Majestyk

I don't think this is accurate. I'd be more inclined to say that a dog's awareness of self is limited by its ability to define itself. It knows it is. It just doesn't know what it is.

This is just speculation on my part but, it would seem reasonable that before a social awareness could develop, a self-awareness would be required. In order for the pack to have a hierarchical structure, individual dogs would have to know their place within that hierarchy.

What consciousness is, I haven't nailed done yet but I think that any creature with the capacity for memory and the ability to identify individuals within its own species would possess/demonstrate it. Somewhere between that and rudimentary stimulus/response capabilities is where I’d expect to find organisms with basic consciousness.

Nowhere357

Dogs have self-awareness. What I think you mean is that they have little ego. The frontal lobes seem to generate our sense of ego, and dogs have very small frontal lobes. IMO dogs have consciousness.

BTW this is a reason I oppose xianity. Dogs don't deserve to burn in hell.

Nowhere357

Agreed. Do you use "the ability to identify individuals within its own species" as an indication that the creature has self-awareness?

Majestyk

Yes. Based on the presumption that either the identification of self precedes the ability to identify other unique individuals or the ability to identify other unique individuals will inevitably lead to an identification of self.

Answerer

Ok, I think I understand, thanks.

dk

Because people have dominion over dogs. I would suggest that whatever else dogs might be, they are in large part the product of human breeding.

Wyz_sub10

What I mean by "self-awareness"...well, to avoid confusion, let me put it this way - a dog cannot recognize himself in the mirror or relate to himself beyond the first person. Very few animals have this type of "awareness".

I do think dogs have consciousness. I certainly wasn't trying to say otherwise.

Nowhere357

The second sentence is correct, I am sure.
What does 'dominion' mean to you? We are smarter, but they occasionally still rip our throats out.

Nowhere357

Very good and very clear - thank you.

I'm not having luck finding sites that talk about the idea of recognizing oneself in a mirror - please offer support for the the statement '...a dog cannot recognize himself in the mirror...'?

Nowhere357

You are welcome.

Will you share your understanding about consciousness?