Check out the story...as if we don't have enough problems with the bleeding hearts trying to eliminate PSD's, now we have an "expert" from Tufts saying that dogs DO develop racial prejudices!!!

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,55010,00.html

I would be willing to bet that the "expert," Dr. Dodman, has never trained a dog in his life. Unless he's really different from all the other "experts" you run across who claim to know all about dogs.

Pete Felknor

Dogs can have racial prejudices. It is does not really make sense to call them racial prejudices because then people anthropomorphize it into thinking that you are trying to say that the dogs think like human bigots or something - obviously not true and not possible. But you don't really have to think to develop prejudices, in a way the mind of a dog is the perfect arena for prejudices to grow.

I live in a mixed-race neighborhood, 1/3 black, 1/3 white, 1/3 asian, and I have a lot of resuce dogs come through my house, and a lot of neighborhood children of different races who come over to meet the puppies. It is easy to see which dogs have experience with different races. A young dog who has been friendly her whole life might growl for the first time at a child of a race she's never seen, because it is so confusing. Dogs who have been mistreated by, for example, a fat white man, might do perfectly fine with every fat man except white ones. I see it all the time. Just because they see in black and white doesn't mean they can't tell the difference between races. Ever seen a black and white movie? Couldn't you tell the difference?

It doesn't make any sense to look at this as a PC Activist vs. Cop issue. The department (ANY department) whose dog attacked a nine-year-old boy should be very concerned about what their dog did, and should work to make sure it doesn't happen again. Hopefully that doesn't mean putting the dog down. If the dog has been inadvertently trained to target black people, it can probably be untrained. If they can't be confident that they can retrain it, there is probably an area that is all white that could use the dog.

Dogs cannot be prejudiced. They can be trained. but, racial prejudice is a human characterisitic and to extend it to dogs is laughable. So is the call to destroy a dog for such a fantasy situation as "racial prejudice". It is mere grandstanding by a politician and or activist, a cause to be twisted to further their view of a higher cause. Pretty disgusting, pretty low on the humanity scale, so who is the person with the problem is this picture? The politician, as usual.

AMEN!!!

The word prejudice is not the best. Here are the dictionary definitions. Some can apply to dogs, some can't.

1a. An adverse judgment or opinion formed beforehand or without knowledge or examination of the facts.

1b. A preconceived preference or idea.

2. The act or state of holding unreasonable preconceived judgments or convictions. See Synonyms at predilection.

3. Irrational suspicion or hatred of a particular group, race, or religion.

4. Detriment or injury caused to a person by the preconceived, unfavorable conviction of another or others.

For instance, dogs can certainly have preconceived preferences and irrational suspicions. Obviously, preferences and suspicions in dogs are engineered by humans. But that doesn't mean they aren't there.

The semantics aren't really important. I don't need an expert or a professional trainer to tell me whether dogs can discern and differentiate race. I see it all the time. Does anyone here believe that they can't? I don't know how someone could reach that conclusion. If you haven't personally seen it, that doesn't mean it doesn't happen - and it might be somewhat less likely that you would see it if you lived and worked in Kansas.

No way do I believe this dog should be put down. But just because this situation triggers a major political hot button, that doesn't mean that everyone should immediately go on the defensive and deny the possibility. And it doesn't mean that the issue shouldn't be seriously investigated by the department. The dog attacked a nine-year-old boy and dragged him 20 feet. That is pretty serious. If I was that kid's parent I would be mad as hell and would want that dog (any dog) put down, too. It is a pretty understandable initial reaction, even though it is not the right step to take.

You know that dogs learn a lot more than what their trainers intentionally teach them. If this dog has learned the wrong thing (and no one can determine that from just this article), the problem needs to be dealt with, not to be denied just because it seems at first glance to fall on one side or the other of a political issue.

Vince has very kindly pointed out that this thread is located in the WRONG area, Kevin's spot. One of us lame new moderators should move it.

But, now having read it, and thinking that it is a bullshit thread, I'll do one step better.

Kevin said it all.

BAM