Our Dogs, Ourselves ( 2020)
The Story of a Singular Bond
Alexandra Horowitz
rating good
type nonfiction print
concepts
dogs humans-animals-nature
- In Benin, puppies are often named with proverbs as passive aggressive messages to neighbors... "When goodness is overdue, the idiot has forgotten."
- On the strangeness of viewing dogs as property: IKEA opened dog parking areas outside their Germany stores... but this is less offensive considering they opened "Manland" in Australian ones— "a lounge area for non-shopping male members of a couple.")
- Currently dogs are (legally) considered more like trees than woodpeckers or newborns, who are "self-owned" but the responsibility of another... a shift to guardianship vs ownership in the law would be fitting.
- Assigning then status of "living property" would prioritise their well-being in cases of animal cruelty, custody— give us a duty towards them.
- Take into account research in dog cognition— what certain breeds are predisposed towards, preferences for how they like to be pet → not all people may be appropriate owners.
- Currently dogs are (legally) considered more like trees than woodpeckers or newborns, who are "self-owned" but the responsibility of another... a shift to guardianship vs ownership in the law would be fitting.
- We talk to dogs like we talk to babies in many ways— high pitch, "telegraphed" language— but different in others: don't hyperarticulate to dogs (accentuating vowels) → not trying to teach them language
- Yurok Indians in CA highly value their dogs, but don't talk to or name them! Because "belief that they might answer back, thus upsetting the natural order and provoking general catastrophe."
- Categories of things we say to our dogs... Mom Commentary, Cheering Squad, Instructions, Forever Unanswered Questions, "We've Discussed This..."
- Talking to other people's dogs as social intermediates to deflect the discomfort (like me with President Price)
- Reimagine the goal of dog breeding from this point forward: health-breeding?
- Research findings originating in daily dog observation:
- Dogs can tell passage of time by how your odour diminishes throughout the day
- Dogs can smell quantity differences
- "Guilty look" is more a response to the owner than their own behavior
- Dogs as our mirror (vs Derrida's writing of his cat as his mirror)
- Dog cognition research began almost as comparative psychology: researching other animals because it will tell us something about ourselves... What do we know about what my dog thinks about me?
- Vs more direct question, What is it like to be a dog?
- What makes humans unique? Constantly having to reevaluate this... perhaps what dogs show us is that we aren't the only way to do intelligence.
- Study shows that we physically match our dogs! Something beyond appearance or grooming... personality? Perhaps because we are drawn to the familiar.
- Spay-neuter policies = entrenched in America and seen as a moral imperative, but efficacy and effect on animal's health not so clear...
- Risk of anaesthesia during surgery is relatively high
- Very different effects in different breeds
- Potential health benefits often offset by increased risk of cancer, joint problems, etc.
- Other methods that sterilise animal without disrupting all sex hormone production
- Important to take into account the individual circumstances of an animal, not just general policy!
- Problem of unwanted puppies/kittens could also be addressed by better training and care of the pet... education of the owners.
- Giving dogs dignity is more than just enabling life and health... also means stimulation of senses, free movement, "a rich plurality of life activities"