A Scientific Discovery

Recently, scientists proved that dogs, like their two legged human counterparts, use the left hemisphere of their brain to process words and the right hemisphere to process the tone in which those words were delivered.  This means that dogs understand not only what a human says, but how they say it.  Dogs, therefore, understand human language on multiple levels.

To that I say:  "Duh!"

I know when my humans are angry, happy, or sad.  I recognize the high pitched squeal my family uses when I do something good and the "big people voice" they use when I've been naughty.

As for words, my human vocabulary is huge.  It is so huge, in fact, that I have even taken to categorizing my lexicon into two distinct groups:  those words I respond to ("AC," "cookie," and "dinner") and those I tend to purposely ignore ("drop it," "no," and "stop barking at them, they live there").

Allow me to show off my vocabulary further.

Earlier today, Sister and I were hanging out in her air conditioned bedroom; both of us sprawled out on the bed.  While we basked in the coolness, Sister began to tell me about our upcoming Labor Day weekend plans; that we were going out east, that the central air would be on, and that I'd be allowed to repeatedly run up and down the stairs connecting the backyard to the side deck (a favorite pastime of mine).

I listed politely as Sister babbled at me.  Don't get me wrong, I liked everything that she was saying, but I was just too hot to show any emotion.  But then Sister said something important--something that I just had to react to.

"Maybe you'll get to chase some squirrels."

At the mention of squirrels, I woke up from my heat induced stupor, sprang to my feet, and, from the added height of the bed, stared out the window into the backyard, my ears square.

"Some deer too," Sister suggested.

My stance never changed.  I still stared out the window intently, but my ears dropped a little.  I've smelled and barked at deer in the past, but because they were hidden by a wooden fence, I've never actually seen one.  This unknown leaves me a little hesitant about meeting one in person.

Then Sister said the magic word; the word I could never ignore.  She named my archenemy.  "Or bunnies," she casually said.

That was it.  My ears snapped to attention and a low growl work its way out from deep within me.  Words cannot explain how much I hate those stupid little cotton tailed bunnies.

So no, it does not surprise me that humans and dogs interpret language the same way.  Dogs have lived with humans for thousands of years; it's not hard to believe that our faithful two-legged companions would eventually start, from an evolutionary standpoint, learning from us.

Vacation

Ready to Soak Up the Sun!

Vacation here I come!

Of course, I don't really get vacations.  Sure, my family is off from work and can therefore devote countless hours to rubbing my belly, feeding me treats, and chasing after me when I steal their socks, but that doesn't mean I can devote all my time and energy to those exciting and pleasurable past-times.  No, I'm Head of Security and I take my job very seriously!  How can I, with a clean conscience, declare myself to be "on vacation" when I've got to, every day, protect my property from intruding wildlife (squirrels, bunnies, voles, and deer) and bark at everything that happens to walk, crawl, or fly by my house?  That's right, I can't.

But that doesn't mean that I can't have a little fun--let my fur down so to speak.  I'm sure I'll be able to squeeze in a few rounds of keep away, a couple of laps along the beach, and maybe even a quick walk through town.

All work and no play, after all, makes Rigby a dull (though devilishly handsome) boy.