If dogs can't reason how do you explain this?

I lived with a dog that liked to hunt mice. He mapped every mousetrail through the house and when he caught a glimpse of a mouse between cover on the trail he would reason out exactly where the mouse was going and the next place it would appear without cover. He would go straight there and wait.. If you have ever watched mice they have certain trails and they go where the most cover is and will cross from cover to cover in the most strategic points, with the shortest distance to cross out in the open. If a dog could not mentally map the mouse's route, and predict where a mouse once spotted would appear next on that route.. Then how do you explain the whole situation? I had to reason to come to the same conclusion..I also watched the mice, kept a mental map of the various routes and could predict in which gap the mouse would appear next along the route. If that isn't reasoning what is? The dog was right 99% of the time just like I was.Few mice survived, except the ones who reasoned too

Trust me he wasn't smelling the mouse.. These were distances of up to 15-20 feet from where the mouse last appeared. In the next gap on the route. Sometimes you could still see the mouse under the object, since they pause before moving on, even though the dog could see where the mouse was currently, he knew he could not get to the mouse there. He did realize that he would be able to get to the mouse the next time it crossed a gap in the trail and thus he would go ahead of the mouse and wait in the next spot it was forced to go out in the open.. that's not the same as simply following the sound of the mouse, or the scent. He knew where the mouse was, he went ahead of the mouse to where it would have to come out in the open again on the trail.

Kelly, I could have written this myself!

I've done this many times with my dogs. Although my conclusion was that science is JUST science; what may be right today may be wrong tomorrow.

In other words, I KNOW what I KNOW... Science isn't all it's cracked up to be. Scientific theories change so frequently that you can only trust what you know and believe what you see, and don't question it because if you do, then you'll only start to second-guess yourself BASED on Science... kind of a viscous circle.

ADD: I forgot to mention that I have watched two or more dogs working on this at the same time; one would be where a mouse would usually frequent and another dog would be where s/he knew the mice could also appear. Another dog (or two) would be 'on the sidelines' waiting... yes, pack mentality, but they prove that they can reason, predict and work together all at once.

hahaha You just want to hear what you WANT to hear and not the truth. 15-20 ft is NOTHING to a dog's nose - have you ever tracked with a dog? Obviously not... Yes they 'feel' has nothing to do with cognition dearie. You ARE wishful thinking. anthropomorphizing haha Report It

New studies have shown that dogs can reason as well as a human toddler. They're not stupid animals.

Its a known fact that both mice and dogs are very intelligent. Sounds like your dog found an interesting puzzle to solve

Smart Dog! Don't discount his use of his sense of smell to aid in his conclusions in a very large way.

Dogs don't routinely have abstract thought - no one said, at least not knowledgeably, that they cannot hunt. That is what they do. They utilize a lot of their characteristics to do so and most you do not have. I don't know that it necessarily takes a lot of abstract thought processes to be capable of hearing and smelling where a mouse will come from - they do have the capability to track, not just scent-wise but cognitively -- they can follow a direction as in pointing a finger to direct a dog -- they can watch a spear being thrown on TV and look to follow it as it 'goes out' of the TV - it isn't necessarily abstract reasoning but being capable of knowing that if an object starts at one point, travels in a particular direction and is moving consistently that it will reappear at a particular area - this is cognition but not necessarily reasoning. Toddlers tend to start developing that capability as well - human infants and young toddlers don't have the capability. It becomes a learned cognition. Also, you must realize that you cannot hear that the mouse are moving directionally and the dog can. I have mousers as well and they have little difficulty hearing those tiny feet scurrying along when I can't hear it at all. And they can 'see' the 'map' (as you call it) but it isn't anything more than scents to them -- dogs can discern scents and separate them by time -- as in separate the most recent scent for a scent a little older.

I've often wondered about this.

Experts say a dog doesn't really know when he's bad. He reacts a certain way when he, say, tears up the couch and you are angry. He knows you're angry but not why.

Just an example: I have come home and noticed the dog didn't come greet me. In fact was hiding out in another part of the house. When we got her to come she acted very guilty and submissive. Only later did we find out what she'd done. She could NOT have been reacting to us because we did not know she had done anything. She knew she f'd up and was guilty.

I think dogs have a lot more brain power than experts give them credit for.

Some people say dogs aren't really the loyal & faithful friends we think they are, but are really master manipulators who know how to get what they want from us.

If dogs can't reason how do you explain this?
I have always argued that dogs can reason, i also agree that animals in general {dogs/ cats} do have feelings/ emotion. For proof look at a dog whos owner has died, or another favorite animal in the house dies/ leaves, or if you just leave for a vaccation. Some animal mopes around some wont eat/ go to the bathroom ect.
They are also inteligent and remember and know right from wrong.

There was just a similar question about dogs thinking and having feelings
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;...
I have always felt animals are able to think and feel emotions
It takes compation to over ride intsticts.

And here is a nice link on animal reasoning posted in the other question
http://www.hno.harvard.edu/gazette/2002/...

all I can say is cool....and i agree dogs do reason.