Dogs align themselves with Earth’s magnetic field when it comes time to poop

Dogs have been found to be sensitive to Earth's magnetic field, and apparently align themselves along the magnetic north-south axis before they defecate. Czech and German researchers studied 70 dogs during 1,893 defecations and 5,582 urinations over the course of two years, and found that when the Earth's magnetic field was stable the dogs chose to align themselves with it. When it was unstable, such as during a solar flare, the dogs would become confused. Their findings, published in the journal Frontiers in Zoology, show that the dogs were sensitive to the polarity of the field, though not as much to its intensity. Dogs on leashes, however, do not consistently align themselves as such, mainly doing so when they are free to choose. Researchers are yet to figure out why dogs exhibit this preference...more
 

Apparently the magnetic field is really strong in one corner of our pasture.

I'll bet Little Tommy YouDull will tell us if you get lost in his Organ Mtns-Desert Peaks Wilderness, just watch your dog poop.  Who needs a "mechanical" device like GPS when you've got DPS...dog positioning system. 

I've noticed Sharon exhibiting the same behavior, which is why I hardly ever let her off the leash.