Survival of the Friendliest

I am guessing that when you her the term ‘Survival of the Fittest’ you immediately think of sharks, an alpha male gorilla, or a lion on the Savannah.  But what about dogs?  I bet you think they are too friendly to be considered ‘The Fittest’.  You may be wrong.  According to Dr. Brian Hare, friendliness may not only key to dogs survival, but ours as well.  We truly became the most dominant hominid as soon as we decided to work together.  Wolves are almost extinct, but there is a dog in almost every American household.  We discuss this phenomenon as well as several other topics including puppy kindergarten, the brilliance of bonobos, and the key role poop played in the domestication of wolves.

Early Education for Puppies

The way we live with dogs has change significantly over the past few decades.  Our pets are a part of the family, and as such, we want to give them every advantage possible, including a great education.  Dr. Brian Hare has been studying dog cognition for years, and his recent project involves monitoring the cognitive development of puppies starting at nine weeks.  He calls it “Puppy Kindergarten”, which we can all agree is an adorable name.  The purpose of this school is to play games and run tests on their puppies to see how their brains develop, and how to train them to maximize their different areas of intelligence.  We discuss this process, and how to pick the best career path for your dog.  Plus we discuss how dogs develop such unique personalities and why we love that so much.