Dogs Are Smart

[OrdinaryTa]

Dogs are misunderstood - they're really smart, it's just that they're not human. They have all the intelligence they need to be successful at what they are - dogs.

Tonight I stopped to watch dogs interacting in their special fenced-in area in Union Square Park. People bring them there so they can run around with each other and form their own canine "society". The interaction is often very interesting, although I don't understand all of the behaviors. Sometimes the play gets rough for smaller dogs who really shouldn't tear-ass around with much larger dogs. But the play seems very sportsmanlike, even when there appears to be an element of dominance-seeking. But no matter how involved the dogs get with each other, each of them will stop what they're doing when summoned by their companion humans.

It struck me that city dogs have a kind of urbane character, although that word is not one I usually associate with animals. The dogs I saw today appeared to me as really good-natured. They form instant friendships and they don't take themselves too seriously. They see their opportunity to have fun, and they take it. Dogs are models of sociability.

[Syrinx]

1. I love dogs! n/t

Except for freeper dogs. :)

[GAspnes]

2. dogs are stupid

Take it from a lifetime dog owner. Cats are 'way smarter.

Dogs are only sociable if they have been socialized by humans since birth. You don't want to meet a feral dog.

You romanticize too much.

[Syrinx]

3. Is a wild cat any better?

I don't think so.

[OrdinaryTa]

5. Compared to Humans ...

I noticed the difference between the dogs and the humans in the park on a pleasant evening in the summer. Most of the humans sat staring out in their own private space. Some brought laptop computers, others chatted on cell phones to people somewhere else; others listened to their portable CD player. The humans did not interact with each other even though just two days ago, we endured a power blackout that supposedly makes people friendlier.

When I was a kid, Union Square always had political speakers and musicians and dancers. Today, everybody does their own thing. There's no sociability anymore, except among the dogs. Dogs are just really friendly - no hostility among them. They are doing just fine, thank you.

[cherryperry]

4. Dogs and horses rule!

Cats are ok, but too full of themselves to be in the same league as wonderful dogs (and horses)!

:kick:

[Rhiannon12866]

6. I agree with you. Dogs definitely form relationships with

each other. I lost my perfect cocker spaniel, Barney, before Christmas. He was 18, but it was still very hard for me. His ``sister,'' Sheena, was very unhappy. Dogs definitely grieve. One night, when I was feeling desperate about how she was behaving, I impulsively called about another blond, male cocker that I had seen up for adoption last summer. Of course, that dog had long been placed. But, the person in dog rescue that I called, who has since become a friend, told me about another little dog that was really in trouble. His owner, an elderly lady, had died and his adoptive home was not working out. He was afraid of men and the man who adopted him was threatening to have him euthanized.

I did not act impulsively, but talked to friends in dog rescue and my vet and this little dog's vet. I was told that it stood a good chance of working since my Sheena preferred little dogs, a male and female was the best combination and this little guy had spent his entire life with his biological sister who was placed separately. He was looking for a leader. I was also told to have the dogs meet on neutral territory.

It could not have worked out better. I thought it could work in time, but they bonded immediately. The very first night he was sleeping with Sheena on her bed. He looked to her for everything, ran to her when was scared, imitated her every behavior. I thought I had found a happy ending for both of them. He had found the sister he had lost, and me.

Then my Sheena got sick. She was diagnosed with two malignancies in April. I tried everything, as I do with all my animals. She received acupuncture, herbs and was on a special anti-cancer diet. I had to take her little friend to all her appointments, as well. He couldn't be without her. It was not enough and I have lost her.

When I got her ready to take her to the vet for the last time, I placed her on her bed, which I had washed. My little guy ran to her and sniffed her. When she didn't respond to him, he began licking her paws. It ripped my heart out.

It is still very hard for him, as he is so very lost. He tries to run to her and she's not there. Anyone who doesn't believe that dogs have feelings or form relationships should have seen my two.

Sorry to have gone on; I guess I was reacting to the post that said dogs aren't smart. I have had cats, as well. Sometime I must tell you about my perfect cat. She was named Rhiannon.

Here are my dogs, Meneken and Sheena, in better times:

[Rocinante]

7. We have

two dogs that stay In The House. My wife's preference, not mine. I have two old bird dogs that I pet because they're too old to go hunting anymore. To just get to the point-seems to me a dog can tell who his friend is just from smelling his ass. Pretty smart but I ain't gonna try it.

[sujan]

8. Cats are smarter

You can have your smart dog.

[Rhiannon12866]

9. Did you read my post? I have both dogs and cats

My cat, Rhiannon, was nearly human, and I still miss her everyday. But I love my dogs very much, as well.;(

[sujan]

10. relax

I am just trying to flame you.

[Rhiannon12866]

11. Why?!!

Is that the order of the day?:shrug:

[DemExpat]

12. Dogs are fantastic creatures, I agree.

I also love the picture you portray of how 'citified' dogs behave - I love watching them in the parks where my dog plays everyday too!

Siamese cats are also pretty special too....

DemEx

[Rhiannon12866]

14. When I visited Southern California a couple of years ago,

my friend, a fellow animal lover (she has three dogs and three cats, since there seems to be a bit of a controversy here), made sure I visited ``dog beach.'' It was amazing! This was a beach set aside for dogs and their people. There were dogs body-surfing, catching frisbees, mostly labs, who are born to this. However, I saw almost any breed of dog that you can imagine, including a bulldog, whose photo I took, with his proud owners, an elderly man with four dachshunds, and a tiny soaking-wet Yorkie. I just wished my dogs were with me!

As I sit here, my nearly-feral cat is on the prowl, eating the new food I just brought her, using her box and checking out the catnip scent I sprayed on her scratching post and toys. This little girl was abandoned and I finally managed to bring her in. She is far from a lap-cat, but I never give up hope. I am mentioning this because I was ``flamed'' for posting about my dogs. I started feeding this little kitty, outdoors, the day after I lost my beloved Rhiannon, my perfect cat.;(

[DemBones DemBones]

13. Several years ago a friend gave me a really interesting book

about dogs. The author had a bunch of dogs and she studied their behavior. It's a fascinating book, even if you already know a lot about dogs and are convinced that their intelligence and their social skills are underestimated.

She had one dog, a male, that went out nights and she started following him on her bicycle to see where he went and what he did. His home range was much larger than you might expect. She also observed the relationships between dogs that were "married" and between dogs and their "children" (as I said, she had a lot of dogs!) and how they grieved when one died. I gave it to my daughter after I read it and I wrote a note on one page that told her not to continue on to the next few pages unless she was reading at home. She told me that saved her from breaking down and crying at work, where she came to that page while reading on her break.

Of course I did not remember the author's name or the title, but I did a search at amazon and found it -- The Hidden Life of Dogs, by Elizabeth Marshall Thomas. She has a newer book called Social Lives of Dogs or something like that but I have not read it. Yet. But I will seek it out now, because her first book was definitely worth reading.

Thanks, Ordinary Ta, for your own good observations about dogs socializing.
It's an especially nice topic after all the infighting that's been happening around here lately.

[OrdinaryTa]

15. Good Books About Dogs

I just checked Amazon and found some interesting titles that I haven't read. The Hidden Life of Dogs is quite groundbreaking; I read it a couple of years ago. Here are some others:

The Truth About Dogs: An Inquiry into the Ancestry, Social Conventions, Mental Habits, and Moral Fiber of Canis Familiaris by Stephen Budiansky. This is a really informative book about dogs. I'd call this a must read. It's excellent.

Dog Training for Dummies by Jack Volhard and Wendy Volhard. A very sensible training guide with good humor and lots of practical advice.

Dogs Never Lie About Love : Reflections on the Emotional World of Dogs by Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson. I liked this book a lot.

Dogs That Know When Their Owners Are Coming Home: And Other Unexplained Powers of Animals by Rupert Sheldrake. I recommend this book, but it's controversial. I corresponded with a professor at one of America's foremost agricultural colleges about some of the startling ideas this book contains. The professor says people are extremely close-minded about animal ESP. Not only is the subject closed to research, he says, but if you propose it, they'll cut your funding on current projects.

If Only They Could Speak: Stories about Pets and Their People by Nicholas H. Dodman. I liked this book - it's almost a guidebook on figuring out what your dog would tell you.

People vary in their ability to communicate with dogs. My Dad was a real dog person - and they knew it. He seemed to have a special understanding with them, including some dogs that other people were afraid of. I did not inherit that gift, but I married a woman who is very good with dogs and cats. Our daughter is also good with animals; it comes natural to her.

[Rhiannon12866]

16. Thank you for the list of resources

My little guy has been a basket case since he lost his ``sister.'' He is terrified of everything and doesn't want to eat. It is out of the question that I find him another companion, as he goes off on dogs ten times his size! I am thinking of taking him to classes with a behaviorist. A friend said this worked wonders with a Dalmatian with a submissiveness problem.:shrug:

One book that I really got a lot out of was For the Life of Your Dog by Greg Louganis. I received it as a gift and I had never realized that he was such a dog lover. He considers his dogs to be his family.

My dad was also wonderful with animals. All my guys adored him. My little Cairn Terrier, Rags, was terrified of thunder. I can still see my dad sitting with my little guy on his lap, with his hands over the dog's ears. I believe I got my love of animals from my dad.

Children naturally love animals. The important thing is to teach them how to treat animals with kindness and to encourage them so they don't lose this as they grow older. Your daughter is very fortunate.:-)