Hey fellow dog owners, what is your philosophy on dog ownership?

I'm rather lenient with my dog. If I force him to live with me, he should at least have fun doing dog things.

>>2256367
My dog isn't perfect, and I could train him better, but he doesn't do anything that would make anyone say he's poorly behaved.

Things like face licking, jumping, roughhousing, he all does with me. With strangers, he knows it isn't okay unless they/I say so.

I'd like our relationship to be more like buddies, but I ended up in a more parent-child relationship as I had to nurse him back to health during his puppyhood due to a shitty foster/rescue situation that got him real sick.

I'm the boss/parent/master, but that doesn't mean I don't love him and love making him happy. So I do things to make him happy. He does things to make me happy.

As for where I think the species will be in 5000 years assuming human survival? More shitty pugs and fat, useless companion dogs. The working dog and his environment are quickly becoming obsolete.

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I love my dog to death, but its always been a struggle understanding his needs. As far as face licking I don't think we are at that stage yet so its not a problem for me. He has his own room and I pretty much sleep on the couch because I think he is still a puppy and as of yet has not outgrown that face bite/claw instinct but we are working on it. I'm also curious what his breed was, because I don't know much about dogs and found him as a stray and nursed him back to health after being struck by a cyclist on a nature path. Pic related its my dog having my dinner.
As for what the species will look like in 5k years I don't even want to think about it.

I reckon understand my animals pretty well. I know straight away when they're feeling poorly, or if they're anxious or stressed by a situation.

I try to be fair but kind. There are laws that they must obey utterly, and so long as they do obey them then they can have a tremendous amount of freedom of choice. In the same way, they've set boundaries that I try not to cross unless I have to. One of them doesn't like his feet being handled. When I've got to do his nails, I make sure he knows what's happening and am really clear with my movements and liberal with my treats. Neither like to be petted while they're out walking, they're busy. That is fair. I don't pet.

I do not allow face licking. They may wrestle with each other, but not with me, although I will play tug with them. I know when they're getting uncomfortable with petting and when they want more.

They are my dogs and I'm their person. I assume we're friends, in the type of unequal way that two species that don't speak the same language where one is responsible for the other can be friends, though I love them like family.

I think our responsibility to the dog is to maintain its physical strengths, health, and desired temperament through careful breeding, and that we should not be aiming for extremes in size or shape. Beyond that, I have no idea. I tend not to think in the long term.

Dogs are weird and hard to define and all as individual as people are and everyone keeps theirs to different standards.

My general philosophy is to let sleeping dogs lie.

>>2256408
Badgers are assholes m8

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I allow my dog to do quite a bit. I tend to observe and interact more than anything, and have trouble drawing the line when it comes to the behaviors I want to cultivate or discourage. She is a companion breed and seems to understand how to conduct herself already.

Sometimes dogs can be hard to understand because of the limited attention span. While they begin an interaction with an intended message originally, it is often not the only message they give you at any given moment.
I'm not sure how I would define our relationship either because that , too , seems to change with time. Obviously I have a set of rules, but they aren't necessarily set in stone, and are limited to the provisions that would need to be in place for any set of beings to coexist in harmony (where you defecate, what/when you eat,what interactions are acceptable with whom, etc)
In short I guess I could have just said >>2256375 though.
I really just let her do her thing, since companion breeds are selectively bred to feel negative emotions when not performing as they should.
I can't imagine the species would be better off physically in a distant future unless they were awarded more human-like rights in the near future. I think as a "pet" they would languish in atrophy until most of the species would be regarded as wholly undesirable. If canine rights were expanded, and their caretakers held more accountable for neglect, who knows what might happen.

I love to play rough with my boxer. If i raise my arms above my head ("scary arms") he will full on charge at me. I like to smack him around some and throw him around on the mattress. The only problem it has created is that friends are sometimes jumped on for raising their arms up. And you cant push him away without him jumping back at you. At least he keeps all my friends with kids away from my house tho

>>2256408
Oh and to clear things up I was the one struck by the cyclist because I see the wording may have been a bit hazy. I was passing out water bottles to mountain bikers during a downhill mountain bike race. I met my dog after he started chewing on my shoe to make sure I was ok, that's how I know we were meant for eachother.

i got a schnauzer from a family which basically abused it, the 2 older sons punched it and kicked it and tied it hard outside for days.

I got him for free, they said if i didnt take him they would put him down because he was uncontrolable. They had 2 other berner sennen which made a lot of mess but he was the only one who got blamed for it all the time. It was obvious they were favoritized and he was the scape goat.

i felt bad for him, and i kind of wanted another dog, it was like 3 years after my first dog died, so i took him.

he was about 1½ year i think and he was a nervous wreck when i got him. He was so scared of everything and if you just raised your voice, not at him but in general he would run under the kitchen table and piss himself in fear. I think it took around half a year before he felt more safe.

He never really learned how to walk properly, in general he walked nice though.

He never wanted to get into any furniture or dogbed, he wanted to stay on the floor. He also disliked blankets.

In time i learned to read him and he learned to give signals, it was like we had a mutual language, we understood eachother perfectly all the time

i used to wrestle with him as play, and he would always submit by himself. He loved to sprint and i always tried to run around playing with him.
he also loved to sunbathe, we used to lie next to eachother in the grass a whole afternoon on weekends in the sun chilling

he never got rid of his anxiety, if something broke, like a plate or glass he would run away and hide feeling guilty, even he had eating grass and thrown up while i was at work he would be guilty when i got home.

he was the most good hearted, loyal and friendly dog, he was more than a pet to me, my best friend

lost him 2 years, i miss him a lot. I dont want to get a new dog because i want to honor his memory and i dont think any dog will make the same character as he did.

>>2256367

I bond with my dogs in a canine way, I ignore them when I get home as does my GF and basically behave like an alpha dog. >inb4 dominance theory disproved. I roughhouse with them, bite their cheeks to show affection etc etc and we sleep for a couple of hours on Saturday mornings in a dog pile.

I do not let them do this with anybody else though, no jumping up, licking, pawing or anything and people always remark they are well behaved.

My dogs are friends and family to me. We respect eachother and form strong bonds. Nothing like coming home to a canine companion, they're the only reason why I still force myself out of bed. They need me and I need them.

Roughhousing is fun, but my favourite is chilled out cuddles and walks.

>>2256931
I love reading stories like this. I'm so glad to hear you were able to improve his outlook. Re-assuring victim of abuse and chronic neglect is near impossible unless you really spend quality time understanding them. I giggled at the weekend sunbathing sessions. Its always a very deep grief I keep with me after losing a partner like that, but I feel much better when I think that they literally got to do what they loved, with who they loved, every single day for the rest of their lives.

>>2256931
Sorry wrong thread but this reminds me of my old cat. I got him for free after 3 people supposedly brought them back to the original breeder person.

He was very scared of other people and never got over the social anxiety and signs of possible previous abuse, but was very affectionate with me. He was a wuss with other people, but a huge character and the nicest golden heart.

He passed away earlier this year. I think about him literally every day, such a special cat. He was a Maine Coon mix :)

Interesting thread!

>what is your philosophy on dog ownership?
To strive for a relationship of mutual happiness, love, trust, and respect for each other. As the owner, it's my responsibility to protect and take care of my dog, provide for all her needs. I'm in charge and I expect my dog to adapt/integrate with me/my life, but being in charge also means I'm responsible for her health/happiness

>Do you understand your animal?
I strive to understand my dog (and dogs in general) in order to build a better relationship with her, strengthen our bond, and enjoy our time together. I think that I have a good understanding of my dog, her needs, perspective, and what makes her happy. We are pretty good at reading each other intuitively

>Where do you draw the line when it comes to natural behavior?
When it becomes a problem with the dog integrating into my life/interacting with people/human society as a whole. i.e. I won't allow my dog to tear up my things, bark outside all night long, roam unsupervised, rush up to strangers, etc. But other than that, I allow and encourage her to express her doggy self

>Do you allow face licking, rough play, and other dog-like acts?
I don't allow her to lick my face as I find it unpleasant; I'm allergic to dogs, so it gives me an itchy rash

For rough play, I see no problem with it. We both have fun with it. She knows how to not be "too rough" in ways that would hurt me, and she knows to stop when I'm done wrestling

My feelings on other "dog-like acts" are similar--as long as it's not causing problems for me or others, I'm fine with it

>What is your relationship with your animal?
I am her owner, she is my pet. To me, this means she belongs to me and I am responsible for her; it means that we are tightly bound companions and family members. We respect each other. I love her and she is one of my best friends. I couldn't imagine life without her. We're very close. I'd do anything for her.

>>2256367
lol OP

5000 years dogs will be more or less the same they are now, unless if Monsanto has anything to say about it.

http://siberiantimes.com/science/casestudy/news/n0613-ancient-puppys-brain-is-well-preservedas-dog-bares-its-teeth-after-12400-years/

this pup died 12,000 years ago. frozen in ice.

5000 years...maybe they'll be bionic?

>>2256367
Eh I understand her most times, I guess, she seems happy.
She face licks a bit but never my mouth or nose, so eh. She also likes licking ears. Never does it to anyone but me, my mom and her siblings, and only if we allow her. We play rough a bit, and she knows my limits quite well, she's much more violent when playing with her dog friends, even when playing tug.
She's family I guess, like a little autistic sis that can't speak, though she tries to a lot, it's 2cute. I don't know if she likes the attention when she does it or if she picked up we talk a lot, but she often tries to speak and even makes different sounds, it's cute.
In 5000 years, dogs will be as they are now, with new breeds and some lost. They'll definitely have sanitized DNA just like us and won't have to deal with genetic issues, I don't doubt they'll live longer too. 5000 years isn't even long enough for wild dogs to evolve crazily, and domesticated dogs don't even have a need to anymore. Maybe they'll keep even more puppy features into adulthood (not even sure what they don't keep at that point) or stay puppies longer, but that's about it.

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>>2256367
>Where do you draw the line when it comes to natural behavior?
Anything that I don't like, things that might be dangerous for him or may create bad habits.

>What is your philosophy on dog ownership?
Mutually beneficial friendship: I care for him, love him, provide for all of his needs and he is my companion.

>Do you understand your animal?
I try my best to understand him and I think i manage quite well but he understands me more.

>Do you allow face licking, rough play, and other dog-like acts?
I don't really like face licking but he manages to sneak a couple of lick when excited and for rough play he loves pulling while growling and wrestling with my hand and legs.
Around other dogs and people (who he doesn't deem suspicious) he is extremely calm so I guess he needs to vent those fighting needs somewhere.

>What is your relationship with your animal?
People always say: "Don't treat the dog like a person because you will a hard time".
I just set some rules, made clear that he is family, can go pretty much wherever he wants as long as he plays with his toys only and doesn't touch my stuff. And all that with just youtube videos and positive reinforcement and he is my first dog.

>Where do you think the species will be in 5000 years?
Telepathic communication! We will understand dog speech? But overall the same.

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>what is your philosophy on dog ownership?
If you are a responsible person capable of caring for another living, breathing thing and desire a faithful companion then a dog is the go to animal of choice. There are other pets that fit this niche, but canines are better IMHO. Probably from all those years of domestication, and eagerness to please.
>Where do you draw the line when it comes to natural behavior?
If her natural actions interfere with her obedience training or are a massive inconvenience to me. If she's digging holes in the yard to find moles I don't care, if she is scavenging food out of the trash we have a problem.
>Do you understand your animal?
Yes, she is very expressionate as well as stubborn and persistent enough to get what she wants.
>Do you allow face licking, rough play, and other dog-like acts?
No licking me in the face, she will play rough with me, but not my wife and kids. Since she was a pup I've always used my hands around her mouth, I would curl my finger behind her largest canine teeth and play tug of war. To this day she is pretty "mouthy"with me, yet I never get bit.
>What is your relationship with your animal?
I love my doggy. She minds everybody in the family but especially me since I'm the one who works with her the most. My young daughter has also trained with her but doesn't get the same results mainly because of mistakes she made during training.
>Is he/she bound by and implied contract they are not aware of? Are they a friend? A roomate? Family?
While she is a beloved family member, her role of guard dog is a very strong trait of the breed. When the situation calls for it, she does her job very well.
>Where do you think the species will be in 5000 years (assuming humans maintain the planet for that long)? What are the long term implications of domestication, and what is the human responsibility?
I'm sorry, I've never really thought about it, and the present conditions if today's world makes it hard for me to forsee anything.

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>>2259190
I forgot, good thread OP. Thanks for making it, it's an interesting read.