Of Dogs and Men

Have you ever seen pictures of dogs beside their owners and noticed that, after a few years, they begin to look a bit alike?  Or perhaps people and dogs who resemble one another in some way are already naturally attracted to each other for camaraderie and fun.  It’s no secret that we have a lot in common with our canine friends;  human and dog family structures are at least passingly similar, and dogs (being the descendants of wolves, and thus inclined to have a pack mentality) tend to respect the established hierarchical structure of their human families.  This is not to say that they would never test the limits, but by and large, a dog who settles into a household of family members come to regard those people as his pack, and will accept the role assigned to him by the perceived alpha male (or female, should no clear male role model be present.)

Dogs are amazingly similar to humans in other ways as well, and sometimes we forget just how different dogs and humans really are.  It’s easy, after all, with so much in common.  Still, if you’re looking for a quick crash course on the ways in which dogs and people differ, watching programming on Animal Planet on direct tv is a good place to start.  Another is to click on teh infographic below to make it full sized, and enjoy the data presented there.