Dogs Are People Too

This may seem a bit unhinged, but in many ways dogs are people too. 

Being an avid dog lover, I’ve delighted in their distinctive personalities, their joy of life. Their unconditional love. Until doing some research, however, I didn’t know that the basic structure of a dog’s brain resembles a human’s. Dogs, like us, produce a hormone—oxytocin—which promotes strong social bonding.

It should come as no surprise then that dogs would become sad, anxious, or depressed when a companion dies.

You likely have your own examples of this phenomenon but let me add another. 

Let me tell you about Raqsi and Indi.

The Out-of-the-Blue Introduction

I’ve never met these two canines. And until just a few weeks ago, I hadn’t met their owner, either. But when her brother-in-law, Dan, told me a little about Jenny, her dogs and what had happened, I had to talk with Jenny.

“It’s as close to something spiritual I’ve seen in an animal,” Dan texted. 

He had me. 

The Pariah and the Desert Dog

Jenny, now retired and living along the Georgia coast, worked for the U.S. State Department when she adopted these then-feral puppies several years ago. 

Raqsi, with her big paws and thick, sandy-colored coat well suited for desert living in Iraq, came first, followed three years later by Indi, a “pariah” dog that lived on the streets of New Delhi, India.

“I did a lot of travel during my career, and they were the best souvenirs I ever got,” Jenny told me. “They didn’t behave like domestic dogs. Very independent. They were attached, but also not attached. Raqsi was the alpha, and Indi would test her. They had fights,” Jenny continued, “but they would always sort it out.”

A few weeks ago, Jenny faced a decision most dog owners dread. Due to spinal issues, possibly caused by cancer, Raqsi could no longer get up. The time had come to end her physical misery. Jenny remained by Raqsi’s side until she passed away. 

When Jenny got home, Indi sniffed her, but went into hiding for two-and-a-half days. She wouldn’t come close. 

That didn’t surprise Jenny. The card did. And this is the part that made me shake my head in wonderment. Indeed, dogs are people too.

A Logical Reason?

Understanding her deep attachment to Raqsi, friends sent condolence cards. So did Jenny’s vet, who’d personalized his with a couple of Raqsi’s pawprints. Jenny stacked the cards in a pile and thought nothing of it when she watched Indi sniff the stack —that is, until she found the vet’s card in Indi’s dog bed the next day. 

Indi, as Jenny told me, is known for getting into the trash and tearing up everything. Yet somehow, she’d pulled the card from the stack, not a bite mark to be found. Jenny removed the keepsake and put it back on the pile only to find it again, still perfectly pristine, back in the dog’s bed the next day.

“I think it’s remarkable. Maybe she recognized the vet’s smell or some residual (odor) from Raqsi. I believe she knew that Raqsi was gone, and she was mourning. They were companions to one another. Raqsi gave her confidence, assured her that everything would be okay.”

A little like you and me, right? 

Like the wife who sleeps in her deceased husband’s clothing or falls asleep with a beloved photo in her hand, Indi wanted her companion close. 

Like I said, dogs are people too. They mourn as much as we do. 

P.S. Jenny reports that she’ll likely let Indi keep the card!

~~~

Meet Georgie. The real Georgie, the crazy, nearly human canine that inspired georgie in Always Think of Me. My debut novel publishes on April 2, but is available for preorder.