Comments on: Inside a Dog’s Mind

By: Video Game Dork

Video Game Dork — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 05:01:55 +0000

I noticed as a kid that dogs seem to follow (view as the boss) adult male, adult female, younger male, younger female, in that order. However, they seem to be protective of their humans in the reverse order. As in, if two children of different genders got the flu at the same time, the dog would ‘hold vigilence’ in the younger female’s room. By the same token, if all the males in the family got sick, the dog would stick with the kid.

Perhaps it was just my dog, but I beleive I noticed this behavior in friend’s and family’s dogs.

By: seefish3

seefish3 — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 21:58:31 +0000

Great article, thanks for the link!

On a related note, I could swear I read a study once that claimed that dogs couldn’t possibly see television, because the whole “persistence of vision” phosphor dot thing doesn’t work for them. Yet most owners claim they can.

Did I make this up after an extended weekend of MadDog 20/20?

By: Lady Helena Handbasket

Lady Helena Handbasket — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 20:54:30 +0000

Inside a dog’s brain – pack (and pecking order of pack), prey, food, mate, threats, territory, end of story.

Inside a labrador’s brain – stuff I can chew, end of story.

By: Skipweasel

Skipweasel — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 20:13:54 +0000

Nah, inside a dog’s head is one thing – bone.

By: Gauldar

Gauldar — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 18:25:09 +0000

You forgot to add

– Whatever hits the floor is mine!

By: Foreigner1

Foreigner1 — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 18:20:04 +0000

I’m curious what they’ll find.

From the dogs that I lived with over the years, I got the impression that their main reportoir in intellectual skills was about:
- That human is boss, I follow.
- That human gives me food- is my friend, but not my boss / or also my boss
- This is my territory
- That human / dog / animal is part of my clan
- That human / dog / animal is NOT part of my clan
- That human / dog / animal is friendly / foe
- That human / dog / animal is equal / boss / lower – tolerate / accept / change status
- See human again: clan is complete again – happy
- Feel hungry – ask human
- See cat / rabbit / hare – chase
- Smell other dog – mark territory
…
And a few more with a lot of nuances, but that seems to be about it.