One of the most recurring topics during a behavioral-psychological intervention for a dog is its nature, instincts, impulses, inherent behavior, and specific needs as a species. The dog's owner (or rather, its guardian—since "owner" implies an object-like connotation that clearly does not apply to living beings) often struggles with behavioral problems, bad habits, destructive or aggressive attitudes, etc. They frequently witness an "uncontrolled" expression of canine instinct, and despite being somewhat aware of it, they fail to understand how a dog that was born in a human home, raised among people and other dogs, fed daily since birth, slept in its bed, and ate from its bowl (just to name a few examples) could suddenly "go crazy."
It is evident to most humans (Homo sapiens) that the bond we share with domesticated species, a relationship spanning thousands of years, is extremely strong. Even without having lived in the era when farm animals became part of our daily lives, we understand that thanks to these fortunate associations, our lives have improved. Our partnership with our canine friends (Canis lupus familiaris), direct descendants of one or more wolf species (Canis lupus), is no exception.
Today, no one can deny the importance of our canine companions. Their roles as working animals in farming, hunting, retrieving, guarding, narcotics detection, and countless other tasks, as well as their service as companion animals and even in psychological and medical assistance, have tremendously improved human life. They have facilitated tasks we have performed throughout history, making their inclusion in our society perhaps one of the earliest forms of "enhanced humans," much like today's technology, which makes virtually everything easier.
However, the replacement of our canine friends with technology is just one of many factors that have triggered a wave of anxious, depressed, aggressive, compulsive, unsatisfied, and overly restrained dogs. But this explanation alone does not fully account for what is happening—it even sounds like an overly simplistic and shallow rationale.
So, let’s go deeper. That depth is precisely the focus of this discussion.
A Thought Experiment
Imagine you are a European wolf (Canis lupus lupus), a descendant of "alphas" (both male and female), who were the most reproductively successful individuals in the wild—selected over millions of years through natural selection. This selection process included periods of hunger, droughts, storms, floods, predators, territorial disputes, fights, injuries, fractures, and much more than we can even begin to imagine.
By some twist of fate, you are born near a human settlement, and as a defenseless pup, a Homo sapiens (a human) takes you in as a pet. You are confined, tied up, or otherwise restrained to prevent you from escaping. But you try, relentlessly. You bite, howl, whimper, sleep, wake up, and try a thousand more times to break free from the cage, rope, or whatever restricts your freedom—a freedom you unknowingly long for because it is your nature. Your instinct compels you to fight for it.
After countless escape attempts, you do not die because a member of another species feeds you, shelters you, provides water and companionship. Yet none of it aligns with your natural instincts—it does not fulfill you. But you do not die. Months pass, and you become gradually conditioned to these new stimuli: the same people feeding you, the same voice, the same scent, maybe even a name. Perhaps one day you bit your caretaker and were beaten for it. Maybe you were left without food for days afterward. (Don’t be alarmed—this happened 16,000 years ago in a harsh world where survival of the fittest was the law.)
Eventually, you find yourself conditioned—your survival depends on two things:a) If you behave "well" → rewardb) If you behave "badly" → punishment
Gradually, you abandon behaviors that lead to negative experiences. You are being shaped, conditioned. Over time, you stop biting and trying to escape. Your captors now trust you more.
One day, you are released. But your instinct "betrays" you—you run away. However, remember two crucial facts:
You were confined since infancy and lack hunting skills.
You have been conditioned to associate humans with food and shelter.
Yet, your instinct tells you to flee to the mountains, and so you do. There, you encounter wild wolves. They have a language you do not understand. Your underdeveloped communication skills make interactions ineffective—you are physically the same, yet you speak different dialects.
This misunderstanding leads to a brutal beating—you flee just in time to survive. You wander through an unfamiliar world, barely managing to eat scavenged carrion before being chased away by stronger, wilder creatures, perhaps even by your own wolf relatives who nearly killed you earlier.
At some point in your journey, you catch a familiar scent—humans. Unconsciously, you move toward the source, finding comfort in its presence. You stealthily approach a human group, and while some are wary of you, you respond with a "human-like" greeting. Recognizing this, one of them tosses you a bone with some meat on it. Eureka! You have found food.
You linger near the human settlement, reach adulthood, find a way to reproduce, and keep your pups close to the settlement, where food is "easy." This ease comes at no cost to you or your lineage. Your pups experience the same fate—you were adopted, confined, conditioned—and the cycle repeats for thousands of years until none attempt to escape. Those who resist human conditioning are eliminated, while those with docile traits remain. The formula is simple.
This concludes our thought experiment.
Perspective
Over thousands of years, humans have selectively bred dogs, much like they did with chickens, cows, and horses. The docile individuals took on less wild appearances—perhaps whiter fur, shorter hair, or floppy ears. But they are still wolves—just slightly altered ones. Occasionally, they even interbreed with wild wolves, producing more "wolfish" pups. No problem—those are eliminated.
What remains unchanged through all of this? Instinct, natural behavior, and genetics. And what does this mean?
After roughly 10,000–11,000 years, we have managed to whimsically modify our furry companions' physical traits so much that the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI) officially recognizes 341 different dog breeds. In other words, humans have physically altered Canis lupus in 341 significantly different ways, leading to what we now call Canis lupus familiaris—a subspecies of the wolf.
And What Does This Have to Do with Your Dog?
Despite all these modifications, most changes have only scratched the surface—things like coat texture, size, ear shape, and bone proportions. But beneath it all, we still have a wolf trapped in a body poorly suited for its species, along with numerous health problems caused by human manipulation.
So, when people ask, "Why do dogs suddenly go crazy?" the answer is simple:They don't go crazy. They are simply expressing their wolf nature.Not enough time has passed to erase their connection to their wild ancestors. They still crave running, hunting, biting prey, exploring, fighting, asserting dominance, and traversing vast distances.
A domestic dog might not survive in the wild—but its instincts will push it to try.
Final Thought Experiment
Imagine being an alpha wolf—strong, fearless, a skilled hunter and fighter—only to wake up trapped in the body of a pug. Wouldn’t you go insane?
Now imagine a life where every instinct is restricted:
You smell food but can't hunt.
You are dressed in clothes and boots you don’t need.
You feel the urge to run, but you are carried instead.
You encounter another dog and want to assert yourself, but your distorted vision and breathing issues hold you back.
Day after day, frustration builds. Eventually, you lash out. You are not crazy—you are simply a wolf forced into a life that contradicts your very nature.
Moral of the Story
Every species has natural characteristics that deserve respect. If dogs could talk, their first request would be simple: Respect my nature.
A dog is happiest being a dog—nothing more, nothing less.
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