Lola : $b or, The thought and speech of animalsKindermann, Henny
Science
Lola : $b or, The thought and speech of animals
Kindermann, Henny
Animal intelligence; Dogs -- Folklore
"In order to subject him to an unexpected test I had brought with me a
box containing a 'may-bug' made of papier mache, the inside of which
was filled with biscuits. After Frau Dr. Moekel had retired from the
platform I opened my box and showed it to Rolf. He pushed his nose into
it, exhibiting marked interest and seemed impatient to communicate the
matter to his mistress, therefore without more ado he spelt out:
'maigfr in sagdl, inn was dsm sn' (i.e. 'Maikafer in der Schachtel;
innen was zu essen') (May-bug in box; inside something to eat), adding,
presumably as an after-thought, 'nid gefressn' (nicht gefressen; didn't
eat it!). Rolf had therefore recognised the biscuits inside the may-bug
by their smell only--and was anxious that she should know that they
hadn't been given him to eat! After this a gentleman in the audience
asked permission to put a secret test. The object selected was shown to
the dog in such a manner that his mistress had to turn aside so as not
to see it. But Rolf had become obstinate and refused to name the thing,
and he insisted on spelling out: 'nid, lol rgrd der wisd man': he
appeared to be 'geaergert' by the 'wueste man' (worried, or vexed by the
rough man)--and it may, indeed, have been that the dog sensed a certain
distrust of his mistress, or that, as is often the case with other
dogs, that he was reluctant to 'show off' at the request of an entire
stranger. Another time, should a similar trial be contemplated, it
would be wiser if the article to be named by the dog were--even if
handed up by the person desirous of making the test--shown him by
someone with whom he is familiar.[4]
[4] Frau Dr. Moekel told me that she again asked the dog on
the following day what the article shown him had been and he
answered: "hd sdld bei arm grosfadr grab lib maibliml" (Hat
gestehlt bei des armen Grossvaters Grab das liebe Maibluemchen)
(Had stolen from dear grandfather's grave the dear little
lilies-of-the-valley!). The object shown him had been a
lily-of-the-valley, and a few days before, Frau Moekel's
mother had told the children that she had taken all the
lilies-of-the-valley to their grandfather's grave. Rolf,
therefore, seemed to have conceived the idea that the flowers
shown him had been pilfered.--ZIEGLER.
"Gradually Rolf became tired and rapped out: 'lol bd' (i.e. Rolf bett =
Rolf to bed). A pause was made during which some of Rolf's earlier
communications were made public. One was his reply as to why dogs do
not like cats;[5] this ran: 'lol imr hd dsorn wn sid kdsl, freigt fon
wgn graln. Lol hd lib sis dsi di nid dud grdsn lol, abr, andr hundl, di
nid gnn ir.' ( = Lol is always angry when he sees cats, perhaps on
account of their claws: Lol loves sweet Daisy, who doesn't scratch
Lol--but other dogs who do not know her.)
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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