DR. NICHOLAS DODMAN: ARE SHELTER PETS REALLY MORE APPRECIATIVE?

RustyJasperI know my dog Rusty is appreciative of being “sprung” from the shelter – he was on the very first day we got him, and still is. And my other rescued dog, Jasper, now has a spring in his step and a wag of tail that weren’t there when we first acquired him.

But he has since grown into his new-found freedom and now enjoys life to the full. So I would say yes to the question and list my reasons below.

• Many of the pets in shelters are there for no reason of their own.

• Some dogs are so appreciative of their new owner and home that they become almost overly attached.

• Puppy mill dogs who find their way into peoples’ home via one or more failed relationships and then a shelter often don’t really know what freedom or true affection are.

• Finally there are dogs who have had a really tough life fending for themselves. As the old verse goes, “If it wasn’t for bad luck, they’d have no luck at all.”

Of course, there are dogs who have never had to suffer the indignity of being unwanted. These lucky dogs who are adopted from a good breeder at a young age and who were and are cared for and cossetted like a precious nest egg.

These dogs were, in manner of speaking, born with a silver bowl in their mouths. Sure they are happy. Sure they love their owners. But they can never be truly thankful for being rescued, because they weren’t. As wonderful as the “silver bowl dogs” are, there is something special about the gratitude a rescue must feel when he remembers where he started out. And I’m sure dogs do remember.

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Dr. Dodman is a Professor in the Department of Clinical Sciences at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine and Director of the school’s Animal Behavior Clinic. He is also Chief Scientific Officer for the CENTER FOR CANINE BEHAVIOR STUDIES. He has written over 100 scientific articles and several popular press books, including The Dog Who Loved Too Much and The Cat Who Cried for Help.

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