Golden Retriever Embezzles Millions. Film at Eleven.

Posted on Nov 15 in Small Dog Behaviorby Jeff K.Print

When was the last time you read newspaper headlines such as these?

“Shih Tzu Implicated in Murder of Three at Apartment Complex” or,

“Grand Jury Believes Doberman Bilked Elderly” or,

“Bearded Collie Sought on Corruption Charges.”

Dogs are devoid of guile, ill will, or evil. Their purity of heart is what we love about them. The dogs who do commit crime, and I am talking about misdemeanors such as chewing your favorite shoes, or scratching a wall, or barking at the neighbors, never do so out of maliciousness. Dog behavior is usually capricious—in the moment. “Hey, right now, this looks like fun. I’ll do it;” or, “I’m bored. What can I do to entertain myself?”

Of course, your dog does not plan his day. Nor does he talk to himself about his intentions. He just spots an opportunity and acts upon it. Even the dogs who do commit felonies, such as biting people, do so as an instantaneous reaction, usually in response to a perceived threat. Some humans do this too. They act without thinking first. The difference is dogs always react. Humans can pre-meditate their behavior, if they choose to do so.

I am sure by now you are saying to yourself that you have seen your own dog think through a problem and then act upon it. Yes, dogs have some power of analysis. They can do a “Gazinta,” as in “This goes into that.” For example, as I pointed out in a previous article, dogs can watch you to see when you are not paying attention to them. When they notice you are distracted, they may use the opportunity to do something for which they have been scolded in the past, such as raise a leg indoors, or steal a treat. Again, this is an illustration of noting an opportunity and acting upon it. It is very “in the moment.” What dogs cannot do, is solve a problem that requires complex inference.

For example, you may walk your dog using one of those long, retractable leads—the kind that extends and retracts into a plastic reel. If you use a retractable lead, it is very likely that your dog has pulled out to the full length of the cord and then weaved a pattern around several bushes or tree trunks. Was your dog able to untangle himself, or did you have to help him? In order to retrace his steps and untangle himself, your dog would need to use logic and inference to solve his way out of the complicated web he created. Your dog’s brain does not have the computing power to logically backtrack his way out of the entanglement, which is why you had to come to his rescue. There is a biological reason for this. While dog brains do include the neocortex, that portion which performs problem-solving, among other tasks, the neocortex is extremely small and un-developed compared to the human neocortex. The computing power is just not there. Dogs can chain behaviors together to problem solve, but this ability is limited.

Believe me when I say I am not trying to put down your dog. Dogs have their own brand of genius. For example, they can discern smells and sounds we could never detect or even imagine. Dogs can outlast any human when it comes to patience. Dogs, in other words, have brain power devoted to talents we could only dream of having. All I am saying is, fortunately, your dog is not human and not capable of planning the monstrous things some people do.

There is a bit more to talk about on this subject. I have not even begun to scratch the surface on how we assign human qualities to our dogs and how that assignment affects them. I’ll cover that in another article.

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