The right toy turns an ordinary afternoon into a brain-building workout. Here are the five best dog toys of 2026 — tested for durability, enrichment, and the specific play styles that make your dog unique.
Read “The Best Dog Toys for 2026”
Machine-learning models trained on facial action units, ear position, and tail kinematics can now classify canine affective state with accuracy that rivals trained human observers. The caveats matter.
The question of whether dogs understand that humans see, know, and want things — distinct from what the dog itself sees, knows, and wants — has moved from speculation to laboratory result.
Enrichment doesn't require special equipment or a research lab. It requires variety, a little structure, and a willingness to let your dog think hard for short bursts.
Episodic-like memory in dogs is real, but it works on a different clock than ours. Understanding the timescales matters more than most training advice suggests.
Canine Cognitive Dysfunction affects roughly a third of dogs over eleven. The earliest signs are subtle, easy to miss, and surprisingly responsive to intervention if caught in time.
More than half of pet dogs in the US are overweight. The conversation has focused on joints and lifespan. The conversation we haven't been having is about cognition.