The Re-Education of Miss Cocoton Barksdale Dogsalot

My husband and I recently adopted an adorable rescue dog from the SPCA:

Meet Coco

Having grown up with two affectionate cats, I have only ever had a passing interest in dogs. Sure, some were cute at the dog park, but I knew (vaguely) how much poop would need to be scooped and how much time would need to be spent walking, feeding and training them. Vacations would become more difficult to plan with dog-boarding a consideration, and who knew what other mysterious challenges would come attached to an adorable little bundle of furry love.

Yet, as I browsed Craigslist, the SPCA and Reddit, intrigued yet trying to resist the cuteness, I felt an inexplicable pull towards these cuddly creatures. One day, a little 6-year-old perma-puppy stared back at me from the SPCA website and I snapped. Within minutes I was on the phone with the SPCA asking about history (she had none) and yet despite that ominous fact, within hours I was petting her at the SPCA and within another hour with paperwork signed, I was wandering a pet store with my husband and shell-shocked dog buying her a bed, toys, a leash, a harness, treats, a crate...etc. 

So what was it? What drove me to commit to spending time, money and love for the next 10 years on this little fluffy creature that I hardly knew? I truly couldn't explain it. But, I learned, science can.

The science of human/dog bonding

It turns out that interactions with dogs, even looking at a cute dog, can release Oxytocin in humans- the same neurohormone that is responsible for humans bonding with their newborn babies! (articles here and here). 

Taking a moment to absorb that fact...

Cuteness evolved

OK...This got me thinking about an old episode of This American Life (here) about a guy who was getting over a medical condition and therefore was on bed rest for an extended period of time. He had the idea that rather than watching old bad reruns on cable, he'd rather watch continuous video of cute puppies. During his efforts to pitch this idea to the 1990's media moguls, focus groups showed that many viewers preferred to watch puppies over TBS or CNBC. The idea wasn't successful at the time, but the internet wasn't far behind, and one could semi-seriously argue that YouTube and Reddit are basically modern successful iterations of the Puppy Channel. I will admit, that I am an avid consumer of both, and a solid stream of adorable puppies is never hard to find.                                                                                                                                                                    
But, the most fascinating thing to me about this element of human behavior is that dogs, not just puppies, can elicit this type of response in humans. Certainly most baby animals have an element of heart-tugging cuteness; adorable tiger cubs, sloths, lambs, baby monkeys, piglets and thousands of other creatures can evoke a response that their adult selves just don't seem to be able to muster. So, what it is then about dogs that enables a 6-year-old pomeranian/chihuahua/papillon to tug at my heartstrings so much that I bring her wide eyes and shedding coat into my house?

It turns out that Science has an answer to this too! Over time dogs have evolved (with the help of humans applying eugenics) to appeal to a wide range of functions and human aesthetic tastes. Because humans have bred them to meet our needs, including our need for companionship and Oxytocin, we have created varieties of dogs who can fulfill those needs. To a certain degree dogs must be the perfect representations of the variety of cuteness tastes in human culture - for every person who thinks a German Shepherd is cute there is someone who thinks a pug is cute. 

There are, of course, other reasons to breed dogs - such as for hunting, rescuing, farm-work, etc. Yet, even within those categories, one could argue, ugly dogs were not as likely to be bred as the cute ones. This is even more true in the 20th and 21st centuries as working dogs with a function other than cuteness are becoming less important along with traditional agriculture and hunting. 

The BBC made a fascinating documentary on the "secret life of dogs" (here), and a similar one for cats (here).

Sometimes very cat-like, Coco likes to hang out on the couch and occasionally block typing

Beyond the science

All we know about Coco is that she was found wandering by the side of the road about 2 months ago. She wasn't spayed and had no identification microchip or collar. She was picked up by the Humane Society and held for a month while they waited for her owner to claim her. When she wasn't claimed, she was sent to the SPCA where she was evaluated and determined to be adoptable. There, they spayed and microchipped her, gave her vaccines and then marketed her on their website to find an owner.

It is truly hard for me to envision what this period of her life was like as she sat alone in a kennel after a surgery, surrounded by bigger rescue dogs and a revolving door of strangers, hoping that one of them would take her home.

Despite recognizing the obvious anthropomorphisation problem, when I think about it, I still feel stressed in a similar way to when I hear about terrible things happening to my friends. Knowing that my attachment is based on a neurohormone helps me understand why such a reaction would occur, yet it doesn't change the reaction, it almost makes the experience more fascinating.

We have now moved into a new stage of Coco-ology, observing her change as she comes to know her new environment and people. For the first few weeks that we had Coco, she was the model of dog behavior. Extremely affectionate and cuddly with us, remaining quiet, docile, and easy even with strangers. 

Coco likes to hang out with us, even while we make loud noises

But, (cue dramatic music), by the third week of our relationship, her true colors began to show. She remained affectionate with us, but became uneasy with strangers and started barking hysterically at the doorbell. We consulted specialists in rescue dog behavior (straight out of "Best In Show," I know...) and instituted behavior modification techniques like giving her treats when strangers were in the house, which while seemingly counter-intuitive, is apparently a well-proven technique for preventing anxiety barking.

It turned out that Coco was beginning to exhibit common rescue dog behavior in which as she became comfortable with her new home and less afraid of imminent death or abandonment, she began to communicate her discomfort with mundane things. From her perspective, she finally had a doorbell to bark at. From our perspective, our silent docile dog had begun to bark and immediate action needed to be taken to prevent a yapping pocket piranha from emerging. Making her life with us sustainable for us was a must, and ignoring or excusing the behavior just wasn't an option.

Coco longingly waits for the rain to subside as she obediently sports her new raincoat

Yet, with the jumps for joy at our returns home, those soulful brown eyes staring back at us, and the pink soft tongue gently licking our hands, taking her back to the pound was immediately off the table. Instead, overnight, we became dog psychology amateur experts and I started dreaming about dog training. Oxytocin is a powerful driver.

In the end, the same survival cuteness that has endeared dogs to humans for thousands of years has taken hold of us and whether we want to or not, we are hooked on helping this little fluffy creature have a good life. In the process, despite the challenges, the sense of pride and happiness at saving this little lovebug is making it worth it.

Hopefully, the adventure of reining in Coco's barking and helping her share her adorable cuteness with a wider range of strangers will be a short one, followed by a happily ever after for all of us. Somehow though, I suspect for her, that happily ever after is already here.