Information About Thinking Dogs
Posted on April 06, 2009 by: WayCoolDogs
Today a lot of dogs are treated abusively or dressed up like mindless wonders–with respect for a dog “as a dog” still an evolving issue by a human race which is even less evolved. Truth be known, the best owner for a dog is a young child who is not yet credited with knowing anything either!
But today I received a blog article from Mysterious Beautiful, one of our participants in the National Dog Blog Carnival #1 that was titled “Canine Cognition and Self Awareness.” A kindred soul to our own dog philosophy, the article discusses whether or not a dog is actually able to feel good inside about how it looks and if they are capable of self-awareness or not. Sounds far-fetched? We don’t think so….
But unfortunately, many people do–laughing uproarously at the thought. And when I Googled the words “thinking dogs” I finally ran across a web which gave dogs credit for thinking!
“Dogs are smart. They can, and usually do, think rings around their owners. And they can do it because most owners have never learned how to think like a dog.”
PROOF IS OUT THAT DOGS THINK AND ARE INTELLIGENT
Located at webtrail.com, the article “Communication” was written by William E. Campbell in 1995. Like myself, Campbell feels that just because a dog cannot speak verbally does not mean it is unintelligent. If this were so, would human beings who were labeled as “deaf and dumb” in our past still be considered ignorant and lacking intelligent in today’s world?
As intelligent and caring individuals of the present, we need to look at situations, people and animals with some piece of common sense. In the article “Communication” by Campbell, make sure you read the sections “Back to the Dogs” and “The Puppy’s Dilemma.” The next time you come home and your shoes or best purse is chewed up, instead of labeling the dog as bad or stupid, you may want to think twice!
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Related posts:
- Animal Abuser Information
- Dog Care – Steps in Critical Thinking
- Understanding Animal Communication
- Scientific Study Done on “Look of Guilt” in Dogs
- Entries being accepted for the National Dog Blog Carnival #1
2 Responses:
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Beth
- 6th Apr, 09 01:04pm
I think what happens in some cases is that when it comes to species other than our own, we feel like we need help from “experts”. “Experts” tell us what they learned from other experts who learned from other experts and so in some cases, the information we receive, no matter how well intended, may be outdated or have been misinterpreted. Like humans, animals are individuals, so blanket statements don’t apply to them any more than they do to us.
We owe it to animals of all kinds to become the experts ourselves, to treat them with compassion, and as you so aptly mention, to use common sense, which often flies out the window when it comes to them. I think part of this is due to our increasing disconnection with the natural world. We’ve been somehow conditioned to think that animals are unthinking, unfeeling machines. In the process, we have forgotten that we, too, are animals.
While people may be confounded as to why the puppy chewed the shoe (and react badly when they find it, hours after the fact) I’m confounded by the fact that people are not more interested in finding out the “why”. Who’s the unthinking, unfeeling machine in this scenario?
Beth
- 7th Apr, 09 07:04am
Re: Truth be known, the best owner for a dog is a young child who is not yet credited with knowing anything either! – I just read this morning that it’s critical for humans to be exposed to animals during early months of life in order to prevent them from developing the notion that animals are objects without feelings. Fascinating!