A Pomeranian is wowing the internet with her unique approach to peeing while out on walks with her owner.
Iris Mai from O’ahu in Hawaii took to her dog Gnocchi’s TikTok account to share footage of how her pup deals with needing to go to the bathroom out of the house—and it’s winning plenty of plaudits among pet lovers.
Dog pee in public places represents a real problem and it’s actually worse with smaller dogs. A 2017 study published in the Applied Animal Behavior Science journal found that small dogs tend to urine mark places more frequently than large dogs.
But Gnocchi may have found a solution to that particular problem. In a clip posted under the handle @gnocchithepomm, Mai revealed how her prized Pomeranian has hit upon a fresh approach. “She is so considerate that when we are out on walks she mostly pees over the drain to not cause a mess for other people,” an onscreen caption reads.
gnocchithepomm
Sure enough, Gnocchi can be seen pausing to relieve herself over a drain before continuing on about her day. As potty training goes, her approach is second only to using an actual lavatory.
While Gnocchi may stop short of that, her efforts have nevertheless won her plenty of fans with the video racking up 4.1 million views and counting.
“She understands the concept of toilets,” one stunned viewer wrote, with another commenting: “That’s such a princess dog behavior, she’s so well educated.” A third said: “Your dog is a genius,” while another viewer added: “Pomeranians are smart.”
Gnocchi’s owner is just as surprised as those watching on TikTok though.
“I didn’t train her to do it,” Mai told Newsweek. “She’s always just done it. She didn’t need much potty training actually. I was pretty surprised. I guess people are surprised to see that she doesn’t just pee anywhere.”
Mai got Gnocchi from a breeder in California. “One day I was browsing on Instagram and saw Gnocchi’s little face at six weeks,” she said. “The breeder had planned on keeping her as a potential mom in the future but she turned out to be too small to breed so they had to release.”
Mai had been searching for a Pomeranian just a few hours earlier and it was love at first sight. “I just knew immediately and I put a deposit down that night.”
The pair currently split their time between Mai’s home in Hawaii and New York City, where they regularly enjoy walks in Central Park.
“She loves running up to peoples beach/picnic blankets and refusing to leave,” Mai said. Gnocchi is quite the jet-setter too. “She’s been to France, Italy and Spain and we’re going back this summer,” Mai said.
Gnocchi might just be the most sophisticated dog we’ve ever met.
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