Inside of a Dog: What Dogs See, Smell, and Know

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Inside of a Dog: What Dogs See, Smell, and Know

by Alexandra Horowitz

3.45 · rating details · 2,241 ratings · 555 reviews

What do dogs know? How do they think? The answers will surprise and delight you as Alexandra Horowitz, a cognitive scientist, explains how dogs perceive their daily worlds, each other, and that other quirky animal, the human.

Inside of a Dog is a fresh look at the world of dogs -- from the dog's point of view. As a dog owner, Horowitz is naturally curious to learn what her

...moreWhat do dogs know? How do they think? The answers will surprise and delight you as Alexandra Horowitz, a cognitive scientist, explains how dogs perceive their daily worlds, each other, and that other quirky animal, the human.

Inside of a Dog is a fresh look at the world of dogs -- from the dog's point of view. As a dog owner, Horowitz is naturally curious to learn what her dog thinks about and knows. And as a scientist, she is intent on understanding the minds of animals who cannot speak for themselves.

In clear, crisp prose, Horowitz introduces the reader to dogs' perceptual and cognitive abilities and then draws a picture of what it might be like to be a dog. What's it like to be able to smell not just every bit of open food in the house but also to smell sadness in humans or even the passage of time? How does a tiny dog manage to play successfully with a Great Dane? What is it like to hear the bodily vibrations of insects or the hum of a fluorescent light? Why must a person on a bicycle be chased? What's it like to use your mouth as a hand? In short, what is it like for a dog to experience life from two feet off the ground, amidst the smells of the sidewalk, gazing at our ankles or knees?

Inside of a Dog explains these things and much more. The answers can be surprising -- once we set aside our natural inclination to anthropomorphize dogs. Inside of a Dog also contains up-to-the-minute research -- on dogs' detection of disease, the secrets of their tails, and their skill at reading our attention -- that Horowitz puts into useful context. Although not a formal training guide, Inside of a Dog has practical application for dog lovers interested in understanding why their dogs do what they do.

The relationship between dogs and humans is arguably the most fascinating animal-human bond because dogs evolved from wild creatures to become our companions, an adaptation that changed their bodies, brains, and behavior. Yet dogs always remain animals, familiar but mysterious. With a light touch and the weight of science behind her, Alexandra Horowitz examines the animal we think we know best but may actually understand the least. This book is as close as you can get to knowing about dogs without being a dog yourself.

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Hardcover, 368 pages

Published September 15th 2009 by Scribner (first published 2009)

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Lists with This Book

The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein

Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls

Great "Dog" Books

60th out of 237 books — 440 voters

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The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat & Other Clinical Tales by Oliver Sacks

Radiolab Suggested Readings

24th out of 129 books — 74 voters

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Community Reviews

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Jun 10, 2010

John rated it

Shelves: books-i-never-finished

"Date I finished this book" should be "Date I stopped reading this book."
I kept hoping that it would become more interesting, but, on page 180 I finally gave up.

I wanted to like this book. She sets the groundwork that while we humans spend a lot of time with dogs, we actually know very little about them. So she tackled the research to actually learn about dogs (it implied that she was doing the research since she earlier said very little research had been do...more

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Nov 10, 2011

Sandybanks rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, ebook, general-non-fiction, abandoned

Me: “Well, here’s the book I told you about, Molly, the one that will tell me everything there is to know about you.”

Molly: “Woof!”

Me: “Yes, that’s a good girl! Let’s see, this book is written by Dr. Alexandra Horowitz, a cognitive scientist specializing in animal research. She must be one smart lady. And she’s also a dog person! This should be interesting. Let’s loll on the sofa and read it.”

Molly: (jumps up and looks expectantly)

Me: “The titl...more

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Jan 26, 2012

Tracey rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: dogs, non-fiction

Alexandra Horowitz racked up major brownie points right from the beginning with this book. The title comes from one of my favorite quotes ever, from the mouth of Groucho Marx. Also, early on she heads complaints off at the pass by stating that she is using "owner" rather than "pet parent" or some other such silly phrasing because that's the legal term, and she will use "him" and "his" when referring to dogs in general because that's the English default, ...moreAlexandra Horowitz racked up major brownie points right from the beginning with this book. The title comes from one of my favorite quotes ever, from the mouth of Groucho Marx. Also, early on she heads complaints off at the pass by stating that she is using "owner" rather than "pet parent" or some other such silly phrasing because that's the legal term, and she will use "him" and "his" when referring to dogs in general because that's the English default, and, knowing dogs as she does, "it" is not an option. That latter scored high with me: I have Issues with writers who use "it" for animals (particularly those who talk about a mare or stallion and then call the horse "it"), so this made me happy. She is a long-time dog person, so all else being equal we are kindred spirits.

And it is a fascinating look at canine life and behavior. I'm not sure it made me see my dog in a whole new light as she promised it would, except for a qualm every time I scratch her back that I might be asserting my dominance – but she loves every second of it, so if I am dominating her she's ok with it. I pretty much knew about the dominance of scent in a dog's life; I did not know about the way a dog perceives color (they're not colorblind, exactly). I knew a little about signs of dominance and submission; I didn't know about what face-licking might really mean. (Pop goes the illusion…ew.) I like the insight that the pitch of a voice, canine or human, in many ways equates to size: low and menacing indicates not only a warning but the idea "and I'm big enough to follow through, too."

Something I sort of knew but found confirmation for: wolves howl when they're lonely. So, I can attest, do beagles. Only moreso.

One valuable thing this book does is reiterate the common-sense yet somehow easily overlooked point that, just as we don't know why our dogs do some of the things they do, most of what we the people do (much less say) is utterly incomprehensible to dogs. That, very simply, they don't think the way we do. It's all very well for us to say "don't get up on the couch, no, bad!" – but there's a very simple reason it's so hard to enforce. To a dog the couch is not an expensive piece of furniture which needs to be protected from shed fur and stains – it's a nice soft elevated surface to curl up on, with a nice back to it to curl up against, and after all that's what the bipeds use it for. And how can you honestly expect a dog to ignore that pail of food scraps and wrappers under the sink when it's just sitting there at her level smelling (to her) so wonderful? Again, "no, bad!" doesn't really make sense to a dog, however often and however loudly it's repeated. It's food. It's there. It's unprotected. It's hers. Dogs don't naturally do many of the things we ask them to do; many owners, and even many trainers seem to either forget that they're not mute people but canines, and this is where dressed-up dogs doing ridiculous things on command come from. Poor things.

This book made me happy I never successfully trained any of our dogs to heel (not that I tried too strenuously).

I was simultaneously impressed with and bemused by the tales of the research studies that have been conducted on dogs; on the one hand, some of the results are fascinating – where dogs' mental processes may (or may not) function like toddlers'; on the other, I found myself marveling that well-educated grownups spend their days fooling around with dogs, all in the name of science. Some of them wore buckets on their heads.

(ETA: OK, that was very long. I hacked out the personal bits about my own beasts; it's all on my blog, though.)

Overall, this book did an admirable job of both teaching me what an umwelt is and helping me deepen my understanding of a dog's. This was a comprehensible, mostly-plain-language, often very funny and occasionally moving study which both solidified and informed my stance as a fiercely partisan dog person. While it's not intended as a training guide, there's some wonderfully common sense information, particularly toward the end, which will be valuable both with Daisy and when – hopefully years from now – I next need it. Did it change the way I see my beagle? Not much. But I do feel like I have a better handle on what's going on between those long ears. I have an even deeper appreciation for that always-busy nose.

And I'm kind of glad she's never been much of a face-licker. (less)

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Jan 17, 2011

Mimi rated it

I usually don’t include autobiographical information in a book review, but in this case I’ll make an exception! Like Alexandra Horowitz, I am and always will be a dog person and since the day I was born, a doggie has shared my world. It all started with Marshmallow, a lovely golden mutt who lived amongst us until I was 13-years old (she was 16 at the time). Then, to my wonderful pleasure, my parents first adopted Roxy, the quirky basset hound, and then came Maggie the English Bulldog…and this ...moreI usually don’t include autobiographical information in a book review, but in this case I’ll make an exception! Like Alexandra Horowitz, I am and always will be a dog person and since the day I was born, a doggie has shared my world. It all started with Marshmallow, a lovely golden mutt who lived amongst us until I was 13-years old (she was 16 at the time). Then, to my wonderful pleasure, my parents first adopted Roxy, the quirky basset hound, and then came Maggie the English Bulldog…and this is when things really got wildly fun as my Mom and Dad entered the wonderful world of bulldog breeding and dog shows. What fun! After getting married, my husband and I went to the local animal shelter and adopted Irving…a little mutt who we think could best be called a corg-huaua (a corgi-Chihuahua mix? Perhaps…) He was with us for 12-years before the inevitably sad moment was upon us…and although our hearts were broken, we knew our lives would not be complete without a canine companion, so we adopted Moe. Moe is still with us…and so is Rudy, a funky & cute stray mutt who wandered into our lives 4 months ago. Dogs are an integral part of my consciousness, evoking important memories of the past while providing an ongoing source of companionship and love.

I share this because I think it has a great deal to do with my feelings about this book. Inside a Dog is an amazing exploration of the dog’s unwelt (or subjective reality). In other words, it’s a serious attempt to delve into the life of a dog and try to understand the world from the dog’s point of view. Through in-depth discussion of domestication, sensory awareness and canine-human connections, the author effectively elicits a greater understanding of a canine’s reality.

One thing I particularly appreciate about the way Ms. Horowitz presents this information is that while so much of it is based on very sound scientific research, she, like me and many of her readers, is a dog lover. As a result, she applies this science while not reducing our relationship with our doggie friends to science alone. Throughout her research, she provides supporting anecdotes about her sweet Pumpernickel…reminding us of the magically non-scientific, poignant aspect of our relationship with our furry, slobbery companions.

A must read for dog lovers…or anyone interested in animal research!
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Nov 23, 2009

Rae rated it

"Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read." Groucho Marx
Alexandra Horowitz has taken up Groucho's challenge and given us a book that at least we can read about the inside of a dog. Clearly a dog lover she has written a valentine to man's best friend.
What makes dogs uniquely suited to that special status? What's going on behind those big brown eyes? You will find answers to these and many more questions - such as why the swich to d...more

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Aug 19, 2010

Katrina Michie rated it

This book totally changed how I see and interact with dogs. It seems like common sense to me now, but it gave me a whole new appreciation for dogs.

I was hoping this would be more like Radiolab's brand of science, or maybe a Mary Roach type of look at dogs, but it's not quite as much of a page turner--maybe because it's actually written by a scientist and not a journalist. This is a benefit in a lot of ways though. I would still really recommend it if you are all about your dog(s) li...more

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Jul 03, 2011

Amanda rated it

This book did make me appreciate my dog a little more but I found it to be too dry and boring for the most part to give it a higher rating. I also found many eye-rolling moments- she seems a very permissive dog parent. For example, advocating that the dog should be allowed to wander and smell anything and roll in anything, ect, during walks; should be allowed to "smell like a dog" as long as possible; sleep in your bed with you.... I just personally am of camp that believes my dog shou...more

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Aug 11, 2011

Ana Rusness-petersen added it

The first thing that must be said about this book is that it was obviously written by someone who loves dogs, and opened my eyes to truly interacting and living with a dog as a friend, rather than as a being to be taken care of and trained like a child, as someone to be understood and developmentally enhanced.

It was a little challenging to really get engrossed in at the beginning, and was much more scientific than the anecdotal adventure I was expecting when I selected this book off the shelf at...moreThe first thing that must be said about this book is that it was obviously written by someone who loves dogs, and opened my eyes to truly interacting and living with a dog as a friend, rather than as a being to be taken care of and trained like a child, as someone to be understood and developmentally enhanced.

It was a little challenging to really get engrossed in at the beginning, and was much more scientific than the anecdotal adventure I was expecting when I selected this book off the shelf at the bookstore. (It must also be said that the adorable doggie face on cover completely sold me on the book in the first place – yes, I judged a book, at least partially, by its cover.) Despite this, I am glad I stuck with the book until the end. I learned some interesting facts about the dog species, such as their unique visual perception (far-sighted vs. near-sighted, blurry vs. sharply focused, and more subject to see moving objects), and how smell and taste actually provide a richer and more informative experience for dogs than vision.

Despite the wealth of information provided, the manner in which this information was delivered left something to be desired. The author completely shifted narrative from the interspersed storytelling about her experiences, interactions, and memories of her own dog, Pump, into a scientific, fact-spewing voice that twisted various facts and experiments to prove her points. Sources were not cited in a scientific or academic manner, and the sheer number of variables in some of the experiments were not taken into consideration as possible weaknesses in the research, but rather, encouraged as an added bonus. Additionally, the author took on a holier-than-thou, this is how you should raise and interact with your dog approach. Her advice on how to “train” a dog by incorporating the dog’s umwelt (and therefore, the understanding of his/her goals, motivations, method of communication) was much more effective and enjoyable to read.

The strongest part of this book was the last chapter, “The Importance of Mornings,” which really served to summarize the authors main points and messages in a clear, concise and passionate manner that illuminated how much she really cares about dogs and what she really wanted to pass along to readers of her book. That being said, stories, facts, and perspectives presented in the main body of the text added a depth of specifics to this summary chapter, and added to its strength – a reader would not have had the same experience or gotten as much out of it if he/she had just read the last summarizing chapter.(less)

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Jan 03, 2012

Bogydog rated it

I found a lot of this book fascinating, to a point. The science parts are really illuminating. For instance, I learned why (prolly) a dog pees on things (it's not marking territory; it's closer to updating a post filled with advertisements of who is fertile, who is new, etc.), and I learned that they aren't colorblind (they have different cones and rods in their eyes, and the author compares their sight to a human's sight during the magic hour at sunset where things are differentiated, but was...more

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Sep 04, 2011

Lisa rated it

Recommends it for: Cheryl--I can visualize both of her dogs sitting patiently waiting for the next command

Shelves: nonfiction

I find behavior very interesting. This is a book about why dogs are the way they are. This book is not about how to train or improve a dog's behavior, but it might help you with your dog in some ways.

I was amused by the author's comparisons of dogs with children, reminding me of my childless dog loving friends and even friends with children that think of their dog as one of the children. Sometimes children are smarter than dogs, but because dogs can manipulate their owners so often, ...more

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Jul 29, 2011

Terry rated it

"Inside of a Dog" is written by a cognitive scientist/animal ethnologist/behaviorist who studies dogs and she writes about them and their behavior in straightforward prose very accessible to laypersons (and possibly offensive to scientists by virtue of over-simplification). She doesn't just study dogs, she likes/loves dogs. So you can guess why I read this book. She begins by describing the evolution of dogs from wolves and their gradual domestication and association with human bein...more

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May 27, 2011

Barbara Burd rated it

My granddaughter who's six gave me this book because she "knows I like dogs and it was on the NYT bestsellers list." I grew up with dogs and have had a dog most of my life, I currently have a little white miniature Schnauzer named Sadie, who I got from a shelter about three years ago. This is definitely a book for dog lovers. It's not a training manual, but rather an attempt to use cognitive behavior theory to explain the actions of dogs, The author began as a scientist studying pri...more

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Jan 25, 2011

Janet rated it

I rarely read non-fiction but this was a gift from someone who knows I love dogs. Alexandra Horowitz is a psychologist who spent a year researching dog behavior while observing and loving her own dog. She wisely knew not to research dogs in a laboratory - instead she went to dog parks and videotaped dogs doing whatever dogs do. The book is at its best when she just relates the dog behavior she sees and then connects it to scientific knowledge of dog's ancestry and anatomy to help us identify ...more

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Jan 20, 2011

Jessica Blevins rated it

Great insight into the life of a dog...I highly recommend. The book is mostly scientific studies of how dogs really see, smell, hear and what they know about their human owners...but includes personal anecdotes throughout as well. I learned a lot about dogs in general and definitely look at my dog in a different light now. For example, I learned that dogs look to humans when they need help or can't figure something out...and that they pay a lot of attention to us, even when we don't realize it. ...more

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Dec 09, 2010

Daniel Solera rated it

Shelves: psychology

I saw this book on a bestsellers shelf at the Barnes and Noble by where I work. Having become a dog-owner in August, I picked this up hoping it would be insightful and entertaining. The book aptly declares that it is not a training manual and that readers shouldn't expect tips on how to raise a proper puppy. Instead, it is a psychological examination of dogs, including what they know, what their world is like and how we fit into it.

Alexandra Horowitz attempts to explain such baffl...moreI saw this book on a bestsellers shelf at the Barnes and Noble by where I work. Having become a dog-owner in August, I picked this up hoping it would be insightful and entertaining. The book aptly declares that it is not a training manual and that readers shouldn't expect tips on how to raise a proper puppy. Instead, it is a psychological examination of dogs, including what they know, what their world is like and how we fit into it.

Alexandra Horowitz attempts to explain such baffling questions as "What do dogs think?" through various methods. Rather than anthropomorphize dogs, which the book routinely discourages, she relies heavily on scientific and psychological experiments performed on dogs and other animals, such as rats and monkeys. She first tackles the mind of a dog by asking readers to place themselves in a dog's world or their umwelt. By imagining our primary senses to be smell and taste, we instantly realize how radically different dogs' lives are than those of humans, who rely more heavily on sight and hearing. From that crucial departure, we go onto notice seemingly simple things: dogs are much closer to the ground, thus everything on the floor is more interesting to them; they rarely walk in a straight line because smells eminate from all directions, etc.

Bookending each section and interspersed among the scientific findings are brief anecdotes of one of Horowitz's dogs, Pumpernickel. Though she constantly asks us to avoid using human terms with dogs (such as "have fun", "get bored", "feel ashamed", etc.), these little stories are told with a fondness that breaks with this animal-only treatment. But this is natural - anyone who owns and loves a dog will find it impossible to treat it strictly like a domesticated animal in a symbiotic relationship. Yet despite this seemingly dry approach to investigating a household pet, I finished this book with a greater understanding of what makes a dog tick. Among the many tidbits: dogs don’t reflect on themselves; they understand day and night but not necessarily the abstract concept of time; they do get bored at home but are resourceful at entertaining themselves; the cadence of their play is a series of identifiable actions; they have an impressive theory of mind and can detect intentions; they use their owners as tools to achieve certain ends, and many others.

Inside of a Dog was a delightful read. I will admit that I derived much of my enjoyment from imagining my own dog, a 6-month Shih Tzu named Penny, in every situation described. Though I would recommend this to anyone regardless of their pet situation, having a dog in your house or apartment will definitely elevate this book to a new level.
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Mar 24, 2010

Joey rated it

Despite living with five cats during the last 20 years and mourning four of them, it wasn't until a Parson's Jack Russell terrier peed on my floor that I became a 'dog guy'. Jack is all dog and we sleep most nights side by side, in this incredible symbiosis that has evolved between humans and domestic dogs.

I had high expectations for this book, and while I did come away with a great deal of insight into the thought processes and learned behaviors of the dog, I had hoped the writing ...more

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Jan 01, 2010

Harry Steinman rated it

Recently read (most of) Alexandra Horowitz’s “Inside of a Dog: What Dogs See, Smell and Know”. I very much enjoyed Horowitz’s inner chapters that describe the biological and physical mechanics of dog senses. The first few chapters—a servicable rehash of the basics of All Things Dog—would be interesting to someone just discovering dogs. The last third proposes to discuss more of dog emotion and reason.
The middle chapters are the meat. Chapters names include, “Sniff” “Mute” “S...more Recently read (most of) Alexandra Horowitz’s “Inside of a Dog: What Dogs See, Smell and Know”. I very much enjoyed Horowitz’s inner chapters that describe the biological and physical mechanics of dog senses. The first few chapters—a servicable rehash of the basics of All Things Dog—would be interesting to someone just discovering dogs. The last third proposes to discuss more of dog emotion and reason.
The middle chapters are the meat. Chapters names include, “Sniff” “Mute” “Seen By A Dog”. The biological-cum-behavioral reporting is priceless. (Did you know that dogs have several organs for scent processing lacking in humans? The vomernasal organ and olfactory bulbs? Or that speed with which dogs can process light information in the retina’s rod cells means that they cannot see a moving image on an analog TV but can on a digital? Better get your HDTV right now!

The next few chapters depart from biological reportage and enter the world of cognitive research. It’s mostly fact-based; no crunchy granola ideas here...not yet. “Seen By A Dog” looks at a dog’s use of its vision. The sections look at attention-getting and gaze following and compares dogs, infants and primates. Where this gets a bit too sweet for me is when Dr. Horowitz makes conclusions about the dog’s cognitive states that are admittedly supported more by her intuition than research: “This must mean that…” She properly telegraphs her opinions, but I’d rather the opinions be left for an afterword or for a final chapter than being mixed in with her otherwise excellent reporting.
I was less interested in the outer chapters. “Noble Mind” starts by examining how dogs learn by observing other, and then focuses on Horowitz’ ‘Theory of Mind’—the cognitive ability any animal must possess in order to recognize that another creature has cognition that is independent of the observing animal. Horowitz believes that an animal "must" possess a sense of its own cognition in order to realize that another has an independent mind as well.
“Inside of a Dog” attempts to portray the canine mental experience by focusing on the placement and limitations of their physical senses. (For example, how does the height of a dog affect its apprehension of the world?) “You Had Me At Hello” draws the reader further into cognitive territory. And finally, “The Importance of Mornings” is Dr. Horowitz’ prescription for a ideal relationship with a dog. At last we come to opinion as opinion. The description of her model is sometimes too personal for me, but I liked a few of her ideas and may adopt one or two—“take a dog on a smell walk” comes to mind.

There’s 100 solid pages of information in the middle. The next 40 pages go into her Theory of Mind and the research that prompts Horowitz’ conclusions. I didn’t find the last 100 pages terribly engaging but all of the book is well-written and another reader might enjoy what I simply skimmed.
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Sep 20, 2009

todd rated it

Dog lovers will find much to like in this book. Horowitz teaches psychology and applies the scientist's tool kit to a largely understudied species in an attempt to create a general interest book. The first half focuses on the physiological features of a dog: how they see, smell, taste and hear. Well grounded in anatomical studies, this section shines except when Horowitz drops back to the academic's mode of making sure all the footnotes and references are complete and just right. A sronger ed...more

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Jan 24, 2012

Ysabella Zammit rated it

I am currently reading "Inside of a Dog: What Dogs See, Smell, and Know" by Alexandra Horowitz. I picked up this book when I was walking around the store last week and the cover appealed to me. I was curious to find out what it is like to be a dog and learn what dogs see, smell, and know. This book is not about a dogs journey or about how a dog lives; it's about the way dogs interpret their life in the human world.
Horowitz has so far been using other animals like wolfs, bears, ...more

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Nov 06, 2009

Elaine rated it

I love dogs and have had at least two at a time for most of my life. During the rare spells when I haven't had a dog, I always felt somehow incomplete. To me, then this book is of great interest. Horowitz's shtick is what it feels like to be a dog, and that is what this book is about. The science is a bit uneven: usually well-researched, but some notable gaps. She neglects some of the most recent and startling studies of dog cognition and her incomplete understanding of how humans actually sp...more

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Mar 18, 2010

Andrew rated it

This is a disappointing book, with few insights for a dog owner or someone interested in animal behavior. Despite having an extensive collection of footnotes leading back to the scientific literature, the conclusions of the book could have been handled in 60 pages instead of 300:
• Dogs are not color blind but blues and greens stand out for them. Yellow/orange/red objects are all undifferentiated.
• Short vision is not very good (though smell can compensate for it when objects are cl...more

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Oct 01, 2009

Trish rated it

Shelves: animals, nonfiction, science

Horowitwz is a scientist, after all. She has rigorously edited her book so that it is accessible to non-scientists, and tries to tell us which of the dog behaviors we observe are actually what we may believe them to be. Are dogs as knowledgeable as they appear? What do their behaviors signify? But first she must describe what she will do, set the parameters, explain her approach...I did not become engaged until late in the game, when Horowitz gave us a section on "theory of mind": can ...more

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Mar 14, 2011

Jennifer (aka EM) rated it

Shelves: teh-doggies

This is a lovely, unsentimental, fairly thorough, scientifically-grounded look at the dog-human bond: how it evolved, how the canine's sensory equipment shapes his (or her) world and relationship with us, and how a deeper understanding of that world - "the inside of a dog" (yes, from the Groucho Marx quotation) - should shape ours with them. Didn't so much change or illuminate, but anchored what I think I know about my dog and dogs in general in explanations of canine behaviour drawn ...more

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Dec 26, 2009

Clif Hostetler rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: all dog owners.

Shelves: science

Haven't we all wondered what our dogs think of us? This is the next best thing to reading a book written by a dog. I am not a current dog owner, but I grew up on a farm with multiple dogs. Over the years I had read that those dogs of my youth saw me as the leader of their pack. This book debunks that myth. This book says they considered me to be be their a meal ticket. What a come down! All these years I thought I was the "Alpha Dog."

The purpose of the book is to hel...moreHaven't we all wondered what our dogs think of us? This is the next best thing to reading a book written by a dog. I am not a current dog owner, but I grew up on a farm with multiple dogs. Over the years I had read that those dogs of my youth saw me as the leader of their pack. This book debunks that myth. This book says they considered me to be be their a meal ticket. What a come down! All these years I thought I was the "Alpha Dog."

The purpose of the book is to help people to understand what's it's like to be a dog. The main difficulty for humans trying to understand dogs is to imagine life with the ability to smell and interpret odors that's about one-hundred times better than the human nose. It's an ability to smell the world in multiple dimensions; in past, present and future tenses; distinguishing between animal, vegetable, and mineral; and do so continually, even when not inhaling. It's a concept almost unimaginable for humans.

A burning question I've had all my life was not answered by this book as explicitly as I wished. The question is: When a dog howls in accompaniment to a musical instrument such as a harmonica, is it enjoying the music or is it an indication that it hurts their ears? I have wondered about this all my life, and I know others have too. She does offer the following observation: "Adult wolves howl daily: among packs, a chorus of howling may help coordinate their travels and strengthens their attachment." From this I infer that when a dog hears me play a harmonica, it perceives that I am howling, and it is instinctual for dogs to join in with others when they hear howling taking place. So perhaps it's a dog's way of saying, "We are family!" In other words, it's a positive experience for the dog, and it's not hurting their ears.

The author discusses the propensity of dogs to roll around on dead and rotting carcasses, a behavior I always found particularly disgusting. She doesn't explain the dog's motivation as explicitly as I had wished. However, from other things said in the book I understand the dog to be using their primary sensory experience (olfactory) to say, "My what a wonderful bouquet of odors, I think I'll take some of it with me." It would be the human equivalent of using their primary sensory experience (visual) to sigh in pleasure at viewing a beautiful vista and then taking a photograph to keep with them.

Another question I have that was not addressed by the book: How do some dogs find their way home over long distances? I know a person who tried to get rid of a dog by driving 15 miles away from home, dumping the dog there and driving off in direction away from home. (I know this is a terrible thing to do to any dog.) The dog found its way home after a couple days. How did it do that? Was it by scent, or by internal sense of direction? Has anybody researched this ability?

The author advises dog owners not to give their dogs frequent baths. She says,"And no dog wants to smell like a bathtub that has a dog in it." Now I realize that the dogs of my youth were living in a paradise for dogs. The rural farm setting provided plenty of room for them to roam and smell. And more importantly, we never gave our dogs baths. The only time they got baths was when they jumped into creeks or mud puddles on there own initiative, usually to cool off.
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Nov 15, 2011

Hathal rated it

I bought this book because I liked the cover very much. After reading it, I can say that this book is:

-Very informative:
1-I had an insight of the efforts made to study animal cognition.
2-It was also interesting to know how the relationship between dog and man evolved.
3-Dogs senses and body language were extensively covered.

-Boring:
1-Around 300 pages with too much repetition of some points made clear from the first time already; perhaps, intended ...more

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Sep 10, 2011

Katie rated it

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As a person completely, totally, and irrevocably in love with her dogs, I had to read this book. Horowitz gives the dog lover an insightful picture of why dogs do what they do, and suggests reasons behind their behaviors, based on hours of observation and research. For example, licking the faces of people they love is indeed a way for dogs to show affection, though it stems from a centuries-old instinct: the instinct to lick an adult wolf, in the hopes that food will be regurgitated. (Yuck. But ...more

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Sep 13, 2011

Ants rated it

There are lots of comments on the good parts of this book. Let's start with the worst - the editor and the author make this book a difficult read. The writing style is not consistent. It seems the material was collected from various sources and in various styles and combined. Reading this book was one of the biggest chores in a long time.

If you can forget about the writing style, the content on the book is very good. The discussions from dog behavior to animal behavior to human...more

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Oct 28, 2010

Marty rated it

Liked it. Kind of skimmed some parts of it. Didn't learn as much as I thought I would. Was already aware of a lot of the concepts - how important smell is, that dogs are still animals no matter how much we want them to have human characteristics. New to me: Dogs' eyes have a faster "flicker-rate" than humans. Imagine that the speed of our vision processing is to a dog like us watching an old silent movie where we see the flickers between frames. That's what our vision would be to a dog...more

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Oct 07, 2011

Huma Rashid rated it

Shelves: 21st-century, america, animals, culture, nonfiction

If you're looking for a training manual, this is not the book for you. "Inside of a Dog" is an incredible look at the world through the eyes of a dog - and a psychiatrist. (I think she's a psychiatrist? Something along those lines.) It's the story of the author's dogs, Pumpernickel and Finnegan, a comprehensive observation of dogs, a study of human psychology, and so much more. Packed with wisdom from such unlikely tangential sources as Jacques Derrida, and the more predictable ones li...more

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Jul 05, 2010

Jinnie rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: dogs, general-nonfiction, science-geek

It was an ok book with some good info, but a bit dry and somewhat pretentious (if I had to read the word "umwelt" one more time I would have screamed). Also, some of her own cognitive science research seemed assumptive. For example, she writes for pages about how dogs' whole world view and actions are based on their incredibly keen sense of smell. She acknowledges that dogs can find bombs, detect cancer, and find people trapped in rubble. However, she says that dogs probably don't have...more

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About Alexandra Horowitz

Alexandra Horowitz teaches psychology at Barnard College, Columbia University. Before her scientific career, Horowitz worked as a lexicographer at Merrian-Webster and served on the staff of The New Yorker. She and her husband live in New York City with Finnegan, a dog of indeterminate parentage and determinate character.

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