Rituals - Symbiosis between Dog and Man E-Book

Christoph T. M Krause

• Herausgeber: tredition
• Kategorie: Wissenschaft und neue Technologien
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2021

Seitenzahl: 162

Beschreibung

Christoph T. M. Krause, lives in Cologne. He has been running his own successful dog service company since 1998. From his wealth of experience in observing the dogs of his own family and in his daily walking and boarding business, the question arose why both the dog and (his) human, and both together, develop RITUALS? Krause collected numerous examples from other dog lovers and created an exciting narrative of a thousand-year-old symbiosis between dog and human.

Leseprobe

Christoph T. M. Krause – Rituals – Symbiosis between Dog and Man

Christoph T. M. Krause

RITUALS

… Symbiosis between Dog and Man

© 2021 Christoph T. M. Krause

Cover Design, Illustration: Christoph T. M. Krause

Christoph T. M. Krause, Heerstr. 394a, EU-D-Berlin.

Publisher and Print: tredition GmbH, Halenreie 42, 22359 Hamburg

Hardcover: ISBN: 978-3-347-18289-9

Paperback: ISBN: 978-3-347-18290-5

e-Book: ISBN: 978-3-347-08291-2

This work, including its parts, is protected by copyright.

Any use without consents of publisher and author is prohibited.

In particular, this applies to electronic or other reproduction,

translation, distribution and public access.

The publisher has all rights to use pictures

and illustrations, presented in this book.

Bibliographic information from the German National Library:

The German National Library lists this publication in the German National

Bibliography; detailed bibliographical data are available

via Internet at http://dnb.d-nb.de.

CONTENT

E. Introduction

01. Preliminary Considerations.

Krause, Christoph T. M. (Hrsg.). 2020. EU-D, Cologne. (Subsequent: Krause. 2020).

02. Rituals-A Distinction

Krause. 2020. EU-D, Cologne.

03. The History of Symbiosis Between Dog and Man. “Dogs in the Ancient World”.

Mark, Joshua J.: Ancient History Encyclopedia. 2020. USA, New York.

I. Regulation Rituals

01. The Power of Rituals.

Immler, Karin. 2020. EU-A, Obertrum am See.

02. Morning Routine with a Dog.

Henn, Maximilian. 2020. EU-D, Frechen.

03. Who’s Training Whom?

Himmelberg, Sabine. 2020. EU-D, Cologne.

04. Desc and Swim Cookies.

Physiotherapy Practice for Animals „Wasserfall [Waterfall]“ EU-D, Cologne: Owner Pouillon, Christiane. 2020. EU-D, Cologne.

05. A Therapy Dog is Building Bridges….

Giesen, Elisabeth. 2020. EU-D, Cologne.

II. Integration Rituales

01. Two plus One - The Double Tomb of Oberkassel, Germany and its Burial Gifts.

Krause. 2020.

02. Chicken and Liverwurst – The Power of Words.

Krause. 2020.

03. Blind and Deaf– The Whole Day as a Ritual.

Peikert, Ute. 2020. EU-D, Cologne.

04. Yesterday and in the Morning – One Thing Determines the Other.

Krause. 2020.

05. Speech and Gestures – Understanding Complete Sentences.

Krause. 2020.

06. His Name was Lux .

Krause, Werner. 2020. EU-D, Cologne.

07. Smth of a German Shepherd.

Treder, Sigmund und Renate. 2020. EU-D, Berlin.

III. Exploitation Rituals

This section includes descriptions of violence and abuse against dogs which could disturb sensitive readers!

01. Introduction to Exploitation Rituals.

02. Dog Fighting.

Based on a Wikipedia entry of the same way.Krause. 2020.

03. Dogs in Warfare.

Based on a Wikipedia entry of the same way.Krause. 2020.

04. Sexual Violence.

Krause. 2020.

05. Dog Carrying in the Middle Ages.

Krause. 2020.

06. Dog Spinning in Bulgaria

Krause, 2020.

IV. Sources and Conclusion

01. Sources.

02. Literature References

03. Image Sources

04. Epilogue

05. How Dog came to Man.

A Native American Saying.

This book is dedicated to Tina, Mickey, Beauty und Roxy

B. Introduction

E. Introduction –01. Preliminary Considerations

Publisher Christoph T. M. Krause

We believe that rituals are a profound part of being human; they are trailblazers for social structures and support for communities. Rituals provide codes of conduct and unified patterns that act as an example for us humans and encourage us to behave in accordance with them. This strengthens a sense of community in the group, the family and/or the tribe.

They exist in a state like Germany, even in a highly official sense. We only have to think of the culture of remembering our past. We remember and admonish each other on the day of the Holocaust, we remember the end of WWII and we rejoice about the German reunification. This awakens feelings in us and gives us a warning for the future.

Some rituals have been around for decades or even longer, some are quite recent, some seem obsessive and soulless, others produce grief and anger but also joy and happiness.

There are personal rituals but also community rituals put in place by superior units, such as the church, the state or a union like the EU.

Rituals can act as substitutes for actions, they release an individual from the responsibility on a larger scale, they take on superior requirements and make them tangible on a smaller scale, individually.

The most important thing is that the social unit, the group, the tribe, the society is strengthened. Every individual takes part in the responsibility of the whole, he or she becomes part of the whole in a visual way and as part of the ritual.

Rituals give attention in all directions. The sense of community offers a platform for mutuality, for togetherness. It creates a connection and a sense of belonging beyond any possible conflicts, differences or disagreements.

Let’s think back to the start of humanity. Community within a group was often essential for hunting and therefore for survival. Without team spirit and a shared identity, these principles would have been impossible.

Rituals provide a sense of security. An individual is always weaker than a group and shared rituals offer more strength and courage than having to face the demands of everyday life alone.

Rituals were often seen as a core behaviour in mankind. Our dogs know rituals, too. In general, most of the principles of rituals apply to dogs the same way, perhaps even more so. A dog lives in a “pack”, just like its ancestor did. Even if this pack has included humans in a mixed pack for thousands of years.

Image. 02

What is interesting is that ritualisation includes two species at this point. Both of them need their very own rituals for survival in an archaic sense and both have built their community on this.

A dog or wolf needs community in its pack to survive, to hunt for food and to ensure strength and ability while hunting. With hunting being the foundation of survival, the pack requires organisation of the community, hierarchy and teamwork in order to successfully kill prey together.

The very first ritual between wolf (later dog) and man starts thousands of years ago. The man sits by a campfire and eats the prey he killed together with his fellow tribesmen (the females of this time stayed in the cave or later in village settlements. Whether this view of gender segregation actually and generally applies in this way remains questionable, to say the least).

The wolf comes to the campfire because it is curious but also because it could smell the food. It begs for some food, similarly to how our dog does that at the dining table today. The man looks into the eyes of the wolf and recognises himself in them, as the eyes of a wolf are very similar to those of man.

The decisive evolutionary moment happens right now: For no apparent logical reason and against all expectations, the man shares his prey with the wolf. The foundation of rituals between dog and man has been laid; the initial ritual has been born, we share our food voluntarily and without any external force. This is the very early first class (Revolutionary act, a strong bond of community is created.

The “joint venture” of the past becomes an eternal bond. The wolf understands that by building a relationship with humans its search for food becomes a lot less problematic and even easier. It is safer for it to be close to humans, as they will ward off bears and other predators for it.

The wolf repays the favour, it starts to secure the living and hunting areas of the humans. It drives away predators and as a result, it can now better protects its own kind as well as the humans. In return, the human provides it with shelter, warmth by the campfire and of course, food.

All of this happens without pressure or an urgent need. From a human point of view, there is no “contract” or no predefined conditions, it just happens.

Which intelligent creature would fail to recognise and take advantage of this dreamlike offer of cooperation (nowadays you would call it a win-win-situation)?! This joint venture has been going on for thousands of years, it is a special kind of success story; there is nothing like it on earth. Two very different but at the same time very similar species come together in a decades-old bond.

Our joint venture with the dog, the descendant of the wolf, is not just unique, it is the big bang of rituals. Two requirements of rituals of two different species connected over the course of thousands of years to form the strongest “ritual” in human and canine history, an almost symbiotic community.

Sometimes rituals are seen differently, negatively, but they don’t have anything in common with rites, that often have rules and regulations. This view would be justified in some areas, but it is only justified to a limited extent in this context.

The focus of this book is on the kind of rituals that are created spontaneously and without any obligation or direction. Sometimes they develop playfully and en passant. You could even call them habits. Either way, they lead to a strong bond in the relationship between dog and man and they strengthen this.

From our own experience:

We had a very clever female dog who loved nothing more than rituals. We only had to utter the word “laundry” and she immediately made her way to the bedroom. She started in the first room and collected all the dirty laundry lying on the floor, for example, a pair of underpants. She continued on to the next room and put down the pants that were in her mouth.

She then grabbed the other pair of underpants which she found in this room together with the first pair. Bju (that was her name), proudly as a peacock followed us to the laundry basket on the other side of the house and dropped both pants there.

However, she didn’t throw the clothes into the laundry basket; it seemed as though she thought that was our job.

What was already a mental achievement in itself, this process became a daily ritual. Sometimes it even happened without being prompted, almost by itself.

Another one of this bitch’s rituals was when one of us come back from grocery shopping and rang the doorbell. Bju immediately came running to the door, sped to the car and watted to be given a part of the shopping (which was suitable for her). She then proudly carried this portion of the shop, let’s say it was a piece of leek, in her mouth and handed it over to the home staying person who was watting in the kitchen.

Here it is very clear which purpose rituals can fulfil: They strengthen a sense of community, togetherness and “joint tasks”. They forge a strong connection and are by no means compulsive. Most important of all, they are great fun for all those involved, even if the ritual is just about a treat before falling asleep,

which works like this:

Just like at Christmas time, the bedroom door is closed and a treat is hidden somewhere in the room. Then, the door opens, Just like when it is time for presents on Christmas Eve1, and the search for the treat starts.

First, all previously used hiding spots are checked, but she quickly gets closer and closer to the latest treat until it is eaten with great empathy.”

This, as well as many similar rituals, make it clear to what extent memory, the process of exclusion and the sense of smell work together in dogs. Without this ritual we wouldn’t be getting any night’s rest. Period.

Later in the book, we will ask other dog lovers which rituals they observe with our biggest, best and oldest friend that we as humans have on this planet:

Ritual1:

I am in a huff, I want something and I’m not getting it.

E. Introduction –02. Rituals - A Distinction

Publisher Christoph T. M. Krause

„Rituals are more than just a sequence of symbols or symbolic actions. Rituals differ from compulsive acts, which consist of the repetition of same actions and serve the purpose of ‘assuring’ and confirming, essentially in that they provide a transition, a shift from one state to another state, that changes the people and/or the community or society.“1

When it comes to dogs, we differentiate between different kinds of rituals:

I. Regulation Rituals

Regulation rituals are behavioural patterns that a human teaches to a dog in order to train him or show him behaviour that conforms to human society and is familiar. This can occasionally become compulsive.

II. Integration Rituals

Integration rituals cause behaviours that are created on their own, as they stem from a sense of belonging, a togetherness or a bond between owner and dog.

III. Exploitation Rituals

Exploitation rituals have their very own set of rules. They are used to take advantage of the dog, to subdue him, they are used as a form of punishment and aggression towards third parties. In the worst case, they are used to abuse the dog as a sadistic victim.

ad I.

The first kind, regulation rituals, are a means to an end and are naturally needed and justified. They initially form the relationship between dog and man, they structure behavioural patterns and they are often present at the start of a puppy’s life and a new dog-/human-relationship. They can be exhausting for both parties, take a long time and have to be repeated constantly.

Dogs and humans alike tend to prefer structured behaviour where “everything must take place the exact same way every time”. That is an unusual fact, as the dog, the descendant of the wolf, used to be a wild animal that had to fight for survival every day. In the wild, there are new challenges every day, new situations in which it has to hunt for food to keep his pack alive.

How is it possible that the descendant of the wolf, namely the civilised and integrated dog, prefers rituals and the same processes? Did it learn to behave this way by watching humans, in order to have security and community?

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The second kind, integration rituals, are behavioural patterns that develop on their own. It seems as though they are created when being playful and having fun. They don’t appear to have a purpose, they are not intended to be regulatory and they are voluntary.

Our female dog loves to play hide and seek in the forest, for example. She has a strong urge to keep the “pack” together, similar to a herding dog. She constantly has her eyes on every human that belongs to her. No one is allowed to stay behind or go a different way. She would not tolerate that at all! The reasons for this are an other story (or several other stories). Right now they are only of secondary importance, at least for the categorisation of her behaviour.

Roxy’s behaviour has led to recurring hiding rituals:

One person from our “pack” waits for the perfect moment when Roxy is not looking; she is sniffing a blade of grass or is busying herself with another “reading activity”.

If at this point, you manage to vanish behind a nearby tree that is thick enough to hide you completely, there is a 90% chance that she knows exactly where you’ve hidden.

She realises your hiding spot is a tree in the vicinity of the spot where she last saw you (logical reasoning, first point). However, she also knows that the tree has to be thick enough for you to hide behind it (logical reasoning, second point).

Then she is left with only a few trees to choose from. You can immediately see how she scans her environment, how she combines facts and attacks as fast as lighting (of course, only figuratively speaking).

When she „catches“ the person who was hiding she shows clear signs of joy (we would laugh). She jumps around like a young deer (she is 14!), she runs towards the person who was hiding, then spins around to carry on with the rest of us.

This real example clearly shows the difference between regulation rituals and integration rituals. There is nothing regulatory about this, it is not needed. This is a game but it has a serious background.

A herding dog must act this way, packs have to be kept together. Sticking together is essential for survival, losing a part of the pack can be dangerous for the entire pack, unless a member is sick or weak, then they often get left behind.

Dogs are very similar to humans in this aspect, or at least it seems that way. The family or family unit, or let’s think a step further, communities and tribes are to be protected and have to stick together. The difference is that humans will support the sick and weak, as opposed to abandoning or excluding them. Hope for our species, but as we all know, it has been a long way!

Up until the seventies of the 20th century, homosexuals have been marginalised and sometimes even locked up. This has transformed into societal respect and legal equality today.

At this point, there are also smooth transitions between regulation and integration. Sometimes it is one thing before the other, sometimes both principles come together.

The game of hide and seek as described earlier can be used in a regulatory sense (with the help of an integrative component), in order to practice behavioural patterns and set the right direction. In the case of hide and seek “practising” could mean an insistence that the dog takes on the role of a guardian. Or it could serve the purpose of keeping it busy, giving him exercises to ensure his closeness with the group, to generate attention, to bind the dog, so that it won’t stray or hunt.

So there are two different principles that correlate, that can complement each other but are yet fundamentally different.

It is the same for human communities. Humans need regulations (laws and guidelines) which have the effect of strengthening the community at the same time. This is because they protect every individual from others and they protect the community from disintegration and danger.

We are so similar in the end. Dog and man have many things in common, yet they are so different. This is the secret to success of a symbiotic community and friendship.

Yet there are still clear evolutionary differences which we have to understand and apply in order to do our best friend and ultimately ourselves justice.

ad III.

Exploitation rituals are an unpleasant variation. Humans exploit dogs to abuse and torture them or to use them for other purposes that are harmful to the dog.

There is a cruel example of this in the Middle Ages:

„Dog carrying” was an equivalent to the death penalty. Delinquents had to carry a dog which served the purpose of offending their honour (see the article in III.05, p. 104, „Dog Carrying” in the Middle Ages).

Or think of dog fights where dogs are stirred up against each other and tortured to death for entertainment (see the article in III.02, p. 80, „Dog Fighting”).

This shows how different rituals in a human context specifically affect dogs. How could it be any different. Since dogs and humans live together very closely there are many different contexts when the dog is affected by the strengths and weaknesses of humans. The closer the bond to humans, the bigger the potential interactions or cross-links.