The likelihood of a dog returning to their home is actually low, but there are quite a few accounts from people’s lives that confirm that this has happened in their lives. People insist, tell stories and have many facts and confirmations of such cases. The animal group mammals are quite an intelligent group of animals and has a “good” sense of smell. Wolves are able to walk hundreds of kilometers in search of food and return back to their den. For humans it is like mysticism, something incomprehensible, mysterious. But what helps the animal to understand how to reach home and what helps to navigate thousands of kilometers from home? Or is it the sense of smell, or sense of direction, what is this “mysterious – mystical” navigation?

Orientation in space and terrain

Canine sense of smell

According to the conclusions of scientists and researchers, the main orientation in dogs is the sense of smell. By observation they can walk meters and kilometers if they know the smell. Being in a completely alien place the dog tries to find a familiar odor there, later another familiar one among a thousand alien ones. According to scientists, it is by such a landmark that a chain of movement direction is built. Specialists from the sphere of biology and medicine prove that dogs have 1/3 of the brain devoted to the interpretation of odors, and the sense of smell is 40 times better developed than in humans. Interpretation – that is “repetition and reproduction” of the previous seen or previous heard. This is why an animal can walk a large number of kilometers, because it constantly recognizes a “familiar scent” and ignores all other smells. Weather conditions and time can wipe the smell out of the air, odor molecules are not permanent, so scientists have begun to prove that there are still many factors that can help an animal find the right direction of travel. Snow, blizzard, hurricane, rain or wind, clear sunshine that will end in a thunderstorm on a summer evening, all of these things wipe the “landmark” out of the air over time.

Cognitive maps

Dogs are adept at creating mental maps, which is why they are good at navigating space and time. A cognitive map, and also an olfactory “landmark”, will always help to orient the animal and get to the native home thousands of kilometers away. If the animal lives in a city, in the private sector or in a high-rise building, it will 100% remember the route to its home by heart.

Tails will find a long route to their home, as well as a short one, on the road and flowerbeds, the main thing is a familiar space and smell. Dogs also memorize large territories and routes, every trip to the countryside, to the lake, to visit and to the vet is already a great success in the development of memory, attention and in the creation of a cognitive map in case of loss of the animal. And also, if the doggie sits next to the window and the window is open, he will remember the whole length of the road, plantings of spruces, pine trees and other plants.

Earth’s magnetic field

According to modern research of scientists there is evidence of the use of the Earth’s magnetic field by our Pets. It is the magnetic field that helps animals to navigate and orient themselves on the terrain. With the help of “cryptochromes” in their eyes, all primates sense the magnetic field. Light-sensitive molecules, according to the scientific term “cryptochromes” are involved in cyclical changes in biological processes associated with the change of day and night on planet Earth. Scientists interpret that the ability to perceive the magnetic field of the Earth our Tails use as an orientation mechanism and it is this mechanism helps them in finding the route to home. In fact, the best ability to perceive the magnetic field is in birds, while in mammals this ability is much worse.

“Soul” connection with the host

Every animal living in a family gets used to the customs and traditions of its family. For an animal, “customs and traditions” are the daily routine, everyday chores, familiar noises and squeaks, the same smells. If the dog has been a full member of the family, he will definitely seek out “kindred spirits” and the familiar odor of home. There are many cases that have actually been confirmed, dogs even made it home while in other communities. It is difficult to show concrete evidence of what road the animal took as it actually happened, but according to scientists the search for an owner, love of home and “energy navigation” played an important role in this.

There is a case recorded by scientists that occurred in 1979 in Australia. A dog of the Métis breed was taken to a farm more than three thousand kilometers away, with the hope that this dog would be a farm helper. However, Tails did not like this idea and he overcame more than 3 thousand kilometers back to his native state of Victoria, which is located in Western Australia.

So, the ability of dogs to return thousands of kilometers to their home is confirmed by scientists. Smell, hearing, magnetic field and the whole combination of “sensory” is used by the dog during losses and long-distance returns. Orientation through visual and auditory landmarks is also an aid in finding home, and the desire to be close to one’s family is an important factor that can often be the key to finding home. It is not for nothing that people say that the most loyal friend a person can have is a dog.