Don't be silly. The only reason I didn't say 100% is because all dogs aren't perfect. Some are just plain stupid. Some have been mentally or emotionally twisted beyond redemption. I would say, "Any normal, healthy, dog with a good owner can behave appropriately." except that would invite a hundred posts about a few exceptions.

I am very experienced with dogs. (So is joeyd) Their, "free will" is nothing like a human or a cat. Dogs are pack animals. If you don't take a role in the pack structure, the dog arrange a suitable pack structure in its own mind. You can call that Free Will or Lack of Free Will. I call it the natural state of the animal.

Besides that, dogs are getting fed much better now and live much longer than their brain and circulatory systems were designed for. Lots of dogs over 12 (15 even) and getting various behavior and memory issues - from catatonic states to falling back to non-domesticated behavior. Saturday Night Live skit with Puppy Uppers and Doggie Downers predicted the future quite well. New Purena dog foods are designed for aging dogs and have various "natural" ingredients to promote better behavior. In the case of food additives, the phrase Natural is allowed for naturally occurring molecules - even if the specific molecules that are added to the food are made in a chemical plant - as long as they cannot be differentiated in a lab (residual solvents and by-product contaminants do not have to be reported.

I'm not a pet guy. Maybe someday but not so far.

 

I've always made it a point to have the dog understand whose boss. It is funny watching them twist my orders around sometimes though. We had a dog that was exceptionally obedient, unless he thought you could not see him (like at night). You start walking to him, proving you saw him, and he became the model of obedience.

I've also seen dogs with a sense of humor. They knew they were doing wrong, but it was worth it, and you could see a sense of humor at work in their heads.

 

I've also seen dogs with a sense of humor.

That is one of the delights of understanding dogs. You can see the wheels turning in their heads.

 

I call it the natural state of the animal.

I think you hit the nail in the head with that one... the difference between dogs and humans, I believe, is that dogs are a loyal species

 

I'm not a pet guy. Maybe someday but not so far.

Does this mean you don't have any gophers?

 

the difference between dogs and humans, I believe, is that dogs are a loyal species

Dogs are pack animals, humans are social animals.
Dogs have their treachery, but it happens in the context of the pack. Alpha Dog can be dethroned and Omega Dog can be banished, but both of them will quickly re-integrate in one pack or another.
Humans have their, "packs" and their pecking order in each pack, but they can function in several packs at once, or none at all. Humans are much more fluid in their treachery.

 

It is meaningful.

 

Q: What do you call a dog magician?
A: A labracadabrador.

Q: What does my dog and my phone have in common?
A: They both have collar I.D.

Q: What do you get when you cross a dog and a calculator?
A: A friend you can count on.

Q: How is a dog and a marine biologist alike?
A: One wags a tail and the other tags a whale.

Q: What do you get if you cross a sheepdog with a rose?
A: A collie-flower!

Q: What kind of dog likes taking a bath?
A: a shampoodle!

Q: What did the angry man sing when he found his slippers chewed up by the new puppy?
A: "I must throw that doggie out the window!"

Q: What is a dog's favorite food?
A: Anything that is on your plate!

Q: What dog wears contact lenses?
A: A cock-eyed spaniel!

Q: What's more amazing than a talking dog?
A: A Spelling Bee.

still with me? thats 10 so far

Q: How does a dog stop a video?
A: By pressing the paws button.

Q: Where do you put barking dogs?
A: In a barking lot.

Q: Where do dogs go after their tails fall off?
A: The re-tail store.

Q: What do you get if you cross a cocker spaniel, a poodle and a rooster?
A: Cockerpoodledoo!

---

A man and his wife were having sex one night in there bedroom.
There little boy opens the door and says "Daddy what are you doing to mama?"
Then the daddy says "Making you a little sister"
And then the boy replies "Hell no do it doggy style I want a puppy."

---

A man walks into a bar one day and asks, "Does anyone here own that rottweiler outside?"
"Yeah, I do!" a biker says, standing up. "What about it?"
"Well, I think my chihuahua just killed him..."
"What are you talkin' about?!" the biker says, disbelievingly. "How could your little runt kill my rottweiler?"
"Well, it seems he got stuck in your dog's throat!"

 

Does this mean you don't have any gophers?

We had two. They are now grown and off to college.

 

A responsible owner is the key to a polite dog. The owner MUST assume the "leader of the pack" role because dogs are pack animals. They have no choice besides believing they are in a pack with their owner. A feckless owner will leave the dog no choice except to take the leadership role in the pack. That is when they think they have to control everything, all the time. They "protect" against everybody in sight, including small children who are no threat at all.

There ARE bad dogs, but over 90% of them are caused by bad owners.

So you think 10% of dogs might be evil?

10% are demons straight out of the depths of Hell. Like my fiancee's dog.

 

Cats are sort of (but not entirely) aloof, they seldom display signs of allegiance to their masters... on the other hand, dogs can be loyal to the extreme. So much that they can have these fits of jealousy even when their masters are greeting well known people... a friend of mine had to put his dog to sleep because it once attacked his own daughter after he hadn't seen her for a couple of years.

What kind of dog? I've noticed traits that are breed specific and others that seem learned.

 

What does a man do standing, a woman sitting and a dog on three legs. Shake hands.

 

I wonder if you're acknowledging their free will... or maybe those waters are too deep to tread in this thread?

I think dogs often act on impulses that are driven by deep seated instincts left over from their wild dog ancestor. Often their owners have a hard job reconciling some actions, sometimes tragic.
What do you so suppose was going through Fentons mind when he got the herd into stampede mode (much to the chagrin of his owner!).

Max.

 

Apologies for interrupting this canine thread with a joke...


Jane and Arlene are outside their nursing home, having a drink and a smoke, when it starts to rain. Jane pulls out a condom, cuts off the end, puts it over her cigarette, and continues smoking.

Arlene: What in the hell is that?
Jane: A condom. This way my cigarette doesn't get wet.
Arlene: Where did you get it?
Jane: You can get them at any pharmacy.

The next day, Arlene hobbles herself into the local pharmacy and
announces to the pharmacist that she wants a box of condoms.
The pharmacist, obviously embarrassed, looks at her kind of strangely
(she is, after all, over 80 years of age), but very delicately asks what size, texture, brand of condom she prefers.
'Doesn't matter Sonny, as long as it fits on a Camel.'

 

 

View attachment 91427

Ok, trivia question....
What browser is the O and the Compass logo?

 

Ok, trivia question....
What browser is the O and the Compass logo?

O = Opera, Compass logo = Safari (primarily a Mac-based browser).

 

What do you so suppose was going through Fentons mind when he got the herd into stampede mode (much to the chagrin of his owner!).

Probably, "Herd the beasts! Herd the beasts! Herd the beasts!"
The owner, on the other hand, was thinking, "Should I take him home and shoot him, or just go home without him?"