Hormonal changes during weather fluctuations

Over the past year I have observed a phenomenon which concerns my female dog and changes in weather. The fluctuations in weather have been rather pronounced, especially, this winter when the weather often transformed along a gradient involving the following basic, predominant conditions: ca. minus 10°C (but mostly below minus 10°C); ca. minus 5°C; around …

Environmentally friendly dogs = socialized (cognitively-engaged) dogs

There has been much discussion regarding the environmental impacts of pets. Sometimes I feel that these debates serve as displacement of guilt and responsibility. That is to say, our natural habitats have shrunken to the point that one footstep off the trail is damaging to a significant portion of our 'wild resources'. Also, cats and …

Why do free-ranging dogs represent social systems very different from those of wolves if many other aspects of their behaviour and cognition are still similar?

Much research has been dedicated to untangling the effects of domestication on dogs. It is no longer viable to assume that most of the traits that we value in dogs are a result of domestication because apparently they have been inherited from wolves and wolves still exhibit the same traits. For example, the many interesting …

Wolf pup playing with a dog pup – differences in focus

The following text discusses the impressions after watching a Wolf Conservation Centre video in which the Ambassador pup Nikai (9 months old) and border collie Fay (13 week old) engage in object-social play. I thought, in this video, there were a few aspects worth considering. My first observation was that the dog appeared more focused …

Cooperative hunting and non-territorial mating – alternative theories regarding wolf domestication

A while ago, I read a publication by Mech L. D. et al. (2021) regarding Canis lupus domestication hypotheses. Currently, there are two most prevalent theories. One is that humans took wolf pups out of the dens as early as possible (around 3 weeks old) and raised them by hand in human settlements allowing for …

Friendly dog-wildlife encounters – potential benefits?

Before I proceed, I am about to comment on a nature conservation issue which is very delicate and should be regarded with great care. I am not endorsing neglectful and potentially harmful dog-wildlife interactions that are detrimental for either dogs or wildlife, or both. However, with sufficient care and in some situations (that are not …