Why do they do this?

That is so cute. My dog doesn't actually have her bones outside. I live in an apartment and when we go outside all her bones are still inside. But she still finds way to bury them. She will bury them under covers on the bed. Sometimes I put a blanket on the couch so she can get under it if she is cold. She'll put the bone in the side of the couch and then use her blanket to cover it up. I'll see her little nose moving, trying to shove the blankets over it, just so. It's adorable. I've even found her bone buried in a sack of my groceries. If I get distracted and I don't put my non perishables away immediatetly, I might find one of her bones inside the sack.

Our dog never did this. She eats everything she gets. But our previous dog used to bury her bones under the armchair cushions. Sometimes we didn't see her doing so and after some days we were wondering what was that bad smell. You are lucky that your dog buries his food in the garden. This way you don't have a foul smell inside the house.

He had all he wanted and will save the rest for later. They act like squirrels.

That's funny, mine used to do the same thing, she came running back in with her nose all dirty acting like she never got a thing....

I suppose your dog wasn't hungry when you gave him the treat. When they are hungry, dogs eat as much as they can. If they don't feel hungry, their instincts tell them to hide the extra food for later. In wild life, a wolf always go to the food deposits he made. But with our dogs, when food is never missing, they usually forget about their hidden treasures. If you'd let him starve (something I hope will never happen) he will probably remember about the place where he hid those treats. Fortunately my dog doesn't do this. She's a big eater and she would eat all the time. I have to be very careful with her diet and I don't give her too many treats, or else she would become fat. So she never was in the situation of hiding her food.

You didn't say what the treat was. Maybe the dog didn't like it and thought the best thing to do with it was to bury it. P.S. Just for the record, I don't have a dog. Hence why I bark myself....usually up the wrong tree!

I don't think all dogs do this, it maybe dependent on the breed, I remember we had a cairn terrier he never buried his treats or bones in the garden, he was too frightened that the neighbours dog would come and get it, he was very possessive about his bones, bless him.

saving it for later lololol

It's instincts! They can't help but do that! LOL My own pup does this..or at least she tries. However, she does it while she's inside! She'll mostly do it when she isn't hungry. For example, when I give her a treat and she doesn't want it 'now' she'll try her best to bury it under the couch, under a blanket, or somewhere else in the house so she can have it later. Sometimes she's successful, other times not so much! Either way, it's fun to watch!

Hi MsTickle.... lets bury the hatchet, ok? I don't know what the arguement was about anymore anyways. What say you? Anyway, most dogs bury their treats, food, bones and what not because they want to save it for later. For the life of me, I can't get why they'd want to do such a thing because then it has dirt all over whatever it is they've buried. BLA! And yes, my 2 big dogs do it in our back yard.

Saving it for sunday when it will be well marinated...

Perhaps treats taste better once they've had a while to fester?

I guess it's instinct for them. My dog used to hide things until I got firm with him. I do the cleaning so I know his tricks. At least, he does it outside rather than inside the house.

He might like to eat it alone rather in front of everyone.

My dogs don't do that but I'd always assumed that the burying was like us putting something in the fridge to save for later. My dogs just leave whatever it is where they drop it for me to step on or trip over!

i think i should do a search. maybe its something left over from days they were wild dogs. who knows. my big dog did it sometimes but coco doesnt. probably because we have taught her not to dig and if her feet get mud on them we wash them and she dont like that.

My dogs have done it too but what I noticed is that they do it at certain times in the year and I am yet to find out about it. I have seen my dogs going back there the next day to retrieve the stuff.

No we have a Saint Bernard and she has to have her bones cooked and then eats them right up. She doesn't bury they.