Why Dogs Mark Their Territory

Dogsitting for the past week, I was once again faced with the mystery of "marking one's territory."

Walking the dog, he made sure to fully inspect and "leave his mark" on every fire hydrant, pole, bush, fence post, etc. At one point we came across a small tree branch that had been blown into the middle of the street and he marked that too as I rolled my eyes. He was a small dog too, I don't know where he was storing it all, he may be built like a balloon. 

But if one dog marks his territory and another comes by and marks the same territory only for a third to come by and do the same, what is the point? I thought about it like putting a stake in the ground and claiming ownership - if no one recognizes an owner, nothing can be owned. Most websites reinforce my understanding of the behavior without confronting the paradox. But some also point out that dog's urine communicates important information to other dogs. Marking territory can say "Rover was here," "I'm in the neighborhood," communicate their age, sex, sexual status and relationship status.

It is worth noting, then, that dogs marking their territory is depressingly similar to people on Facebook, Twitter, Dating Apps, basically all social media. With dogs, as with people, if you want to find out what everyone's doing you have to check the posts.