Episode 469 – Companion Dog Hubris

Companion dog hubris is alive and well within the American pet-owning community. But this podcast considers the relationship between a tribe of Native Americans and their free-roaming dogs, a relationship far more ancient than the kind most of us have with our pets.

This podcast owes its contents to a study conducted by Lori L. Jervis and her colleagues entitled “Protectors, Aggressors, and Kinfolk: Dogs in a Tribal Community” published in Anthrozoois, a multidisciplinary journal of the interactions of people and animals, June 2018

Because the relationship between the dog and the Native American peoples long predated the arrival of horses on what became known as American soil, dogs played a vital role in the nomadic tribes lives. In addition to providing the secular and spiritual services mentioned in this podcast, the dogs also pulled ground sleds or travois (pictured) that help transport goods as well as children and the infirm.