Your canine companion slumbers by your side, but is she dreaming of you? Does she feel guilty about stealing your steak off the kitchen counter and eating it for dinner? What is she trying to say with that annoying bark? Does she like watching TV?
After decades of research, neuroscientists have begun to answer such questions, giving us access to the once-secret inner lives of our canine companions and even translating their barks and wags so mere humans can comprehend them.
At the forefront of this effort is Stanley Coren, a behaviorist from the University of British Columbia, who draws on decades of research to explore the psychological motivations behind dogs’ everyday behaviors, as well as what science says about their barks, thoughts, and dreams.
Do Dogs Think?
Dogs spend their waking hours contemplating a variety of topics. A dog’s thought process may revolve around basic concerns such as problem-solving, meal times, and curiosity about their surroundings. However, the exact distribution of their thoughts across various subjects remains unknown.
