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Quentin Minard

Mrs. Cramer

Comp Pd 6

23 April 2020

World’s Best Friend

The most common house pets are dogs, 38.5% of companion animals in the US are dogs,

the next closest being cats at 25.4% (U.S. Pets). There is a reason for that, dogs got the name

“man’s best friend ” for a reason. They have been alongside us for almost as long as we can

remember. Now there are numerous traits that make an animal a good pet. Although dogs have a

combination of them that make dogs the world’s best pets, dogs are very loyal to their owners,

they are trainable, and they form heavy emotional bonds with humans.

One attribute of dogs that make them great pets is their loyalty to their owners. Why is

this, it is simple really. For thousands of year dogs have coexisted with humans, evolving along-

side us (Michelson). Plus, we know that dogs have a common ancestry with wolves. One

defining characteristic both animals share is pack behavior (Michelson), or family behavior.

Dogs see themselves as part of their owner’s pack and the owner is the alpha (Cole). Cats, cats

couldn’t care less about their owner’s rules. Dogs on the other hand if you prove yourself to be

the alpha on their terms they will be loyal (Cole). A dog’s loyalty to their owner can be strong

enough that they may risk their own lives to protect their owners. One such example was a

college student named Kelly Knott. She was home one night when an intruder broke into her

house. The intruder even locked the door after he broke in, so he was planning to stay a bit. The

only reason the intruder left was Kelly’s dog Bella, barking, charging, and chasing after the
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intruder out of the house. This kind of loyalty from dogs is undeniable. This loyalty and desire

for a dog to protect and please its partner allows them to be trained.

This training is most easily observed in service dogs. Some people have disabilities or

unique medical conditions where if they are not notified immediately that something is wrong,

they could be seriously injured or die. CPL is a service dog program that trains dogs help their

owner’s in daily life, or to sense these medical conditions often by smell or some other means to

know when there is something wrong with their owner and notify them to get immediate medical

attention. According to CPL this training process takes about two years. In the first year they are

trained in the basics and are socialized in public. The next year they are tested to see if they can

sense certain medical conditions. Then if they pass their tests the last few months, they are more

specifically trained in the field of service they are selected for. These dogs are trained to help

with different disabilities allowing their person to live more confidently, independently, and give

their person more love. There are still people in this world that somehow believe that only

humans can experience emotion. Although pets, especially dogs, have proven time and time

again that that is not the case.

Another trait that dogs have is their innate ability to form strong emotional bonds with

people, just like us, if not even stronger. Some people say that dogs don’t have feelings instead

they just recognize their owners as the person who feeds them. Then why do dogs want to play

with their owners, why do dogs love playing fetch? It is because they can have fun and if they

can have fun then they can experience happiness. Then is it really that hard to believe that they

can experience love if they can experience happiness. Now it is true they don’t experience

emotions exactly the same as humans, but one would have to keep in mind they are a different

species so of course we aren’t the same. Although Modern Dog Magazine published an article
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named “Which Emotions Do Dogs Actually Experience?” which stated that , “dogs have the

same hormones and undergo the same chemical changes that humans do,” and, “Dogs even have

the hormone oxytocin, which, in humans, is involved with feeling love and affection for others.”

In which we can infer that dogs do experiences emotions similar to us. A good way to prove or at

least demonstrate this emotional connection between a dog and it owner is to separate the two for

an extended period of time and watch the interaction between the dog and its owner when they

are reunited. On YouTube there are a multitude of video accounts of exactly this happening. I

cited one of these videos in which the dog and the owner had been separated for 3 years (not by

choice of either parties). Since then the dog had been staying in a shelter and was getting all of

its basic needs taken care of and was surrounded by other dogs. For the people who believe dogs

only care about food and basic necessities, the dog should be happy right where it is and would

have completely forgotten about its owner. In the video, yes the dog doesn’t seem to recognize

the owner at first, but that is because the dog is still very cautious and scared, but you can see

once the dog mustered the bravery to approach the its owner and smell him the dog almost

instantly changes its behavior. That is because the dog recognized its owner’s scent and became

extremely excited. 3 years had gone by and the dog still remembered its owner’s scent because

of the undying bond it had with the its dad.

The loyalty, trainability, and emotional capability of dogs make them the world’s greatest

pets. These traits found in dogs make all their maintenance worth every bit. If you want a pet that

will never leave your side, and love you as much as you love them, a dog is the best pet anyone

could ask for. Dogs got the nickname “man’s best friend” for a reason.

Works Cited
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“Service Dog Program.” Canine Partners for Life | Service Dog Organization in Pennsylvania,

14 Apr. 2020, www.k94life.org/programs/servicedog/.

“Why Are Dogs Loyal? - Michelson Found Animals Foundation: Pet Adoption, Microchipping,

Spay & Neuter.” Found Animals, www.foundanimals.org/why-are-dogs-loyal/.

Cole, Linda. “Understanding Dog Pack Hierarchy, and Why It Matters.” CANIDAE®, 26 June

2009, www.canidae.com/blog/2009/06/understanding-dog-pack-hierarchy-and-why-it-

matters/.

Knott, Kelly. “Dog Saves College Student from Intruder.” Pro Pet Hero Blog, 23 Feb. 2017,

www.catanddogfirstaid.com/blog/dog-saves-college-student-from-intruder/.

“Dog Reunited with Owner Slowly Recognizes Dad After Years in Shelter | The Dodo.” The

Dodo, 27 Nov. 2017, www.youtube.com/watch?v=kP5lzEKcCX8.

“Which Emotions Do Dogs Actually Experience?” Modern Dog Magazine,

www.moderndogmagazine.com/articles/which-emotions-do-dogs-actually-

experience/32883.

“U.S. Pet Ownership Statistics.” American Veterinary Medical Association,

www.avma.org/resources-tools/reports-statistics/us-pet-ownership-statistics.