Ordinals developer launches Bitcoin client DOG Mode bypassing BIP-110 — a new round in the scaling battle
Co-founder of the Runestone project, known under the pseudonym Leonidas, has officially announced the launch of the DOG Mode client for the Bitcoin network. This is a direct challenge to the BIP-110 proposal, which has sparked fierce debate in the community for several months. The key difference of DOG Mode is that it does not require miner approval to activate — a single node is sufficient.
The client introduces two fundamental changes to transaction relay policy. First, the maximum transaction size in weight units (WU) increases from 400,000 to 3.9 million. Given that an entire Bitcoin block holds 4 million WU, the new rule effectively allows nearly the entire block volume to be used for a single transaction. Second, the "dust limit" is reduced from 294–546 satoshis to 1 satoshi.
These changes directly simplify the sending of Ordinals inscriptions and Runes tokens — Bitcoin analogs of NFTs and fungible assets. Both technologies remain highly controversial: critics call them "spam" clogging the network. However, Leonidas claims that Bitcoin Core and Bitcoin Knots have imposed rules for years that the consensus itself does not require. "The DOG army no longer waits for permission — it's time to remove excessive restrictions," the developer stated.
Raising the transaction ceiling means it is now possible to send files and entire collections nearly the size of a whole block. Previously, Core rejected such transfers as "non-standard," even though they were technically fully valid. The only workaround was direct channels with miners, such as MARA's Slipstream service. Lowering the "dust limit" will rid Ordinals and Runes of unnecessary satoshis in each output. According to Leonidas' estimates, this will free up about $25 million in "excess" satoshis currently frozen in microtransactions.
It is important to emphasize: DOG Mode does not affect the network's consensus. It changes only the relay policy — the rules by which a node decides whether to forward a transaction further. Therefore, no miner support threshold is required for its activation.
BIP-110 loses support
Implementing the controversial BIP-110 required 55% of the network's hashrate. As of July 13, support was estimated at around 1%, and by the time of writing, it had dropped below that mark. Recall that in February, Blockstream CEO Adam Back called BIP-110 an attack on Bitcoin's reputation and a "lynch mob." Now the community has an alternative that does not require a majority vote.
My expert conclusion: DOG Mode is not just a technical update but a political manifesto. Leonidas demonstrates that even without miner support, the rules can be changed at the level of individual nodes. If this client gains a critical mass of users, BIP-110 may ultimately lose relevance. However, it is worth remembering: the more nodes adopt DOG Mode, the more fragmented the network becomes. Bitcoin has always been strong due to its consensus, not its diversity of clients.