To me, the natural rythms of the dogs’ needs are one of the best associated benefits of dog ownership. To fulfill their own needs, the mutts enforce a schedule on me. My natural tendency is to get up somewhere around noon and go to bed whenever my eyelids get too heavy to support conscious thought. This isn’t the best schedule for a number of reasons. It keeps me from going to work on time and going to bed in time to wake up rested.

As soon as the sun comes up, the dogs are ready for breakfast… which leads me to get up and eat too. As soon as the sun goes down, they’re whining and putting their heads in my lap for dinner… which leads me to notice that maybe I should feed myself. Bedtime isn’t an abstract concept, it’s bedtime, with all three of us curled up in various corners of the bedroom. It’s another reinforcement of the symbiotic nature of the relationship between dog and human.