The Rub Down
So we told you how we got a new kitchen rug here, but we just had to submit these pictures as further proof that Burger is a weirdo. A weirdo who crushes things with his neck.
There was a thread or piece of lint or something on the rug that Burger mistook for something worthy of an attack. So he proceeded to roll and rub all over it, apparently in some vigorous effort to smoosh it.
This neck-rub offensive move is usually done outside on helpless bugs and dirt spots that look like bugs. Meaning that during the summer months especially, Burger may come in sporting flattened cricket parts or a bug-like wad of mulch on his side. Trust us. It’s as lovely as it sounds.
But this particular rug romp was pure amusement, so I snapped what I could as he flailed around on the ground like he was doing the backstroke.
Sadly the thread must’ve given in to Burger’s attack (or Burger just became uninterested) because before I could find the video camera to really catch how crazy this looks in real life, he stopped. But perhaps another piece of lint will wander into his sights again soon and I’ll have a second chance.
Please tell us we don’t have the only dog who does this.
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Ugh! My dog does this right after I vacuum or steam clean the carpets. My mothers dog was doing this outside and he ran in and phew! he was rubbing on a dead skunk! Be happy it’s just a rug lol
My dog does this too!! He does it sometimes on the carpet, and to this one pillow I got from TJ Maxx.. I figured it had a funny smell on it and he was trying to get his scent on it? I just don’t understand!! It is entertaining though :)
My dogs do this too, but almost always in something dead they’ve found in the yard. They have come inside more than once with squirrel brains stuck to their faces.
Ditto! The last thing our greyhound rolled in like this was some unidentifiable decomposing sea creature she dug up on the beach. Then she had to taste a little bit of it, of course, just to make sure it was dead. Her neck smelled DISGUSTING. Oh, the joys of dog ownership…
Yes, if it’s dead or completely rank then my dog is on that like white on rice! Her collar probably gets washed more than my husband’s socks!
You don’t! Our Bichon Frise does this too! She’ll sort of pounce on things, and then start rolling on her neck and side. Maybe it’s a small dog thing?
Ha ha! My parents’ golden retriever used to do this as well, but she saved her romps for the most disgusting, putrid, rotten things she could find (like dead animals, old food on the street, and yes, other dogs’ poop). It was glorious. This post made me smile despite the gross memories it elicited. :-)
My dog, Max, does that! It usually happens when we’re on a walk and he comes across something really smelly. He does the same neck dive that Burger does, then rolls around on his back like he’s trying to scratch it (but really I think he’s trying to get full coverage of the smelly thing!). It’s hilarious!
Oh my our dog does this every time she is getting in her beanbag. I don’t think she is sqishing a bug but she sure looks like! Love how you covered Burger’s man parts up! Have to keep it PG
My little pup does it with her food! She chooses one lucky piece, throws it across the room, rubs all over it, then attacks/eats it. Glad that others experience weird doggie rituals as well…
My yorkie does this with his food too. Like you said though, just the one lucky piece. Hahahaha
Not to worry. My black and white Shih Tzu does it… Far too often. Good thing they are adorable or else we’d have to worry about the pups.
My dog does this (a Pomeranian). I always thought it was because she wanted to get the “scent” of the bug (usually a dead worm) on to her. Weird animals!
I think it is hilarious that you censor Burger’s privates! Bahahaha.
I was just gonna comment the same thing! So funny!
My mom’s late dog did this too! He’d see a worm on the ground and neck-squwoosh it. He was a yorkie.
my dog does this as well. i thought it was just her cleaning her eyes but maybe she is killing bugs too? haha i have no idea!
You’re not alone! My dog and my parents’ dog do this. I can’t tell you how many times they’ve come inside from a romp outside with green goose poop smeared across the side of their neck! Sometimes my dog does this in areas of grass where there’s nothing there. Dogs are strange!
You are definitely not the only one who has a weirdo dog! Every day after my foxhound eats her bowl of food she goes into our office (which has the thickest, scratchiest rug in the house) and dives nose first wiping her face on the rug. Lots of tail wagging and butt wiggling and flailing on the ground. Glad our wool rug can be her own personal napkin. Needless to say, we give that rug a regular cleaning. :D
Mine too! I have a french bulldog and after he eats, or after he wakes up, he just scoots himself across any carpeted floors, rubs his face all around in it and just flops around. He does it more in the summer, maybe he’s itchier? He also sucks on his back feet when he goes to sleep, or if he’s on his back so we started calling him tingle toes. (No, its not food allergies and he doesn’t do it constantly, but it is soo weird.)
We have a neck-smooshing-beetle-roller too!
Our cheek (chihuahua-pekingese) does the exact same thing. Although, unlike Burger, when it’s an actual bug (and not just lint/fuzz) he doesn’t just rub on it…he barks and growls at it, too! I once caught him “fighting” a small ant.
Yes, we call it the “back boogie.”
Haha- I love that! So glad there are so many other pups out there doing it!
xo,
s
Our dog does this too… when she finds something especially stinky or dead. And her favorite time to bathe herself in the stink is immediately following a bath! :)
Our dog does this as well. She loves finding dead worms outside and rolling in them. The smell is horrid once she’s done though, so it’s usually followed by a bath.
My dog does this when she gets on the couch or after a new hair cut and she’s showing off.
My pooch, Roxie, totally does this, too! Like Burger, she usually performs her contortions outside; her favorite squash-able prey? WORMS! The girl just loves the things. Aren’t puppy kids the best?!
Our Chi-mix does the same thing. He loves to roll in worms in the back yard. Very weird!
Mosey does this as soon as we let him out of his kennel–he will make a bee-line for our couch and “backstroke” back and forth–several laps!
Haha! So funny, the censors are hilarious! This is hysterical because we just got a new living room rug, and the second I brought it home my dog and cat (my dog is actually terrified of my cat, even though he is easily 5 times the size of her, and he usually goes to another part of the room when she comes by) immediately started synchronized rolling on it together. Must be something about those new rugs they have to break in!
My mom’s American Eskimo does this too! Only he does it when he is happy! We used to call it his “snow seizures” because he loves doing this in the snow he also does it outside or when he gets excited; hence the new nickname “happy dance”.
My chihuahua does this too. I think she does it to scratch her back on the carpet, because she never did it in our old house where we had hardwood floors. :-)
Hilarious! We have two Chihuahuas, and sometimes they will tag team the same spot! I especially love it when they find a praticulary stinky piece of grass. ahhhhhhhhhhhhh summer
My dogs do the exact same thing. Every time I febreeze, vacuum, buy a new rug, leave a towel on the floor, leave a kitchen rag in their reach, my husband leaves his workout clothes on the floor… my dogs steal the item and roll all over whatever it is.
Super cute that you censored his “stuff” :)
Sadly my dog does this too, and just as others have said typically to dead rotting animals that she finds out on a hike. It’s apparently a hunting dog thing, which they use to mask their own scent. Wouldn’t imagine that tiny bugs would mask Burgers scent, or lint for that matter.
She also does this on our sofa or bed after a bath too… my guess to help her dry off quickly. Ha dogs are strange aren’t they?
We have one of these! Our house has mostly wood floors so when he goes outside he immediately does this in the (usually dry) grass and then comes back in dribbling tons of little bits everywhere! Haven’t seen any beetle parts yet though.
You are not alone! My dog does the neck-smoosh too, and he throws in a good chin rub for good measure. We chock it up to itchy skin not bug hunting though!
Not only do they smush bugs with their necks, but they also like to roll in random poop and smush it with their necks. Then, after a bath, they’ll run around pressing their necks all over the floors, dirt, grass, and furniture. I call it “getting their stink on.”
I have three dogs… A chocolate lab, a yellow lab and a pomeranian and they all do it. Totally normal dog behavior.
Our 75 pound dog does this too. I love when she stops mid scratch/smoosh with just her neck on the ground, a la Burger in the first picture. Silly silly pups. Also, loving the censorship on Burgers manly parts above. haha.
My boy Boston does this too! But usually it’s in dead things and worms. The other day he rolled in a dead fish on the beach and I didn’t think we were going to make it home without me getting sick all over the car. Nasty nasty boy dogs!
Our dachshunds do that. From what we understand, hunting dogs do this to cloak their scent. Mine still haven’t learned that this means they are going to get an extra bath. Which is pure torture to them.
Oh yes, our boxer Bella does this as well. No bugs or lint need to be involved though, she just likes to wiggle and rub around. It literally looks like she is trying to ride a bicycle upside down! (You can also rub her tummy when she’s doing this – she’s very ticklish so she starts kicking one leg really hard. Hilarious!)
My Burger-Look-Alike (aka Stella the chihuahua) does the same thing A LOT. She does it with food, though. She’ll take her kibbles out one or two at a time, run into the living room, spit them out and roll on them. She’ll do this if we give her a treat or if she finds a crumb or something else we’ve dropped on the ground. Her most recent fascination is with watermelon – I’ll give her a little piece and she’ll drop it on the floor and proceed to roll on it. It’s definitely amusing!
So many times our little burger look-alike has come in with bits of earthworm crumbled in his fur. They are his favorite neck-roll-squishing victims. So gross – but glad to know my weirdo isn’t the only one doing it!
We have a half-chihuahua-half-poodle mix pup and he does this!! We love seeing Burger and checking out the similarities between him and our little Attila.
Our Chocolate Lab does it ALL. THE. TIME. Especially outside. She usually smells something funky and thinks “Hey, this would smell great on my neck/back/entire body!”
She also likes to roll on her back and flail around with her tennis ball in her mouth. She likes to sleep on her back with her paws in the air as well. She’s not spoiled or anything.
Our dog, Buddy, does this in the morning when he’s awake and trying to get us up. He’ll headbutt our bodies and roll over us. We call him a Italian Chi-Jack because we think he’s part Italian Greyhound and Jack Russell with a little Chihuahua thrown in for good measure.
Our beagle terrier mix does the same squishing thing with dead/smelly things and her treats.
My chihuahua, Zephyr, is a huge fan of rubbing his neck in freshly cut grass and new mulch. He is quite the gardener!
They do that when they find something that smells so they can cover their scent when they’re hunting. My dog loves to do it with poo or worm guts after a rain. :( She also sticks her butt in the air like that so we’ll rub her rump. :)
My poodle Nikki does this too!
My Chihuahua, Shooter does this after he eats. I think he’s trying to wipe his face. He also sneezes continuously while doing so. It’s hilarious.
We don’t have a dog (yet) but our cat loves to do this on ant hills when we let him out supervised in the back yard. He rubs them with his face and rolls on them… sometimes creating a tumble down our little hill, which is hilarious. He also does it on cement, but that makes sense because it “scratches” his fur and he likes the feeling.
My big gangly English Mastiff does this in the yard all the time, and no, she isn’t rolling is stink, she’s just rolling about scratching her back or something. I laugh every time. It’s hilarious.
My 145lb great dane does the same thing! Not sure that she’s squished many bugs or dead critters though, it’s usually an itch that she can’t scratch!
Aren’t our pups hilarious!?