I started teaching my University of Wisconsin course yesterday, titled “The Biology and Philosophy of Human/Animal Relationships.” It is, granted, a lot of work, but I love doing it. I love the intellectual stimulation it creates, and I love working with 150 smart, motivated young people with minds like steel traps (okay, most of them) who are hungry to learn how to relate their education with the day-to-day issues of life. We’ll be talking tomorrow about “humans and animals.” Or, is it “humans, and other animals?” What really makes us different from the rest of the animal world, and what makes us the same?
I love thinking about those questions, and I love how dogs are always reminding me that while we humans are special… different in so many ways than all the other animals on earth, we are also so very much the same. It makes me feel connected to the rest of nature. I like thinking of myself as an animal, but historically many people have been uncomfortable with that linkage. One of my favorite quotes is from the wife of the Bishop of Worcester, who, upon reading The Descent of Man by Charles Darwin said something like; “Oh dear, I do hope it isn’t true (that we are related to apes). But if it is true, I hope it doesn’t become generally known.” Too funny, too British (I can say that, me mum was British).
What about you? Are you put off by someone saying “humans and other animals?” Do you like thinking of your connection to your dog, as another mammal, or do you feel like that demeans you as a person?
No new photos from the farm today, but forgive me some nostalgia. Here’s a photo of me and my late Great Pyrenees, Tulip. She died last February, but for some reason I’ve been missing her terribly these last few days. Maybe it’s the lambs, and knowing that she’s not there to protect them anymore …
Robin Germain says
It doesn’t demean me at all! Count me in the column of those who thinks of myself as another mammal to my dogs. Furrsons: plural for furry people.
Geez, when I think of what my pets teach me and how my pets interact and behave so much more civilized…. OK, that could be up for interpretation, but let’s face it, when a dog sez “Hey! that’s mine!” an interaction takes place and one way or another it’s over in short order and they’re not in an eternal snit over it, well……..
I am honored they even have anything to do with us.
Love the pik of you and Tulip, it’s very endearing.
Stay warm, Robin
Kathy Blough says
I’m perfectly comfortable with hearing “human and other animals.” Actually the phrase “human and animals” is the one that puts me off. It’s long-accepted science that humans are mammals, right?
Trisha, I recently finished reading your book For the Love of a Dog, so I learned about Tulip. I’m so sorry for you. My lab mix Jackie also died last February and just yesterday I found myself crying buckets for her.
Rosana Hart says
I am keenly aware of being mammals together with my dogs. Can’t imagine not thinking that way.
Funder says
I also prefer thinking of myself as “another animal.” We really are just very smart animals. And I like the connection between human animals and domesticated animals; a little more compassion from most people is not a bad thing.
Of course, there’s always the problem of too much compassion / anthropomorphization. Other animals don’t have the same desires we do – too hot for a dog is probably just fine for a human! But I don’t think it’s a bad thing for people to remember that we’re mammals too.
Shannah says
I’m with you 100%… I like to think of myself as an animal, as a participant in the same world as the “other animals” that I love. “Power” and “dominion” are scary thoughts for me; it’s much better to be a participant in the whole picture.
Your quote is wonderful.
I wish I could sit in on that class!
That is a fantastic picture. Gosh, it’s hard to lose a dog.
Jeff says
I am not offended in the slightest by being lumped in with “other” animals. I believe that I am no more and no less than another animal. I do believe that the particular gifts and burdens, particularly that metabolically expensive big neocortex, with which evolution has endowed my species requires me to use those faculties responsibly. I do not believe that human beings are a plague upon the earth nor do I think we are entitled to use its resources thoughtlessly.
I read recently a thought that the tree of life should be restructured to more accurately reflect our place in it. This idea is not mine and I regret that I can not relocate the source to give proper attribution. Traditionally, the tree of life has humans at the pinnacle, then non-human primates, the larger brained mammals and so down to single celled organisms. It seems more correct to place each species as a co-equal at the end of individual branches of the tree. At any given moment, each species is at the same point in its evolutionary path starting in the primordial soup untold years ago. Humans are not more evolved than any other species, just differently evolved. This view may not hold the same appeal to others, but I find it a humbling, yet comforting, way to see my place in nature.
Kerry L. says
I, too, enjoy thinking of myself as an animal. I love the thought, as Temple Grandin expressed, that humans and dogs evolved together, that we belong together. These thoughts allow me to feel a part of nature and ‘mother earth’, not apart from nature. They also remind me to take my responsiblities to my dogs seriously, to socialize them, protect them and yet allow them to be dogs and to thoroughly enjoy that dogness. Kerry
Carolyn says
Do I mind feeling connected to the animal world? Of course not! In fact, I find it comforting. I think of Dr. Irene Pepperberg’s work with Alex and how together they showed that being called a “bird brain” is in fact a compliment. By studying animals I think we can learn to better understand ourselves.
I am sorry that you are not my professor this semester for my animal behavior course. Small problem—I am across the country at UNC-Chapel Hill. I am one of those “steel traps” but I am afraid to say that my professor is somewhat dry and rusty. Could you elaborate (briefly) on what you will cover this semester in your course?
Stay warm!
Mateus Freua says
Unfortunately I can not hold your course. Certainly, to be more than enlightening, an intellectual exercise for lovers of animals.
I also miss Tulip, not even knowing, in his words it seemed, of course, a GREAT DOG!
Lisa says
Your question reminded me of the following by Henry Benston:
The animal shall not be measured by man. In a world older and more complex than ours, they move finished and complete, gifted with extension of the senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear. They are not brethren; they are not underlings; they are other nations, caught with ourselves in the net of life and time, fellow prisoners of the splendor and travail of the earth. – Henry Benston
Thanks for sharing your picture; my 12 year old Pyr-Yukon passed last January and he has been in my thoughts a lot lately, as well.
Trisha says
A perfect addition from Lisa. I actually end the University course reading those very lines! They have such an impact: “… caught with ourselves in the net of life and time, fellow prisoners of the splendor and travail of the earth.” Makes me all gooey when I read them.
ABandMM says
I still miss my first dog Morgan, so I understand your sadness. I have several pictures of her around my workstation and there is a point in most days when I wish she was still here. She was never reserved in her affection and very quickly made a tough day better. August is the tough month for me in that she died a few days after our 13th year adoption anniversary. That is a great photo of you and Tulip, and may it help you remember the happy times you shared.
As a biologist, I greatly appreciate how many things (basic life processes) are similar between animals, plants, fungi and bacteria, so I definitely do not feel insulted when humans are lumped in with the rest of the animals. We all have the same basic building blocks, and it is mind-numbing to think about how they can be “assembled” to create the great diversity of life that exists in our world.
Jennifer says
I kind of like the phrasing. I think it serves to remind us that we are part of, as opposed to distinct from, the rest of the natural world. I think it
is also helpful in reminding me that humans respond as other animals do and that if I’m going to be understanding of my dogs’ mistakes, well,
then I better be a bit more understanding of humans’ mistakes. I think that reminding myself that humans are animals (and share the majority
of our genetic code with most everything else) makes me more understanding and tolerant of humans (myself included). I also really believe that
it’s made me a better teacher.
Also, I really just think it’s cool that we have so much in common with other animals and yet are so remarkably different in a handful of really
significant ways. I just think it’s cool that a few genetic differences makes such an enormous difference.
Michelle says
I feel warm and connected to life when thinking of myself as an animal rather than some separate “human”, in opposition to animals. As for feeling robbed of my humanity or demeaned as a person, other humans do that to me every day. With other animals, what you see is what you get, whereas humans tend to cover themselves with layers of masks and deceits. Boy, I re-read that and it sounds so horribly cynical. However, I think I’m just pointing out that humans have different faces depending on circumstances–work, play, strangers, family, bosses, etc–and that we smile when we really want to bare our teeth.
Colleen says
I am green with envy hearing about your course. Despite the the subfreezing temperatures and snow, I wish I was in Wisconsin to attend. How does one become an ethologist? I am looking to go to grad school, I definitely would like to do something in the animal behavior field. Should I be looking at psychology (I know it is geared towards humans, but so much research seems to apply to both-as today’s topic asks, I believe we are more or less alike) or biology? I am also trying to decide if I should get the Master’s or go all the way through Ph.D.
…Well I didn’t mean to hijack the blog thread, but every time I visit this site, I just want to immerse myself in the topics that are so important to us and our companions. Thank you for inspiring.
Vickie says
Hi!
I am honored to be lumped into the same order as my wonderful furry “pack members”. What really grinds my gears is hearing someone refer to my canine lifemates as “just dogs.”
Valerie says
Hi!
Just like to introduce myself and leave a couple of comments! I am a neighbor of sorts – I live in Cross Plains, WI, with one Dutch Shepherd and one Dutch Shepherd/Malinois cross. Not on a farm, though, more’s the pity. I have a sort of backwards way of thinking about the “are we just animals?” question. To me, the more we learn about animals (which I dearly enjoy) the less lonely I feel. I feel like we are finally learning to elevate animals to their proper status as thinking and feeling beings rather than “lowering ourselves” (how silly) to their level. By the way, my family also has an African Gray Parrot, who is totally fascinating in his alien intelligence.
The picture of Patricia and Tulip is terribly sweet. I would miss her too if she had been mine.
Have a great weekend everyone!
Valerie
CJ :) says
I wish I could take your course, but somehow I kinda think you can’t yell loudly enough for me to hear you in Texas. 🙂
I have a retirement foster cocker spaniel named Redford who I am giving a home to in his last days. He has lasted longer than I thought he would, but he has many health problems that I treating the symptoms of. He probably won’t last this year.
I will miss him terribly when he goes. He is my constant companion. He even sleeps on my hip (I’m a side sleeper and he climbs up there and pins me lol).
If they can form that kind of bond with us who are we to say that we aren’t animals as well?
Jennnifer Hamilton says
Patricia,
I had a very interesting experience the other day that I thought you and others might find appropriate to mull around on your blog.
Can dogs get confused or second guess their owners when requests simply seem “too easy”, just as they can when things seem “too hard”? Recently, when using a clicker to train my advanced dog a very remedial behavior, it was almost as if my dog was stopped and said, “Wait, I know you better than this, this must be a trick question and I’d really rather not play along.” I wonder if others have been second guessed by their dog for training below their level?
The reason I wonder about this know is based on a personal experience I recently had…
I have used the clicker and shaping to train my 6 year old Portuguese Water Dog over the years and we’ve developed a vocabulary of 150+ behaviors/commands. Some quite easy (pick-it-up, drop), some more complex (i.e. putting away the groceries, picking individual raffle tickets from a basket and giving them to the MC of an event, three card monty using scent discrimination on playing cards, bringing a tissue to anyone in the room that sneezes).
Typically, the more complex behaviors build on exisiting known behaviors and the shaping goes quickly and quite successfully. Every once and a while, however, I want to train a new behavior for which we not yet learned any foundational elements. In these cases, despite my efforts to break the actions down into very simple criteria, my dog will make a few efforts and then stop. She will then look at me and offer the last difficult shaped behavior that we successfully learned.
For example, if we successfully learned a new difficult behavior two weeks ago, she will immediately start offering that behavior rather then try to learn the new difficult behavior. From my vantage point, she appears to be saying, “I’m really confused and frustrated right now. Rather then learn something new that’s difficult, couldn’t we just go back to that last brain twister I learned and give me treats for that one.” I get this reaction, regardless of how quick I keep the pace of reward and how small I break down the behavior criteria.
I do not get this reaction, however, when we work on shaping new behaviors which have foundational elements that have already been mastered. For example, discrimating for a new smell when she already knows how to discrimate smells would not get this reaction. Learning to put away laundry would be enough like putting away the groceries, and would not solicit this reaction.
In teaching her to shake her head back and forth as if to say “no”, however, we didn’t have any behaviors to build on…so, after a few attempts at the shaping, she stopped and then reverted back to the last difficult thing she mastered (not, however, the most RECENT behavior she learned…it was the last most DIFFICULT behavior).
While I am interpreting her reaction as frustration and confusion and I don’t really know what she is thinking or feeling, she has become quite consistent in her reactions under the various shaping circumstances. In people terms, it as if my dog likes advanced math, but still hates new word problems.
So here’s the new experience I had the other day…
We attended our first basic agility class (her medical issues had prevented us from participating during her younger years) and were given a set of homework assignments, one of which included learning to target a yellow plastic lid in a variety of positions in our hand and lying on the floor. Although I have taught my dog to target on just about everything known to man, a yellow plastic lid was one object that was not yet in our arsenal. Although I knew my dog would immediately take to the yellow lid as a target, I also knew I should at least do a couple of training sessions so as not to overlook the most basic trainer faux pas…to assume your dog will automatically generalize a behavior to a new object.
So I got out my clicker, bait bag, and the yellow plastic lid. She immediately walked over and touched her nose to it before I could even get organized and get out the word “target”. Of course, I clicked/treat. I then held the yellow lid in several different positions as well as placed it on the floor in several positions…and each time she immediately touched her nose to it and each time I offered click/treat. All of a sudden, she stopped, sat down, looked directly in my eyes, and after a moment of pause and perhaps reflection, she started offering the last difficult behavior she had successfully mastered.
While I acknowledge that I have no idea what she was really thinking, her eyes and reaction said “wait a second, I’m confused, I know I’m offering a behavior and getting clicks and treats but it’s not likely that you would get the clicker out for something this easy. I must be missing something. Under the circumstances, I think it’s best to go back to offering something I already know.”
I’ve seen plenty of times when dogs shut down because the tasks are too hard or when they don’t want to work at that time, but I’ve never seen a dog second guess the trainer when the training seems below the dog’s level. It was like I handed an eigth grader a second grade reading book. But rather than my dog assume that I was an idiot (like an eigth grader might do), it seemed as if she assumed she simply must not fully understand the assignment.
Following her confused reaction, I held the yellow lid back up and said the word target. She paused, stopped offering the other behavior, slowly walked over and touched her nose to the lid…click/treat. Then she looked up at me again. We repeated this two more times, with each click/treat being followed by a serious look directly into my eyes. After the third time, she never hesitated again. She touched that lid whereever it was with gusto. Perhaps a feeling of relief and joy (my interpretation of course) came over her as she played along thinking, “Hey, I guess she really does want to pay me for something I could do in my sleep. Who am I to refuse the treats…this is the easiest job I’ve had in a long time.”
I’m curious if others have had a similar experience.
Sabine says
This is such a heartworming picture of you and Tulip ! It’s like losing a dear beloved family member when one of our dogs leaves us to go across the rainbow bridge, and it’s a comfort to know that they live on in our memories.
I was just watching the DVD “Feeling Outnumbered” and seeing Tulip being very “eager” to get to the food she wasn’t supposed to touch, made me chuckle. She strikes me as a dog who had a great sense of humor and probably gave you some challenges during her lifetime. :))
As far as “human and other animals” go: I have no problem with that phrase at all. Au contraire !
My happiest hours are the ones I spend with my dogs in the woods every day. On days, when I’m not able to take them there, I miss an important part of my day and my well-being on that day. I feel sorry for all the dogs who spend their lives as backyard/apartment pets.
Maybe it’s my upbringing in Germany, where you almost had to have a bad conscience if you didn’t manage to take your dogs for at least a two hour hike on a daily basis – if not more.
Looking at my dogs as family members. Yes ! It’s not demeaning at all. Nothing makes me happier than looking in those once dead eyes of my little puppymill rescue, seeing her enjoy a good run across a big open field and loving it. She, who didn’t know what it felt like to have gras under her paws . She suffered so many emotional and physical scars and to heal those will take longer than a lifetime, but little by little she’s coming out of her shell and takes part in our lives. Is there anything more rewarding in the world ?
I’m very often just “one of the dogs”, and I’m loving it !! :))))
Cheryl Edwards says
I believe that all of Nature is inter-connected. So far from feeling demeaned by the statement, I feel honored to be in such good company! My love affair with dogs began at the age of 1, and they have enriched my life and taught me valuable lessons along the way. I have shared my life with many dogs since childhood – and was blessed with a “soul mate” dog like your Luke (I used to say that Caleb and I weren’t joined at the hip; we were joined at the heart) Now I have my sweet Maggie – and she makes me smile every day.
What a wonderful picture of you and Tulip! I hope that when you remember the life you shared with her, it makes you happy in spite of missing her presence.
Thank you again for the wonderful talk at Borders on Jan 22 – tell Willie he is indeed a VERY good boy !
Trisha says
Here’s a [long answer] to the question about the University course on Human Animal Relationships. Some of the spacing doesn’t translate, apologies:
Trisha says
By the way, I’m still mulling on Jennifer’s extremely interesting post…! Anyone else had this occur to them? More later…. (love the question!)
Dena Norton says
It sounds as though teaching the course on
Clorofilla says
Ciao, i’m an italian woman, so excuse me for my english. I want to thank you so much for your book “all’altro capo del guinzaglio” (“The other end of the leash”) it is so useful for me ed my sweety dog, she is a Pastore Maremmano, similar to the Great Pyrenees, for aspect and the character. It’s too hard to live with this dog: they don’t need us as we need them, are very enourmous and also their teeth. Some time a didn’t understand her, but now, whit the your book’s help i understand something more. I love her and her indipendence.
One “Bau” from the Italy.
Mirtha Alli says
Arthritis in your pooch can be a major hassle that many people never even think of in older dogs.