Why Do Dogs Like Us?

Why do dogs like us?

I'm sure someone could give a detailed scientific answer explaining the evolution of dogs, going back tens of thousands of years, to the wolf scavengers that hung around human camps, and how they were bred over millennia to be more docile.

I prefer a more magical, mystical connection.

They are man's best friend, and they are more loyal to us than we are to them.

This is Pixie Dust.  Aptly named because this sweet little mixed breed sheds like a son of a gun.  Alison uses a lint roller daily, or her work clothes would be covered in white.

Pixie loves Alison.  She follows her everywhere when Alison is home.  We call her Alison's shadow.

The first dog shown is Boss-A-Man.  He is always thrilled to see me.  He smiles at me whenever I approach, tail wagging and happy.  Boss-A-Man has other nicknames, depending on his behavior - Bossy Pants, Sir Barks-A-Lot, Turd Burglar.

Our biggest dog, spaniel size, is Cocoa Bear, whom we rescued as a puppy in 2008.  She is sharing a bed with our cat, Skitty.

Our son Benjamin is very close to Skitty.  He spends more time with her and gives her more attention than the rest of us.  When Benjamin went away to a camp for a week and then came back, the cat barely moved, utterly aloof to her closest companion in our house.

The dogs on the other hand?

If I go to the mailbox, gone for just a few seconds, when I return they will greet me as if I was the Second Coming.

And here with Pixie is our sophisticated dog about the house, Ellie.   "Pardon me!  Do you have any Grey Poupon?"

Other pets have their virtues.  But for me, it's dogs.  Far from perfect (they are animals after all), with some strange instincts and impulses.  But whatever their imperfections, one is not their lack of capacity for affection.

I cherish that. 

But, not all is sweetness and light in the relationship between man and dog.

There are puppy mills.

There are dogs bred for fighting.

There are neglected animals, some gone wild and abandoned.

There is animal abuse and unspeakable cruelty.

There are people who get dogs, never let them inside and just throw scraps out the back door for them.  If they wander off, so what?  If they get hit by traffic, big deal.  They can be replaced.

There are people who tire of them and just drive out to a remote area and let them go.  Or send them to a kill shelter and say, "Here.  I can't take of it anymore."

There are people who have the dog put to sleep at the slightest sign of illness, or maybe they don't like taking care of an aging pet.

Why do dogs like us?

Sometimes I really wonder why.