Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
Dog's Life as Man's Best Friend
Aired June 09, 2003 - 07:50 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: They are called "man's best friend," but are some dog owners too attached to their canine companions?
The author of a new book says people are relying more and more on dogs to try and fulfill the emotional needs of the human. He thinks that's putting undue stress on the human-pet relationship.
The book is called "The New Work of Dogs," and the author, Jon Katz, is here to talk about it.
Good morning, Jon. Good to see you.
JON KATZ, AUTHOR, "THE NEW WORK OF DOGS": Good morning.
HEMMER: Your friends are who? Homer?
KATZ: This is Homer and Orson.
HEMMER: Which one is Homer?
KATZ: That's Homer right there.
HEMMER: All right.
KATZ: The well-behaved one.
HEMMER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) yes.
KATZ: You're getting a paw there.
HEMMER: Hey, so, the point of your book says that humans are relying too much emotionally on dogs.
KATZ: Well, I think it's great to love dogs. We all love our dogs. We certainly do. But more and more...
HEMMER: Especially these guys, too.
KATZ: These guys are great. More and more, we're starting to see them as almost human-like, as having human emotions. We're forgetting that they're animals.
HEMMER: And a dog owner would say, what's wrong with that?
KATZ: There's nothing wrong with that unless you forget that they're animals and treat them like people. You know, people are giving them human names, and they are letting them sleep on bed at night, which is fine. Only 3 to 5 percent of Americans actually ever train their dogs. And they're using them for support in getting through divorce and being laid off and emotional stress, which is great. Dogs are doing some wonderful work.
But I think sometimes people are turning to dogs rather than people for support, which makes me uneasy. And there's a lot of pressure on dogs to sort of be therapists.
HEMMER: You just said a statistic that shocks me. Only 3 to 5 percent dog owners actually give their dogs training?
KATZ: Yes, it's extremely rare.
HEMMER: Why is it that low?
KATZ: Well, in recent years, you know, people have come to see dogs more and more as members of their family, almost as children with fur, as one woman in the book told me. So, I spent a year with 12 people in different stages of life, a woman who was dying of cancer, a divorced dogs club where women who had just gotten divorced had each gotten a dog to help them get through this difficult period.
And I saw some very interesting things, very powerful, sometimes very wrenching things. I saw dogs really helping people out, which is great and wonderful.
HEMMER: Sure.
KATZ: But I also saw a society which is so disconnected and fragmented that sometimes dogs were providing more support to people.
HEMMER: What changed in society, did you find in your research for this book?
KATZ: In 1960, there were about 15 million owned dogs in the U.S., and today there are 70 million, plus there are 10 million in shelters.
HEMMER: Wow!
KATZ: And the rise of dogs corresponds with some interesting things, the rise in television, a lot of Americans are watching TV. Homer is having a good time.
HEMMER: Yes, hey, Homer, come on over here.
KATZ: Come on, Homer.
The divorce rate is going up. More and more people are living alone.
HEMMER: He's sleeping on our bed now.
KATZ: He's sleeping on our bed. People get -- more and more people are getting laid off and have job problems. The extended family has sort of declined, so more people are living alone. HEMMER: You did research for about a year, right, down in Montclair, New Jersey?
KATZ: I spent a year with 12 people.
HEMMER: You studied men and women...
KATZ: Yes.
HEMMER: ... on how they responded and how they took care of their dogs. What did you find the difference in gender?
KATZ: There are amazing gender differences in that.
HEMMER: How so?
KATZ: Women really love dogs because they see them as having very complex emotional relationships with them. And men tend to love dogs because they don't talk and they have the perfect silent friend. They have a relationship they don't have to discuss.
And this is often very beautiful. You know, I'm crazy about my dogs, and I think it's great that dogs are helping people out. I think where it makes me a little uneasy is I saw a lot of people who were losing sight of the fact that dogs are essentially animals. They need to be trained. They need to learn how to live in the world.
HEMMER: Yes, we often think that dogs are very intelligent. You actually think the opposite. You said something, and I want to quote you.
KATZ: Sure.
HEMMER: If I'm paraphrasing you incorrectly, you correct me.
KATZ: Sure.
HEMMER: But you say that the average dog is no smarter than a 3- year-old hung human being?
KATZ: The smartest dog is not as smart as a 3-year-old human being, and that's...
HEMMER: Now, that's something that is going to rock a lot of cages out there, Jon.
KATZ: Well, but I think it doesnt mean you don't love the dog or appreciate the dog. It means you need to understand what you're dealing with, and you're basically dealing with a simple animal that is very instinctive. When you start attributing these complex emotions to dogs, what they're thinking, what they're feeling, I think it causes a lot of problems, a lot of neurotic, you know, 400,000 kids in American were bitten last year seriously enough...
HEMMER: Four hundred thousand. Is it true that a bite comes every 45 seconds? KATZ: It's very common, because training is so infrequent, and that's the importance of seeing dogs as animals, they're wonderful animals, but still are animals.
HEMMER: Take care of yours, OK?
KATZ: Thank you.
HEMMER: Really, really...
KATZ: I'm going to go get some (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
HEMMER: Well, we saw you walking out in the fountain earlier. So, if you do it again, we'll get a shot of the two. Best of luck to you.
KATZ: Homer is going to stay here.
HEMMER: Yes, I think so. He likes it.
Jack is coming back, by the way, Homer, so be careful. The book is out. It's called "The New Work of Dogs." Good stuff. Jon, nice to talk with you.
Thank you very much. It's my pleasure.
HEMMER: We'll talk again, all right.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
Aired June 9, 2003 - 07:50 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: They are called "man's best friend," but are some dog owners too attached to their canine companions?
The author of a new book says people are relying more and more on dogs to try and fulfill the emotional needs of the human. He thinks that's putting undue stress on the human-pet relationship.
The book is called "The New Work of Dogs," and the author, Jon Katz, is here to talk about it.
Good morning, Jon. Good to see you.
JON KATZ, AUTHOR, "THE NEW WORK OF DOGS": Good morning.
HEMMER: Your friends are who? Homer?
KATZ: This is Homer and Orson.
HEMMER: Which one is Homer?
KATZ: That's Homer right there.
HEMMER: All right.
KATZ: The well-behaved one.
HEMMER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) yes.
KATZ: You're getting a paw there.
HEMMER: Hey, so, the point of your book says that humans are relying too much emotionally on dogs.
KATZ: Well, I think it's great to love dogs. We all love our dogs. We certainly do. But more and more...
HEMMER: Especially these guys, too.
KATZ: These guys are great. More and more, we're starting to see them as almost human-like, as having human emotions. We're forgetting that they're animals.
HEMMER: And a dog owner would say, what's wrong with that?
KATZ: There's nothing wrong with that unless you forget that they're animals and treat them like people. You know, people are giving them human names, and they are letting them sleep on bed at night, which is fine. Only 3 to 5 percent of Americans actually ever train their dogs. And they're using them for support in getting through divorce and being laid off and emotional stress, which is great. Dogs are doing some wonderful work.
But I think sometimes people are turning to dogs rather than people for support, which makes me uneasy. And there's a lot of pressure on dogs to sort of be therapists.
HEMMER: You just said a statistic that shocks me. Only 3 to 5 percent dog owners actually give their dogs training?
KATZ: Yes, it's extremely rare.
HEMMER: Why is it that low?
KATZ: Well, in recent years, you know, people have come to see dogs more and more as members of their family, almost as children with fur, as one woman in the book told me. So, I spent a year with 12 people in different stages of life, a woman who was dying of cancer, a divorced dogs club where women who had just gotten divorced had each gotten a dog to help them get through this difficult period.
And I saw some very interesting things, very powerful, sometimes very wrenching things. I saw dogs really helping people out, which is great and wonderful.
HEMMER: Sure.
KATZ: But I also saw a society which is so disconnected and fragmented that sometimes dogs were providing more support to people.
HEMMER: What changed in society, did you find in your research for this book?
KATZ: In 1960, there were about 15 million owned dogs in the U.S., and today there are 70 million, plus there are 10 million in shelters.
HEMMER: Wow!
KATZ: And the rise of dogs corresponds with some interesting things, the rise in television, a lot of Americans are watching TV. Homer is having a good time.
HEMMER: Yes, hey, Homer, come on over here.
KATZ: Come on, Homer.
The divorce rate is going up. More and more people are living alone.
HEMMER: He's sleeping on our bed now.
KATZ: He's sleeping on our bed. People get -- more and more people are getting laid off and have job problems. The extended family has sort of declined, so more people are living alone. HEMMER: You did research for about a year, right, down in Montclair, New Jersey?
KATZ: I spent a year with 12 people.
HEMMER: You studied men and women...
KATZ: Yes.
HEMMER: ... on how they responded and how they took care of their dogs. What did you find the difference in gender?
KATZ: There are amazing gender differences in that.
HEMMER: How so?
KATZ: Women really love dogs because they see them as having very complex emotional relationships with them. And men tend to love dogs because they don't talk and they have the perfect silent friend. They have a relationship they don't have to discuss.
And this is often very beautiful. You know, I'm crazy about my dogs, and I think it's great that dogs are helping people out. I think where it makes me a little uneasy is I saw a lot of people who were losing sight of the fact that dogs are essentially animals. They need to be trained. They need to learn how to live in the world.
HEMMER: Yes, we often think that dogs are very intelligent. You actually think the opposite. You said something, and I want to quote you.
KATZ: Sure.
HEMMER: If I'm paraphrasing you incorrectly, you correct me.
KATZ: Sure.
HEMMER: But you say that the average dog is no smarter than a 3- year-old hung human being?
KATZ: The smartest dog is not as smart as a 3-year-old human being, and that's...
HEMMER: Now, that's something that is going to rock a lot of cages out there, Jon.
KATZ: Well, but I think it doesnt mean you don't love the dog or appreciate the dog. It means you need to understand what you're dealing with, and you're basically dealing with a simple animal that is very instinctive. When you start attributing these complex emotions to dogs, what they're thinking, what they're feeling, I think it causes a lot of problems, a lot of neurotic, you know, 400,000 kids in American were bitten last year seriously enough...
HEMMER: Four hundred thousand. Is it true that a bite comes every 45 seconds? KATZ: It's very common, because training is so infrequent, and that's the importance of seeing dogs as animals, they're wonderful animals, but still are animals.
HEMMER: Take care of yours, OK?
KATZ: Thank you.
HEMMER: Really, really...
KATZ: I'm going to go get some (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
HEMMER: Well, we saw you walking out in the fountain earlier. So, if you do it again, we'll get a shot of the two. Best of luck to you.
KATZ: Homer is going to stay here.
HEMMER: Yes, I think so. He likes it.
Jack is coming back, by the way, Homer, so be careful. The book is out. It's called "The New Work of Dogs." Good stuff. Jon, nice to talk with you.
Thank you very much. It's my pleasure.
HEMMER: We'll talk again, all right.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
