Cynology: The Study of Dogs

Biology, history, and training of the domestic dog. Submissions welcome. "The gift which I am sending you is called a dog, and is in fact the most precious and valuable possession of mankind." -Theodorus Gaza “He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog. You are his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours, faithful and true, to the last beat of his heart. You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion." -Unknown.

[fidgetspringer]

What six years will do to a dog

[pangur-and-grim]

today a Chihuahua made direct eye contact

[kangals]

exhibit A for “herding drive is actually a highly modified hunting drive where the dog will still follow the sequence of stalk-> chase but then does a hard stop before the catch-> kill -> consume stages.”

[vidapuppen]

Donate to Standing with Vida After Her Seizure, organized by Kassaundra Burrow

On Friday, June 19th, around 2am, my heart dog Vida had a pretty severe seizure… Kassaundra Burrow needs your support for Standing with Vida

Getting Vida the MRI she needs is going to be a big financial struggle, especially after the financial hit we already took this year from my car getting wrecked. Any shares or donations will be more appreciated than you can imagine.

[vidapuppen]

Vida is scheduled for an MRI consult and MRI on July 15th & 16th at the Kansas State University Veterinary Hospital

Going the 8hrs out of state is significantly cheaper, and faster (places around here are booking into August) so I've adjusted the GFM accordingly

[millenniallust4death]

Martin and Bosco Day Button Giveaway

Life can feel a bit bleak in 2026, so I decided my Tumblr community could use a bit of fun. I'll be giving away Martin and Bosco Day buttons! The awesome design is by @stinkybrowndogs.

I'll be covering the shipping costs, so the final number of winners will depend on postage, which I'm still working out. I'm doing my best. XD

To Enter: Reblog this post. That's it. You do not need to follow me and be subjected to my weird posts.

The fine print:

One entry per blog.

Winners will be randomly selected on June 21, 2026 at noon (Toronto time).

If you're selected, I'll contact you through Tumblr Messages to arrange shipping.

Due to shipping costs, this giveaway is limited to residents of Canada and the United States. I apologize to my international friends!

If you're selected, you'll need to share your name and mailing address with me so I can mail your button.

I'm eternally delighted that Martin and Bosco have their own Tumblr holiday.

Thank you, Laura

[thepastisalreadywritten]

[millenniallust4death]

I found this clip of Bosco doing a down out of motion when I was looking for videos of Martin working with Senta on her heeling. This clip perfectly represents a typical training session. :)

[blueboyluca]

Bronze statuette of a hound gnawing a bone Greek 3rd–2nd century BCE

[millenniallust4death]

I’m paying to force seven thousand strangers to see a photo of my late husband having fun with his dog. Tumblr Blaze is totally worth it. XD

[millenniallust4death]

Thank-you to all of my new Internet stranger friends for being so gracious about having my post shoved onto your dashboards. I loved reading all of your kind tags and comments! Both Martin and Bosco have been gone for several years now but for 24 hours, they felt very present in my life. I greatly appreciate this gift. ❤️

[psycorax]

Reblog to have your dashboard be visited by the spirit of joy that death can end but not erase.

[leavescrown]

Love that this is well beyond 7000 people now and still going

[millenniallust4death]

@leavescrown Exactly! It’s a beautiful gift. Martin and Bosco out there travelling around the Tumblr community, continually making new friends.

[millenniallust4death]

@sseanettles

#hello again martin and bosco!! sending you boys round for another go :)

Reading your tag made me laugh out loud. It’s like two old friends unexpectedly stopped by your porch for a quick visit. XD

[petermorwood]

I’ll always reblog Martin and Bosco when they splash across my dash, because of Reasons.

What’s loved, lives.

[millenniallust4death]

@crunchybeards:

#Martin and Bosco is literally the most valid use of Tumblr blaze ever i love this post to bits #THEY’RE SO JOYOUS WOWA #joyous reblogs

Seeing your tags in my Activity made me so happy! I’m so glad that Martin and Bosco’s post continues to spread joy. The world can feel bleak, so it’s important to have a small, nice thing.

[teacup-labrador]

People always want to have sooooo many working dogs like why are you so obsessed with capitalism that you also need your dog to have a job so badly

[normalcei]

Not all dogs have jobs and I think they should get to wear little vests too

[thesneakyfox]

[ID: A drawing of a dog wearing a vest that says “unemployed.”]

[the-haiku-bot]

[ID: A drawing

of a dog wearing a vest

that says “unemployed.”]

Beep boop! I look for accidental haiku posts. Sometimes I mess up.

[antiqueanimals]

Basil Nightingale (British, 1864-1940). A Flatcoat Retriever, 1909. Oil on canvas.

MutualArt

[intriga-hounds]

Little known Bazzy fact: He love hot cheebo

[szczekaczz]

Brindle is not very playful as a mom, but she spends a lot of time grooming her 9 week old pups, who are still allowed to nurse. There are several tick-borne fatal diseases here, so a strong trait of removing ticks is probably an important survival trait. All dogs do “nibble-grooming” or “cobbing”, often on us, so we can be grateful even if we have no burrs or parasites!

This is also a good instance of relaxed or playful voluntary appeasement/submission as opposed to fearful appeasement. The pup enjoys the interaction. There have been discussions online about how to interpret a dog that rolls over; is is fearful or tense, or is it inviting petting?

The pup’s body and paws are floppy, tail isn’t tucked, and it interacts gently back at mom.

source: Martha Hoffman

[terrierthing]

"my dog listens to me because he respects my authority as a leader" ok. my dog listens to me because she likes me ☺️

[thombalan]

[creekfiend]

Something I really wish I could concisely communicate to people within the Dog Fancy is how much the self congratulatory "you need a thick skin to show dogs!" statements sound like "YOU CANT BE A PUSSY IF YOU WANNA COLLECT VINTAGE EASY BAKE OVENS" to literally everyone outside the Dog Fancy. Like, oh, you have made your incredibly niche hobby a deeply unpleasant social space to be in? FUCKING WHY. FOR WHAT REASON? YOU WEIRDOS