Recently I watched someone walking his dog close to my office in Black Earth. Every ten feet or so the dog tried to stop to sniff the ground, and every time she did, the man at the other end of the leash pulled her forward so that he could continue walking. Ah, the canine-primate disconnect, which never fails to appear if we just pay attention. I wrote an entire book about this, The Other End of the Leash, and yet I’m still discovering ways in which we struggle to merge our ethological needs. Primates love to walk, at least, terrestrial ones like humans do. Not only that, but we like to walk side-by-side with our friends, to face the world together and exchange the news of the day. While we’re walking we spend a lot of energy looking around—enjoying the view and noting what has changed Read More
Archives for 2016
What Makes Your Dog Happy?
This seems like a good question to begin a new year together in our inquiry about human/animal relationships. I've been engaged, as so many others are at this time of year, in writing out my goals for 2016. Some are personal, some are professional, and many, not surprisingly, relate to my dogs. I spent a lot of time last week thinking about my hopes and plans for them: Maggie--more comfortable around dogs who, shockingly, are not Border Collies, Willie--a sound body all year long, even if I have to retire him for herding [I do], Tootsie--a final solution to her tummy and UT problems). As I was pondering how to accomplish all that yesterday, I sat at the table in the dining room, all the better to both write and keep my eye on Willie and Maggie. They needed watching because they were Read More
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