I have three dogs, two are pets and one is a working dog but he is a big sweetie too!
I'm with you. Dogs over cats, any day. There's a reason dogs were one of the first species to be domesticated, and they've essentially been hand-picked over the decades, as they've been selectively bred over millennia for various behaviors, physical attributes, etc.
Yes indeed my two females are mostly inside dogs and guard my home, they do go out in the day but they are protective and territorial
They've been around us, as humans, for so long that they've kind of evolved to suit us as much as themselves, and have become attuned to our behaviors. They can eat starch-rich diets that other canid species couldn't, for example.
Yes my girls seem to be in tune with me. My male is a working livestock guardian dog and keeps livestock safe from predators
Livestock guardian dogs are so impressive. Even just the sight of them keeps predators at bay. It's interesting how instinctual a lot of dog behavior is, how intuitive they can be. Your dog sees the herd and knows as its core that it must protect it.
Yes he seems to know its his job I can't even call him up if he sense danger near the herd he will not leave them, super intelligent!
It's that intelligence that leads them to fill so many roles in society... hunting, herding, pulling loads, protecting, assisting police/military, and not to mention companionship. They've been great in social work too, to provide therapeutic assistance to individuals with disabilities.
They are so tuned in to their owners too, that is why people say they are mans best friend. Cats are just self centered and weird lol
How useful and admirable they are as pets today makes you want to study their past... They're slightly related to the gray wolf, which is considered their "sister taxa," but we don't really know the first direct ancestor of the dog these days, and likely means that they're extinct.