Inside of a Dog: What Dogs See, Smell, and Know

A fresh look at what goes on inside the minds of dogs “that causes one’s dog-loving heart to flutter with astonishment and gratitude” (The New York Times Book Review)—from a cognitive scientist with a background at The New Yorker. As one of the millions of dog owners in America, Horowitz is naturally curious to learn what her dog thinks about and knows. And as a scientist, she is intent on understanding the minds of animals that cannot speak for themselves. Now, in clear, crisp prose, Horowitz introduces the reader to dogs’ perceptual and cognitive abilities and then reveals what it might be like to be a dog. How many of us have wondered what it must be like for a dog to experience life from two feet off the ground, amidst the smells of the sidewalk, gazing at our ankles or knees? How does a tiny dog manage to play successfully with a Great Dane? Why must a person on a bicycle be chased? Inside of a Dog explains these things and much more, and the answers are both delightful and surprising. It also contains up-to-the-minute research on dogs’ detection of disease, the secrets of their tails, and their skill at reading our attention that Horowitz puts into useful context. With a light touch and the weight of science behind her, Alexandra Horowitz examines the familiar but mysterious animal we think we know best but may actually understand the least, and explains how dogs perceive their daily worlds, each other, and that other quirky animal—the human.