, the more likely they are to keep on doing it.
14 Signs Your Dog Doesn’t Love You (Even if You Think They Do)
Dogs are very versatile creatures and they love to play and be played with. They can be trained to perform a variety of tricks and stunts by their owners. In recent years, many popular television shows have depicted dogs performing the most amazing tricks for their human owner. One of these includes the dog walking backwards on stage. This looks so strange because we don’t often see many dogs walking in this motion very often. If a dog does walk backwards, then it likely means there is something wrong and it needs to be assessed.
Any change in your pet’s body language should be investigated, especially if the habit is becoming a repetitive behavior. It might be quite normal for a dog to use lateral movements in its walking or daily exercise from time to time. There are a variety of reasons why your dog might have started using reverse steps when he is walking around.