Reflexes, instincts and mysterious cognitive ethology
Basically, if the owners want to teach something their dogs - they talk with them. Moreover, this is enough, but not for all ... Many people want to understand their pets better, they want to avoid mistakes during the training, they want to understand the behavior of the dog.
Puppy, coming into the world, already has a set of reflexes that help it to survive until it is helpless. It chirps when crawls away from the mother, knows how to suck the nipple of the mother ...
Reflex is a response to any stimulus received from internal or external environment, which is implemented by the nervous system.
There were scientists who studied the basic theory of higher nervous activity, and they called these reflexes - unconditional.
What about conditioned reflexes? These are reactions, which are produced by the central nervous system during the life of the dog (animal). Such reflexes are attenuated and disappear altogether, in the case where stimuli cease to operate, in response thereto and they were elaborated.
Reflexes allow a puppy to adapt to the changing conditions of life. A dog at the expense of training and raising a puppy up to six months produces desired conditioned reflexes.
The behavior of the dog can be determined by instincts. Instincts - "close relatives" to unconditioned reflex. They appear without training and education. Instinct includes a complex of numerous repeated actions.
For example, the dog sniffs the unfamiliar object, or explores new territory - a research instinct. Call of the instinct - when stray dogs pod, so it's easier to survive. The sexual instinct provides a continuation of the species.
However, the dog's behavior combines not only instincts and reflexes. There is something else in their behavior... Cognitive ethology. If accurate, it is - an elementary rational activity. Due to cognitive ethology, a dog can summarize the event; predict it ... That's why the untrained dog can save a human's life. They may attract the attention of a stranger and bring it to the scene where the help is needed.
Examples of life:
Ashgabat, a terrible earthquake is about to begin. The dog came into the house, despite the fact that she was driven out of the house, despite the shouts, she grabbed the baby out of the cradle and rushed with him to the street. Thus, it saved the life of the child and his mother, who ran a dog.
Another heroic dog saved the life of the owner, who was buried under an avalanche. He rushed to the village; its barking woke up people and brought them to the scene. Then it showed people where to dig... In everyday life, dogs often exhibit intelligence, incredible thoughts, just ... The owner takes it as a matter of course.