Humans and canines have been drawn to each other since the beginning of recorded time and it is no wonder. Our dogs provide us with an unwavering loyalty and companionship that even our human kinfolk cannot muster. As our lives have become increasingly sophisticated and complex, we seem to have a desire to bring our dogs into that complexity with us. For most, gone are the days when a dog could lie lazily on the porch all day, awaiting his masters return.

While our dogs are not human, they truly are beloved members of our families. It is natural that we would want to bring them along with us into our evolving lifestyles. We want to bring them to soccer games and farmers markets, on our daily walks and our family vacations. We have even created new sports where a dog and his person can compete together as teammates. All of this requires a far more advanced level of training. It requires a higher level of civility from our dogs. Even if they just stay home, our homes have become more complex and more dangerous for our dogs with our ever-increasing number of electronic gadgets and synthetic products. Keeping our dogs in our homes now requires teaching them a more elaborate set of rules.

Fortunately, scientists have made new discoveries into the canine intellect that have enabled us to communicate with our dogs at a far more advanced level. This is not only helpful, but also exciting! It has empowered us to understand these loyal companions like never before and bring our friendship with them to a whole new level.

To have a dog as your companion can be one of the most satisfying relationships on earth. They are our closest friends, our roommates, our partners at work and play, our confidants. They give us their best. Let us give them ours.