Chaser didn't just learn objects by name: she started to understand the basic structure of human language.
Popular Science |
Dan Nosowitz
* * *
Throughout the interview, Pill gave Chaser what I considered to be some pretty intricate directions. It was never "sit" or "stop," but things like "relax" or "go to the living room," which Chaser actually obeyed. These weren't to impress me; this is the way John and Sally and Pill talk to Chaser. But I wanted to see some tricks.
* * *
I hid Fuzzy under a tall piece of wooden furniture, tucked way in the corner. There was only a few inches of space underneath there; Fuzzy wasn't really in sight at all. It was too good of a hiding place. * * * After a minute or two of Chaser scouring the apartment for Fuzzy, John told me to play the hot and cold game. "Seriously? She understands 'hot' and 'cold'?" I said. "Oh, yes," said John. * * * She quickly turned back around, and within a few seconds had triumphantly located Fuzzy. She clawed him out from my unfairly difficult hiding place and looked up at me, eyes round, tail wagging, ears extended straight upward. "Good girl!" I said, before wondering how old a human child has to be before being able to accomplish that task.
* * *
Chaser would sit a couple of feet from me during the interview and very gently and precisely roll the ball at me with her nose. No games, no nonsense: here's the ball back. Throw it again, please.
Reminds me of the border collie mix of a friend who shared a duplex with five of us in college (yes, that is a mangled sentence, and yes, the dog was smarter than the rest of us combined). That dog got run 4-8 miles at a good pace everyday. Plus, with all the people in and out of the duplex, she had an hour to three hours a day of chase and return the ball. Not may people have it to take care of that kind of energy. I've never had a dog as smart as either the college dog or the one in this article; but that is undoubtedly due to the owner.
Chaser actually died this past July; Professor Pilley died a year ago.
My next dog is actually a border collie mix; she’s currently in Arkansas being treated for mild heartworm and once done treatment will be transported here to New England and her new home with me. I’m currently reading Professor Pilley’s book and hope to teach my new buddy as much language as possible. Reading about Chaser it’s fascinating to realize how much more dogs are capable of than most of us realize - I wish I’d done a lot more with my border collie/shepherd mix Jenny back in the day, she was clearly very clever but it never occurred to me to teach language acquisition. Ah well.
On a related note, on the way home from work tonight (midnight) I was stopped waiting to turn onto the main road from a side street when my eye was caught by a gorgeous black & white border collie (the perfect breed specimen) trotting down the sidewalk, no human to be seen. I thought perhaps it had gotten out of a yard so pulled around to the side of the road in preparation to get out and possibly catch the dog to return it home. Then the dog turned up a driveway, up onto a porch and barked at the door whereupon I could see a human get up from a seated position inside to answer the door.
A dog that takes itself for a walk like that is a pretty smart critter, indeed.
For me, it is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.
~ Carl Sagan
The biggest, (and dumbest,) dog in the world went and bust his cruciate ligament last week.
Oh how my wallet aches for him...
“If you trust in yourself, and believe in your dreams, and follow your star. . . you'll still get beaten by people who spent their time working hard and learning things and weren't so lazy.”
Big RR wrote:
Gob--that's a shame, but the little guy doesn't look too bad--he'll likely bounce back quickly.
Cheers Butty. He is bearing up and taking (very) short walks now
“If you trust in yourself, and believe in your dreams, and follow your star. . . you'll still get beaten by people who spent their time working hard and learning things and weren't so lazy.”
I wish people could bounce back as quickly. My wife tore her ACL in October and is still doing some residual physical therapy (the doctor didn't want to do surgery).
Veterinarians usually recommend a nonsurgical approach for ACL tears in smaller (<40 lbs) dogs, too - must’ve been a really bad injury (or a really scalpel-happy vet).
For me, it is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.
~ Carl Sagan
