Saturday, January 2, 2016

For the love of Canis Familiaris

Dogs were part of my life since my childhood though my parents never grew one.  However, having lived in relatives house, I wont forget those memorable days with Julie and Caesar, the wonderful companions during school and college days. Later Raasthaa, Bruno and several other street dogs whom I 'socialized' with.  Haa...the dog whom we named Sabapathi after watching KamalHaasan's SathiLeelvaathi. 
Dogs are magical. I dont recognize the breed names - they sound always foreign to me. Dog lovers know they have human nature - all the dog lovers would share one or the other.  Though I have not grown one, I have several dog stories to share from my own experience.
And recently happen to read this article "Pass for Happiness and Companionship" recently in The Hindu. (aye, I am Hindu reader these days)
Often I wondered, whether these dogs get bored doing the same things again and again? What do they think? 
I think I got an answer from this marvelous book "Inside of a dog" by Alexandra Horowitz.
Though Alexandra is a psychologist, unless she is a dog lover she could not have written such a fascinating book. Someone like me, who has trained my senses to read neuroscience books for the past few years, got a fresh breathe of animal science after buying this.  Very fascinating read I would say.  There is so much of personal sharing by the author.
Having bought this in July 2014, I have read it only once. I will read another round of read this year.
By the way, the author and her associates have this Dog Cognition Lab.  Interesting.
I recommend this book.

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