If you’ve never seen this reaction in your own dog, you’ve probably seen it on YouTube or at the park. Let me tell you, an owner who doesn’t scratch his belly to see his dog kicking is a strange prospect. But why does a dog hit when it scratches?
Like his role, the answer is very simple. But its importance is greater than you might think. It’s one of the things that goes back to their ancestors that has kept dogs alive for tens of thousands of years. Here’s the breakdown.
The scratching reflex is part of the dog’s evolution
How did dogs live before humans domesticated them? Even without all the advances in veterinary medicine and biochemistry, our dogs still suffer from simple health problems.
It’s not the fault of the wounds or the infection, but the parasites were around because every living thing on Earth was an ingredient in the primordial soup. Evolution brought parasites, and later evolved creatures, including canines, suffered.
For the ancestors of dogs, the first wolves, the scratch reflex was their most important line of defense against the parasites we know today as fleas and ticks. Their presence on the skin of dogs is highly undesirable, as they are carriers of several debilitating and fatal diseases.
Since scratching was the main way to get as much as possible, the most immobile parts of the body – the belly and sides – were mainly relied on to destroy pests using the legs and hind legs.
This area is called the saddle because it resembles a saddle and is the only part of the dog’s body where the scratching reflex is activated by an external stimulus, namely the hand. The dog’s abdomen is known as the “receptive zone”.
Scratching is not the only way to prevent parasitic infections, because other parts of the body are easily accessible, which means that the nerve endings in the saddle area are very sensitive.
movement and braking
It takes time for the paws to get used to being scratched, so your dog’s nerve endings slowly but surely transmit the message to the brain. At first, the leg movements are short and slow, but speed up as the impulse spreads through the neurons. Interestingly, in the book of C.S. Sherrington, he states that all dogs have the same speed and speed of paw movement regardless of the type of stimulus given, i.e.
neural network and scratch reflex.
This means that scratching, scratching or electrical stimulation produced the same movements in all dogs tested. Leg length and area covered were virtually identical between the different dog breeds.
The rhythmic movement of the legs and the gradual acceleration is reminiscent of a locomotive. Electrical signal transmission in the peripheral nervous system (PNS) provides inhibition, and the intensity of stimulation increases pedaling speed.
Another interesting finding from Sherrington’s research was that not all parts of the saddle seemed to activate the scratch reflex. Areas closer to the thoracic spinal innervation were more easily excited by the thoracic spinal innervation.
It was widely believed that scratching in dogs is voluntary, but it was later discovered that it is actually a reflex behavior. Why is this not voluntary?
This is because evolution has accelerated the elimination of parasites, allowing dogs to survive. If a dog went a day without scratching its belly, it would be gone by now. This shows that developing something simple into a simple role can be very complex.
Medical conditions that increase sensitivity
Of course, the nervous system extends through the layers of the skin, so any condition that affects the skin can increase sensitivity. Dogs with allergies may react more quickly than dogs with healthy skin.
Whether it is an environmental allergy or a food allergy, symptoms such as itching, redness and swelling occur. Itching caused by allergies can also affect other parts of the body, such as the head, ears and anus, so caution is required.
Allergy testing for your dog is a smart move if you notice an affinity or sensitivity to rubs that cause scratching. However, there are many skin conditions that cause excessive irritation in the saddle area. One of these conditions is pyoderma.
This is a bacterial infection that usually occurs due to excessive skin damage caused by scratching. Bacteria that penetrate below the top layer of the skin can cause symptoms other than itching, such as scaly skin or acne.
Inflammation of the hair follicles, or folliculitis, can occur when you brush your dog too aggressively. Brushing your teeth pulls out hair and damages the surrounding hair follicles and skin, which can cause itching, inflammation and scabies.
Fortunately, treatments for these conditions are effective and widely available. Pyoderma can be treated with antibiotic ointments, and folliculitis can be treated with antibacterial shampoos and ointments.
Easy to control.
Most importantly, scabies is a serious disease caused by mites. Like many other parasites such as fleas and ticks, red and itchy skin and areas of hair loss are common. Treatment consists of special shampoos and oral preparations.
Scratch-Reflex is a useful diagnostic tool.
Yes, the scratching reflex is completely natural and deeply embedded in your dog’s genetic code. This reflex can help dogs suffering from conditions that do not cause symptoms until advanced stages, such as degenerative myelopathy.
If you notice that your dog cannot activate his scratching reflex, he may have a health problem with his nervous system. Degenerative myelopathy is a debilitating disease that progresses rapidly but does not cause symptoms until the middle stage.
A scratching reflex trigger that indicates ineffective or strange leg movements is enough to call your vet as soon as possible. Early diagnosis of DM can slow the progression of the disease through physical therapy and special diets.
German Shepherds are one of the breeds most prone to degenerative myelopathy, so if you suspect your dog may have this disease, read on for the five symptoms you need to know about the condition.
Likewise, tumors that compress the nervous system can be diagnosed more quickly because the scratching reflex is not inhibited or activated by anything. draw a conclusion
“Why do dogs kick when they scratch?”
I do not see. Please answer the questions. It should be complete enough to satisfy interest in this unique canine phenomenon. The next time you scratch your dog’s belly, think of it as a start button on a train engine.
Avoid overstimulating the saddle area. Otherwise, you could end up with an “I scratch my back, you scratch my back” relationship with your dog. Only the back is a boat. Hello!
