The average person can't tell a german shepherd from a saint bernard from a cocker spaniel.
What's something you heard at a zoo or aquarium from another guest that irritated you?
- Thread starter Davdhole
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The average person can't tell a german shepherd from a saint bernard from a cocker spaniel.
Because they don't want to "lose face". Which is in particular true for people representing the Dunning-Kruger effect.
These people get their pov installed from one-sided media consumption that zoos are a) only for kids and b) zoo animals are all suffering. To distinguish themselves via virtue-signaling, they want to make it clear to everyone that they're only here because of the kids, and actually would never go to a zoo on their own. After all, they already know everything that needs to be known about animals (once again, Dunning-Kruger effect). So they behave like a sullen teenager dragged on a family outing and try to put everyone off. The trick in a guided tour with this kind of people is to showcase (in a positive way) to everyone, including themselves, that they actually do not know everything (or anything at all) about animals / nature and bring them to the same level of kidlike innocent wonder & fascination for animals as the more positive members of the family. Once you've achieved that feat, the whole experience and educational effect for the whole family improves greatly.
Actually, I'm pretty sure the average person can identify dog breeds, they just can't ID anything else.
@birdsandbats given how many times I've seen people cheated over dogs, I somehow doubt that.
I don’t even know what a saint benard even is.
Big Swiss dog breed originally famous as avalanche rescue dogs. Nowadays quite popular oversized pet breed with movie appearances in "Cujo" or the "Beethoven" family film series.
The ones that carry little barrels of whisky under their chins.
AFAIK the whole carrying whiskey thing is a myth
Cujo is well before your time. It was a horror movie about a killer dog, referenced on Friends once, although that might also be before your time. I don't think that the movie popularised keeping them as pets though...
Beethoven I thought you would know - kids movie about a big friendly dog.
Then what did the dogs drink after a successful rescue mission?
Nope, I’m not really a movie person though.
The story of the alcohol (or spinach when it comes to Popeye) delivery via dog is a myth. Albeit a popular one that made it into various cartoons and even German "Volksmusik"
Cujo is based on a novel of the very same name by Stephen King about a rabid St. Bairnard killing several people in its infectious frenzy. The incident is referenced in other King novels.
@Yoshistar888 's ignorance regarding St. Bairnards actually supports my previous point that knowledge regarding dog breeds is not that common as assumed.
@Yoshistar888 's ignorance regarding St. Bairnards actually supports my previous point that knowledge regarding dog breeds is not that common as assumed.
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And apparently not a dog person, too.
A pflümi off duty, maybe.
At least, they can tell better than I can.
I was at Paignton up by the parrot aviaries. A little boy is looking at the Hyacinth Macaws and calls his dad over saying "look daddy it's a parrot", to which the dad replies "no son it's not a parrot, it's a bird". I couldn't get this out of my head for the rest of the day.
How the...
I work with dogs and the public. They really, really can't.
It is a myth
It started with a painting by Edwin Landseer (the most famous dog artist), titled Alpine Mastiffs Reanimating a Distressed Traveler. Having a barrel would have gotten in the way of the dogs' work. Sometimes the monks would carry whiskey or brandy, but never the dogs.