Curious David Redux: Dog Memories

Robin the Newf owns the couch.
Robin the Newf owned the couch.
Patiently waiting for Saint Nick.
Patiently waiting for Saint Nick.
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Rudolph’s Backup
Bewitched
Bewitched
The Devil Made Me Do It!
The Devil Made Me Do It!
Harley Newf
Harley Newf
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FETCH
Rapping with the Pink Biped Who Feeds Me
Rapping with the Pink Biped Who Feeds Me
Reading Together
Reading Together
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Discussing where Newfoundland is…
Time's "Person" of the Year
Time’s “Person” of the Year
Identity Confusion
Identity Confusion

Canine Grading Assistant

Always Contemplative
Always Contemplative
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Newf Ball
Who SAYS I bat like a girl?
Who SAYS I bat like a girl?

Managing the North Lake Newf team

****Christmas 2014 104
Meeting Three-Year-Old Annie

Lionizing (and Suppressing Thoughts of Polar Bears)

DSCN5104

I’ve been thinking a lot about lions lately. Lions are so prevalent in art and literature across time and across cultures.

Lions are in the news today: I just read about the Copenhagen controversy concerning dissection as an educational tool. Not to long ago was the controversy about the  killing of Cecil. Two weeks ago I attended Benjamin Scheuer’s Milwaukee Repertory’s performance of “The Lion”. The songs follow me.

 

Such a majestic feline:


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And now I have Leo in my life, presently lying near me in his dog bed. Perhaps he is dreaming about his first day at Doggy Day Care where he had this photo taken. My lion sleeps tonight.
Leo at Central Bark Day 1

Getting him out of my mind is like suppressing thoughts of polar bears!.
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Canine Ruminations: Robin the Newf Helps Me Write a Blog Post

Robin

Robin the Newf is a guest collaborator tonight. Because of her presence (at my feet) I’ve been ruminating tonight about canine companions. My father-in-law, Walter G. Schmidt,  also loved dogs. In fact his love of dogs was extolled in his eulogy given by the Reverend Charles Valenti-Heine:

…”And that world, for Walter, included his beloved Canines. Lucy, Canis, Oaf, Chaucer, Trollope, and Freud, the last named because Walter was told that the companionship of a good dog was of greater worth to people than any other therapy! The one time I remember Walter speaking in church was when Trollope died, and he stood up during joys and concerns to opine: ‘If there is a place in heaven for Presbyterians, then surely there is a place for greyhounds.’

To which I add, amen!

Rudyard Kipling warned us of how dogs can capture your heart!

Do dogs match their owners in physical appearance? in personality? There is an interesting body of research dealing with these questions. Here is one citation. Here is another entire  article (Download Roy). Under what circumstances does pet ownership reduce stress? increase it? Why in the world did I spend $250 tonight on pet treats? Perhaps I still am affected by my first reading of Argos‘ blind enduring faith. Robin, the patient gentle giant, knows.

These might be questions to give my Introductory Psychology students to encourage them to conduct a scholarly literature review.  Perhaps in the process I’ll teach them about EvernoteDiigoDelicious,  Zotero, and  Google Scholar and have them help me compare the strengths and weaknesses of these tools in addition to comparing the kinds (and quality) of answers they get using Internet search engines versus library data bases.

Here is some anecdotal evidence provided by one of my playful students that owners like me (though there is a debate between Robin and me as to who is the owner) may start looking like their dogs!

Newfed

 Trivia question from Robin:

What was the name of the Newf who accompanied Lewis and Clark?

Answer is here if you fail to find out—and even if you do.