How so? Humans are very much the same way in many years, particularly as children.

Food is a primary reinforcers for all species. Neither humans nor dogs are special in that respect. I don't see why anyone should find that depressing.

Spend some time training dogs and you'll also find both that food motivation can vary quite a bit (some dogs are more interested in toys than food, for instance) and also that it's quite possible to train dogs without always relying on a food reward.

Generally the deeper you go with understanding and training dog behavior, the more you realize how the same learning theory that informs scientific dog training also describes human behavior. (Imo it also reveals deficiencies in thinking in terms of learning theory/behaviorism alone; idk how you could work closely with animals and seriously believe they lack cognition.)

We are also the same. We are out for food, the rest is just talk..

What do you mean by that?

Of course sharing food is a way to build social bonding and positively motivate social conformance. It is with people too, which is why it's so natural for us to carry it over to our relationship with dogs.

How or why is that depressing?

It's good that we crave what helps us thrive and that we can recognize who makes it easy for us to have more, and there's a beautiful elegance to that fact that so many creatures share the trait, across such diverse lineages as birds, reptiles, fish, arthropods, mammals, etc

Isn't that inspiring, rather than depressing?

I ride a lot of bike. I love it when dog owners see someone approaching on a bike, tell their dog to sit and give him a treat. These dogs will then stop when they notice a bike approaching while the owner is distracted. I am always so grateful that I say thank you to the owners.

Then there are those who just don't care to train their dogs.

> Then there are those who just don't care to train their dogs.

There is a worse option.

The thin extending dog lead at maximum extension while walking the dog in twilight on a cycle path. What could go wrong?

I tripped over one of these in central London where it abruptly started raining heavily and the owner ran off in one direction while the dog went in another.

Got some doubts about the value of those leads in general; surely it just means the dog has no gauge at all in how far they can go in any direction?

I assumed someone was doing this to me on a sunset run along a paved path. Human standing on one side of the path, small dog in the grass on the side, so I cut my running closer to the dog.

It wasn't a dog, it was a skunk. Fortunately it didn't seem threatened and just waddled away.