Got a couple of questions for you that I haven’t seen yet, but might benefit the general public:
What a very reasonable and polite way to ask questions! Appreciate ya. I don't mind answering additional versions of the same question: we do have sixteen pages of stuff after all!
1. Do you have any thoughts, concerns, or cautions for the use of sex toys with furry companions? (ie, fleshlights for male dogs, dildos for female dogs)
I'm going to have to defer the practical side of this one to someone with more experience, who can hopefully chime in. Don't have much experience with toys and my own canines. (just myself xd).
Medically, the same cautions on using sex toys with humans apply: appropriate selection of material, not skimping on cost, appropriate hygiene and cleaning, listening to and watching your partner carefully for enjoyment or discomfort. If you're already doing an excellent job with physical intimacy in an appropriate and responsible way, adding a toy to that I see as perfectly acceptable. Keep in mind that the entire length of the female repro tract is a bit longer on average than you'd assume, so be careful with stuff designed for humans and sticking it too far in -- good luck explaining that one to the vet.
2. If pheromones and scents play such an important part in a dog’s interest or arousal, is it possible for a human to add that to their foreplay with their pup (scents, supplementary pheromones, or animal equivalent ‘horny pills’ that are so prevalent in ads across the internet)?
Yes! I highly recommend it actually, from an experience standpoint, it's fulfilling and amazing to see your companion as into things as they become when you also add scents to the intimacy! For a canine example, you could use the same principles as a "teaser bitch" in regular canine reproduction: grab a swab from a dog in estrous, jam packed with all those amazing smells, and paint it places!
As a side note, engaging with your dog in the domain of smells in non sexual ways is also endlessly fascinating and interesting for both of you -- on walks, take notes of what they sniff, and how they do it--dogs can inhale a stream of air and exhale to the side to keep the air continuously flowing over their noses without pushing it back and mixing the smells--hand them random different foods (provided they are safe of course) to smell out of curiosity, let them take a whiff of a skunk when you pass, roll the windows down slightly in your car as you drive past cows, (or better yet go find some), and experience all of this yourself as well. The human sense of smell is sadly under-emphasized I think in modern society--can't leave it all to the wine snobs!
They actually designed a 3D printed dog nose and were having trouble making it sniff until they designed the air currents and inhales to mimic how a dog actually does it!
Paper for those interested.
3. For people who do not know how to read their pet’s emotional status, do you have resource or book recommendations? And from your experience, can you give a very general percentage of how many of those emotional-social cues translate from general day-to-day interactions with your pup to sexual interactions? (If that’s unclear, humans, for example, use words, behaviors, and expressions for daily life. Some are only used in sexual encounters. Do dogs have some behaviors that are ONLY used in sexual interactions?)
I like Patricia McConnell's stuff for understanding canine minds. Pretty much anything written by someone actively involved in the scientific study of behavior, called ethology, rather than the experiential one of simply spending a lot of time with dogs. Nothing against those folks, but the science of canine behavior is so vastly underdeveloped we need all the folks we can get.
My foremost advice would be to teach yourself how to think. Approach noticing and interacting with your companion as a dive into the unknown, and never assume anything. (Ex: tail wags can mean tons of stuff, and there are tons of different types of barks).
Most zoos already intuitively watch their best friend quite closely, and it's just a matter of beginning to notice patterns, and paying attention to things you may not think of, like the commisures of the mouth, and eye position, or tightness of the muscles around them.
I use all this stuff 100% of the time when interacting with all dogs, regardless of setting. As another example, just approaching a dog from the side, facing away from them (which is how unfamiliar dogs approach each other and rooted in a good understanding of their interactions and behavior) has done wonders for the level of chill I am able to portray to everyone from my patients in the clinic to random dogs out on walks! Just don't approach a human this way it reads as suspicious, since we are primates and have a different set of behavioral norms
4. Who was your first four legged crush in popular media?
Aww this made me smile! It's gotta be Chris, the Saint Bernard who played Beethoven. Watched all of those as a kid and adored him, and still love Saints!
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