Does your dog ever give you “the look?” You know the look: head tilted, eyes fixed on yours. Have you ever wondered what was going on behind those eyes?
In the last 10 years, scientists have learned more about how dogs think than they had in the last century. We now know that dogs use various types of problem-solving skills to navigate the world – just like people.
Enter Dognition, a truly revolutionary new service for dog lovers, set to launch in early 2013 (currently in private beta). For those who treasure a deeper relationship with their dogs, Dognition provides fun, science-based games that will help you discover the unique way that your dog sees the world.
Dognition was co-founded by Dr. Brian Hare, director and founder of the Duke Canine Cognition Center, and a leading researcher in the field of dog cognition. Brian, and other canine cognition scientists, have proven that dogs are one of the most extraordinary animals on the planet because of how they relate to the world.
Everyone who uses Dognition will also be contributing to the world’s knowledge about dogs, and helping scientists make exciting new breakthroughs in dog cognition, ultimately contributing to the greater good of all dogs.
Due to the overwhelming response of people who want to understand their dogs better, we’ve closed the Dognition Beta Program to new sign-ups. We’ve been using feedback from the initial beta testers to make the Dognition experience as awesome as possible, and we’ll be opening the program up to new waves of testers in the New Year. While you wait to be called on as a beta tester, you can stay connected with us on Facebook and Twitter. We also invite you to answer the survey question below to let us know what you hope to learn with Dognition.
We look forward learning together with you and making new discoveries about the fascinating minds of dogs.
I’m always looking for ways to gain a deeper understanding of my boys. This looks so promising.
Finnegan McNeil:
I’m looking for ways to better understand my service dog.
Teddy is cute.
Thanks. I agree!
Looking great so far!
I can’t wait to get invited to the next round – my dogs and I are going to have so much fun getting to know one another better!
I can’t wait to get invited to the next round – my dogs and I are going to have so much fun getting to know one another better!
This is exciting! I have a GSD who I have learned communicates with me through his eyes. When he wants something he looks at the item and looks at me and does this several times until I get it. To me, this is HUGE because this is the first time I have felt that I actually understood what he is thinking. Additionally, it’s interesting to see how he behaves in certain situations such as wanting to come inside with a toy. He will bark a certain way, stay at the door until I arrive and open it, then go back to his toy, make sure I still have the door open and come inside. He’s obviously learned that he can’t carry and bark at the same time. I’m hoping to learn as much as I possibly can about canine behaviour and also specifically if there is some way to decipher his moods – or is he always happy…..?
We are excited about learning more about our dogs and I’d like to hear more about other dogs. So here is an ice breaker describing some of the behaviors that mine display which convince me they are very intelligent creatures.
They have developed their own games which they will demonstrate for people and other dogs since they have refined the rules to the point that the other dogs don’t know what to do. One is wrestling-they stand upright on their back legs, wrap their front paws around their shoulders and try to “flip” their opponent on the floor. Once one has been “flipped” they break apart, regroup and go back for another round. There seems to be some rules they follow and they repeat this process several times before they move on to another, different game.
One is an avid retriever, while the other is the finder. If the ball gets lost, the other dog will run near it giving hints to the retriever as to the whereabouts of the ball. If the retriever can’t find the ball after several hints the finder will pick up the ball and run away with it dropping it only when he is overtaken by the faster runner.
One is a would be “healer”. If I am not feeling well with a respiratory illness, upset stomach, pain in my hip, etc. the dog will climb on me, lay his entire body on me with his head on the source of the malaise. He will stay there for hours, awake, until I appear to be better. The other dog acts as the protector, staying nearby. The latter I would expect.
So here is a brief introduction to some things I’d like to learn more about along with understanding more about how they think, their “language understanding skills”, and their creativity. I sincerely hope we’re selected for the next round.
Happy New Year!
Guerry, Mac and Champ
Wow, fantastic stuff, Guerry. I can’t wait to learn more about your dogs and the other dogs that take the Dognition assessment. Happy New Year!
Wow, fantastic stuff, Guerry. Thanks for sharing. I can’t wait to learn more about your dogs and about the other dogs that take the Dognition assessment!