6 ms·

Dogs learn to drive in New Zealand

137 points by dmmalam 14y ago

rhokstar 14y ago
A new game of fetch! LMAO!
indiecore 14y ago
Ok so who else is seeing an opportunity to completely undercut all those Taxi startups?
- billiam 14y ago
  Proving that hipsters are as trainable as dogs?
  - frozenport 14y ago
    Most hipsters are too cool to drive.
  - stcredzero 14y ago
    Isn't a knack for conformity part of the requisite skill set?
DigitalSea 14y ago
I'm surprised they didn't try and teach sheep how to drive instead, ha ha. Seriously though, this is kind of cool and scary at the same time.
- jQueryIsAwesome 14y ago
  At least the risk of drunk drivers would fall to cero. Also they are probably more polite than the average driver.
  - Ziomislaw 14y ago
    and dont try to run over all cyclists they see (just the mailman ;P )
carey 14y ago
The original story is at http://www.3news.co.nz/SPCA-teaches-dogs-to-drive/tabid/367/articleID/279037/Default.aspx http://www.3news.co.nz/SPCA-teaches-dogs-to-drive/tabid/367/..., though I don’t know if it’s available outside New Zealand.
- paupino_masano 14y ago
  Haha, I saw this a few days on the Herald. It's my only tie back to news in NZ at the moment! The link for that one is: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10851829 http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&obj... But looks like 3 News did cover it first :)
  - lostlogin 14y ago
    I know the feeling. I can't stand the herald, but how else do you know what's going on
- derleth 14y ago
  Available to me in Montana.
deleted 14y ago
[deleted]
derleth 14y ago
"I am driving! I like driving! I am an excellent SQUIRREL!" That said, if these dogs drove cabs I bet they'd stop for everyone who hailed them.
redact207 14y ago
Granny-shifting. Not double-clutching, like you should.
- jordan0day 14y ago
  Maybe if the dogs were driving 30 year old cars. The dogs obviously know those Minis have synchros.
  - qbrass 14y ago
    Yes, the dogs are smarter than the writers for The Fast and the Furious.
papa_bear 14y ago
As much as I respect this for being way cooler than anything I'll ever teach my dog, I can't help but think there are better things to teach them to make them seem more adoptable. Maybe train them to fetch beers from a minifridge, then package the adoption with a dog-accessible minifridge and a 30 rack for an extra $200. Boom, sustainable charity
- pbiggar 14y ago
  I showed this comment to a shelter volunteer, and they were livid. They felt this would attract the wrong kind of people to adopt dogs: dogs need loving homes, not people who view them as kitschy party tricks.
  - pharrington 14y ago
    but it is a joke
  - papa_bear 14y ago
    This driving thing is already a kitschy party trick. And I teach my dog wacky tricks mostly to show friends when they come over, but it doesn't mean I don't love him. I think the only reason it invites the idea that it would attract the wrong kind of people is because I used a beer example. But if dogs came knowing how to fetch drinks from the fridge, I think few would complain.
    - pbiggar 14y ago
      The driving thing serves their purpose: a wide reaching campaign to show that dogs are really smart, even shelter dogs.
nigelsampson 14y ago
Nice to see NZ on the front page for something other than Kim Dotcom.
pbiggar 14y ago
There's a really interesting question about incentivization behind this. Everybody knows that there are too many dogs, and as a result many die in shelters because they aren't adopted. Yet many folks continue to buy dogs from breeders, particularly in America where they actually sell dogs in stores! So what is the best solution so that exactly the right amount of dogs exist and none are killed. This is innovative, but I suspect training doesn't scale. Perhaps make it illegal to sell dogs until we're out of strays? Maybe a tax deduction for adopting a dog, or a tax penalty on buying a dog? Or an anti-breeding campaign (like the anti-fur one which has been very successful)? I'd love to hear some cool ideas here.
- earbitscom 14y ago
  Los Angeles is leading the charge on this. West Hollywood banned the sale of pets two years ago. Los Angeles city is doing so now. http://www.examiner.com/article/los-angeles-poised-to-ban-sale-of-commercially-bred-pets http://www.examiner.com/article/los-angeles-poised-to-ban-sa...
- gregable 14y ago
  The cost may still be a little too far out, but what about requiring breeders to register the dog's DNA sequence in some database. If the dog is found as a stray, a large fine is imposed on the breeder or the most recently registered owner. The fines could go towards programs for neutering and finding homes for strays. If particular breeders are frequently coming up as strays, they could loose their breeder license, etc. Of course to play my own devil's advocate, the risk here is that the owners who have lost interest in keeping a pet kill the animals instead of releasing them.
- ScottBurson 14y ago
  Professional breeders are not the problem. It is not in breeders' interests to flood the market and collapse prices. The problem is irresponsible pet owners who fail to neuter and spay their pets. Santa Cruz County, California, where I used to live, enacted in 1995 a law requiring neutering and spaying of pets. (A breeder's licensed can be purchased for something like $100 annually, IIRC.) The numbers of animals in the shelters dropped dramatically. Efforts to pass a similar bill at the state level failed, however.
Pr0 14y ago
This is impressive on so many levels. It's not so much that they are taught basic tasks over and over, but that together those tasks amount to something so much more complex.
- stcredzero 14y ago
  One can say the same for human beings.
po 14y ago
I have long thought that it's the most intelligent dogs that have the worst behavior problems. Although, it's not their fault, it's the fault of an owner who thinks they can reason with their dog using people-logic when they really need to learn more about how dogs think and behave. Owning an intelligent dog is like signing up for acting classes. The dog will watch your every move and play you like a chump if you do the wrong thing. It requires you to act like the alpha dog (which is a very awkward feeling to most people) in order to maintain the behaviors you want. This means understanding how dogs see reward, punishment, encouragement, etc… or at least learning what to do when you see behavior that you don't like and understanding how your own behavior affects the dog. I wouldn't say that less intelligent breeds/individuals don't have issues, but a super-smart shepherd or hunting dog can easily get bored and turn that creative energy into a destructive streak.
- pbiggar 14y ago
  Agreed about bored dogs having the worst behaviour, and the rest of your comment is spot on, but I'd like to correct a common but incorrect belief that you bring up: > It requires you to act like the alpha dog (which is a very awkward feeling to most people) in order to maintain the behaviors you want. The "alpha-dog" theory has been totally disproved by dog behaviourists. It was an extrapolation from a single case study in the 1930s, of captive wolves. It has since been debunked, and is not even applicable to wolves, never mind domestic dogs. All the dog training which is based on this (such as Cesar Milan's submission-based training) holds no merit, and is far more likely to be detrimental than positive, as it relies on terrifying the dog. Note that this was only debunked in 2000, so a huge amount of dog training and research needs to be revised as a result. Much more detail here: http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/14_12/features/Alpha-Dogs_20416-1.html http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/14_12/features/Alpha...
  - adrianbye 14y ago
    the page you links to cites one solo "debunking" study which was done by a guy named Dave Mech, who links to occupy wall street and likes "evolutionary biology and social justice": http://www.davemech.com/ http://www.davemech.com/ people's personal views often influence research
tamersalama 14y ago
Sorry - couldn't help it. Related: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ueg7Q7hO7U http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ueg7Q7hO7U http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwpWaLrDHnU http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwpWaLrDHnU There was another prank but couldn't find it
ichinaski 14y ago
That´s not a dog. That´s an ewok.
stcredzero 14y ago
The dogs in the video look supremely pleased to me. There's something about the way dogs stick their heads out the car window that makes me think most of them would love to drive. I'm not the only one. I remember hearing someone's song about the same thing and wishing they could let their dog drive the car. If in 30 years, with advances in genetic engineering and our understanding of intelligence, dogs were driving cabs, I wouldn't think that's wrong at all, but somehow right.
rerere 14y ago
After we started letting women drive, this was only a matter of time.

137 points by dmmalam 14y ago

rhokstar 14y ago

A new game of fetch! LMAO!

indiecore 14y ago

Ok so who else is seeing an opportunity to completely undercut all those Taxi startups?

billiam 14y ago
Proving that hipsters are as trainable as dogs?
- frozenport 14y ago
  Most hipsters are too cool to drive.
- stcredzero 14y ago
  Isn't a knack for conformity part of the requisite skill set?

DigitalSea 14y ago

I'm surprised they didn't try and teach sheep how to drive instead, ha ha. Seriously though, this is kind of cool and scary at the same time.

jQueryIsAwesome 14y ago
At least the risk of drunk drivers would fall to cero. Also they are probably more polite than the average driver.
- Ziomislaw 14y ago
  and dont try to run over all cyclists they see (just the mailman ;P )

carey 14y ago

The original story is at http://www.3news.co.nz/SPCA-teaches-dogs-to-drive/tabid/367/articleID/279037/Default.aspx http://www.3news.co.nz/SPCA-teaches-dogs-to-drive/tabid/367/..., though I don’t know if it’s available outside New Zealand.

paupino_masano 14y ago
Haha, I saw this a few days on the Herald. It's my only tie back to news in NZ at the moment! The link for that one is: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10851829 http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&obj... But looks like 3 News did cover it first :)
- lostlogin 14y ago
  I know the feeling. I can't stand the herald, but how else do you know what's going on
derleth 14y ago
Available to me in Montana.

deleted 14y ago

[deleted]

derleth 14y ago

"I am driving! I like driving! I am an excellent SQUIRREL!" That said, if these dogs drove cabs I bet they'd stop for everyone who hailed them.

redact207 14y ago

Granny-shifting. Not double-clutching, like you should.

jordan0day 14y ago
Maybe if the dogs were driving 30 year old cars. The dogs obviously know those Minis have synchros.
- qbrass 14y ago
  Yes, the dogs are smarter than the writers for The Fast and the Furious.

papa_bear 14y ago

As much as I respect this for being way cooler than anything I'll ever teach my dog, I can't help but think there are better things to teach them to make them seem more adoptable. Maybe train them to fetch beers from a minifridge, then package the adoption with a dog-accessible minifridge and a 30 rack for an extra $200. Boom, sustainable charity

pbiggar 14y ago
I showed this comment to a shelter volunteer, and they were livid. They felt this would attract the wrong kind of people to adopt dogs: dogs need loving homes, not people who view them as kitschy party tricks.
- pharrington 14y ago
  but it is a joke
- papa_bear 14y ago
  This driving thing is already a kitschy party trick. And I teach my dog wacky tricks mostly to show friends when they come over, but it doesn't mean I don't love him. I think the only reason it invites the idea that it would attract the wrong kind of people is because I used a beer example. But if dogs came knowing how to fetch drinks from the fridge, I think few would complain.
  - pbiggar 14y ago
    The driving thing serves their purpose: a wide reaching campaign to show that dogs are really smart, even shelter dogs.

nigelsampson 14y ago

Nice to see NZ on the front page for something other than Kim Dotcom.

pbiggar 14y ago

There's a really interesting question about incentivization behind this. Everybody knows that there are too many dogs, and as a result many die in shelters because they aren't adopted. Yet many folks continue to buy dogs from breeders, particularly in America where they actually sell dogs in stores! So what is the best solution so that exactly the right amount of dogs exist and none are killed. This is innovative, but I suspect training doesn't scale. Perhaps make it illegal to sell dogs until we're out of strays? Maybe a tax deduction for adopting a dog, or a tax penalty on buying a dog? Or an anti-breeding campaign (like the anti-fur one which has been very successful)? I'd love to hear some cool ideas here.

earbitscom 14y ago
Los Angeles is leading the charge on this. West Hollywood banned the sale of pets two years ago. Los Angeles city is doing so now. http://www.examiner.com/article/los-angeles-poised-to-ban-sale-of-commercially-bred-pets http://www.examiner.com/article/los-angeles-poised-to-ban-sa...
gregable 14y ago
The cost may still be a little too far out, but what about requiring breeders to register the dog's DNA sequence in some database. If the dog is found as a stray, a large fine is imposed on the breeder or the most recently registered owner. The fines could go towards programs for neutering and finding homes for strays. If particular breeders are frequently coming up as strays, they could loose their breeder license, etc. Of course to play my own devil's advocate, the risk here is that the owners who have lost interest in keeping a pet kill the animals instead of releasing them.
ScottBurson 14y ago
Professional breeders are not the problem. It is not in breeders' interests to flood the market and collapse prices. The problem is irresponsible pet owners who fail to neuter and spay their pets. Santa Cruz County, California, where I used to live, enacted in 1995 a law requiring neutering and spaying of pets. (A breeder's licensed can be purchased for something like $100 annually, IIRC.) The numbers of animals in the shelters dropped dramatically. Efforts to pass a similar bill at the state level failed, however.

Pr0 14y ago

This is impressive on so many levels. It's not so much that they are taught basic tasks over and over, but that together those tasks amount to something so much more complex.

stcredzero 14y ago
One can say the same for human beings.

po 14y ago

I have long thought that it's the most intelligent dogs that have the worst behavior problems. Although, it's not their fault, it's the fault of an owner who thinks they can reason with their dog using people-logic when they really need to learn more about how dogs think and behave. Owning an intelligent dog is like signing up for acting classes. The dog will watch your every move and play you like a chump if you do the wrong thing. It requires you to act like the alpha dog (which is a very awkward feeling to most people) in order to maintain the behaviors you want. This means understanding how dogs see reward, punishment, encouragement, etc… or at least learning what to do when you see behavior that you don't like and understanding how your own behavior affects the dog. I wouldn't say that less intelligent breeds/individuals don't have issues, but a super-smart shepherd or hunting dog can easily get bored and turn that creative energy into a destructive streak.

pbiggar 14y ago
Agreed about bored dogs having the worst behaviour, and the rest of your comment is spot on, but I'd like to correct a common but incorrect belief that you bring up: > It requires you to act like the alpha dog (which is a very awkward feeling to most people) in order to maintain the behaviors you want. The "alpha-dog" theory has been totally disproved by dog behaviourists. It was an extrapolation from a single case study in the 1930s, of captive wolves. It has since been debunked, and is not even applicable to wolves, never mind domestic dogs. All the dog training which is based on this (such as Cesar Milan's submission-based training) holds no merit, and is far more likely to be detrimental than positive, as it relies on terrifying the dog. Note that this was only debunked in 2000, so a huge amount of dog training and research needs to be revised as a result. Much more detail here: http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/14_12/features/Alpha-Dogs_20416-1.html http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/14_12/features/Alpha...
- adrianbye 14y ago
  the page you links to cites one solo "debunking" study which was done by a guy named Dave Mech, who links to occupy wall street and likes "evolutionary biology and social justice": http://www.davemech.com/ http://www.davemech.com/ people's personal views often influence research

tamersalama 14y ago

Sorry - couldn't help it. Related: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ueg7Q7hO7U http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ueg7Q7hO7U http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwpWaLrDHnU http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwpWaLrDHnU There was another prank but couldn't find it

ichinaski 14y ago

That´s not a dog. That´s an ewok.

stcredzero 14y ago

The dogs in the video look supremely pleased to me. There's something about the way dogs stick their heads out the car window that makes me think most of them would love to drive. I'm not the only one. I remember hearing someone's song about the same thing and wishing they could let their dog drive the car. If in 30 years, with advances in genetic engineering and our understanding of intelligence, dogs were driving cabs, I wouldn't think that's wrong at all, but somehow right.

rerere 14y ago

After we started letting women drive, this was only a matter of time.