Homing Abilities Of Blindfolded Dog Owners

Dog owners have a better sense of direction, can find their way home and have a greater understanding of their local area than non-dog owners. Butcher's Pet Food today released the results of a study that blindfolded dog owners and drove them away in a van...

Commissioned by the UK pet food company, the study included a survey of over 500 dog and non-dog owners and an in-depth focus group analysis by Psychologist and specialist in studies of brain function under real world conditions, Dr David Lewis.

Results indicate that compared to the average adult, regular dog walkers have a better awareness of left and right, are more accurate when pointing in the direction of north and can find their way home from within a seven mile radius without a compass or map, (following a blindfolded journey in a van).

The study also concluded that our own 'sat nav' abilities are a learnt skill rather than an innate gift. It found dog walkers to have an improved their awareness of their surroundings and better able to find local landmarks than equivalent non-dog owners.

Dr Lewis' focus group studied the navigation skills of the two groups:

Volunteers were blind-folded and driven to an area twenty miles from their home. Six times during the journey the van stopped and the volunteers undertook certain navigation tests and the results were recorded.

His controlled tests discovered:

  • 54% of dog owners could walk home from within a 7-10 mile radius, but only 19% of non dog owners could.


  • The accuracy of the dog owners in pointing the way back home was 65% compared to an accuracy of just 52% among non-dog owners.


    • The survey tested the ability of the two groups to give directions:

    Testing ability to give..
    Directions to the Park: 92% of Dog Owners 32% of Non-Owners
    Directions to the Post Office: 85% of Dog Owners 48% of Non-Owners
    Directions to the Train Station: 79% of Dog Owners 57% of Non-Owners
    Directions to a Farmers Market: 29% of Dog Owners 12% of Non-Owners
    Directions to the Pub: (..hmmm) 84% of Dog Owners 82% of Non-Owners

    Talking about the results David Lewis said:

    "Having a dog gives you a reason to get out and explore your local area and our study shows that improving your sense of direction while you walk is an added bonus. When you haven't got a four legged friend begging for walkies, it is all too easy to rely on the car and sat nav to ferry you around instead of working out directions for yourself. To conclude, in the study we found a definite correlation between dog ownership and having a good sense of direction."