Canines, Common Folk, & Kinship: The Unique Relationship Between Dogs & People

By: Owen Kanienberg

The relationship that dogs have with people is something that can be found among other pairs of animals in the animal kingdom. Creatures of different species will often help each other in mutually beneficial ways. Certain species of frogs and spiders will help each other in obtaining food, Egyptian crocodiles will allow birds known as Plovers to pick excess food from their teeth, and ostriches will seek protection from predators by hiding in herds of zebras. While these types of relationships are relatively common in the animal kingdom, the social dynamic between humans and dogs is inherently unique and offers significant benefits for both parties. I have personally grown up with several dogs over the years, both large and small, and I feel that their presence has made quite a significant impact on my life. 

One of the most crucial distinctions that should be made when comparing the relationship of dogs to people and vice versa is that dogs and humans are both highly intelligent creatures. On average, a dog’s intelligence and brain capacity when compared to human intelligence are about equal to that of a two year old infant. This may not seem that significant but it is. The American Psychological Association has stated that dogs are able to recognize more than 150 words or even emotions that a person or another dog could express.

I think that these similar levels in intelligence are what separates our relationship with dogs apart from others in the animal kingdom. Dogs were first domesticated around 33,000 years ago and have had quite a long time to evolve themselves as well as their relationship with people in the process. While they are used less today for things like physical labor or hunting compared to when they were first domesticated, dogs have been able to develop something similar to what we would refer to as a personality. Albeit at a much more basic level.

For example; one of my black labradors, Hudson, is much more aware of the things going on around him then some of my other dogs are. He’ll hear or see that the T.V. is on and he’ll literally come in and sit down to watch it with whoever is in the living room. And it’s not just that he reacts to the sounds or motions that our T.V. produces, he is able to understand and recognize what is happening. There will be a show or commercial with a dog in it and it’ll excite him to the point where he is looking around the house to see if that same dog has gone anywhere else. In addition to this he’ll recognize people that come over and like many other dogs can. But he’ll do this by observing one of us to see what our reaction to those people being here is. He’s looking to us for some sort of approval or assurance, almost like a child would. 

Another one of the dogs, Junior, is very lazy and low-energy a lot of the time. We will have to call his name multiple times in order to get him to go somewhere or do something. He is older than some of my other dogs but I wouldn’t not say that’s the reason for his persistent sluggishness. He has the occasional burst of energy whether he’s outside or inside, but I think that he’s the way he is because he chooses to be that way.

He’ll often be the last one to go out into our yard when all of our other dogs are already out and about. The interesting thing is that he will sometimes only stay on our porch before coming inside with everyone else. We have trained our dogs to go outside and use the bathroom before coming inside to get a dog treat. Junior will oftentimes go out on the porch and then come back inside and expect a treat. It's a fraction of the work with all the benefits. He’s a deceiver, and a pretty clever one at that. He doesn’t just try to trick us, he’ll also trick our other dogs. If somebody is in a spot or bed that he wants to lay in, he’ll usually just groan at them first. If they don’t move he’ll turn around and bark at our door, pretending like someone is there in order to get them to move.

I think that growing up with dogs in my house has shaped me into the person I am today. Caring for a dog or another type of pet helps you to really understand how to be responsible and even manage your time in some instances. Having dogs will take its toll and even stress you out at times, but I think that the connections you can make with them is ultimately worth it in spite of this. I feel that I’ve also learned to become more emotionally mature due to having pets, at least when I was a little bit younger. You can’t really be angry with something if it cannot inherently understand what it did wrong. You can train dogs, but similarly to people they will make mistakes during their life. However, embracing people despite their flaws is something that can be a really difficult concept to learn, let alone understand. 

I understand that some people may not have had dogs or any pets before. Maybe they just dislike them outright. I’ve had friends and even some family members that don’t really like or connect with pets the same way that I do. Either way, that’s okay. But people are inherently social beings. There is comfort to be found in a companionship with another living thing, whether that be another person, a dog, a cat, or another animal. Dogs are uniquely able to offer unconditional love to whomever their caregiver(s) might be in spite of that person’s flaws. We should feel obligated to return that kindness back to them in any way we can.