zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Culture
/
I'm Obsessed With These Dogs That Can Drive Cars
I'm Obsessed With These Dogs That Can Drive Cars-October 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:12:27

Image for article titled I'm Obsessed With These Dogs That Can Drive Cars

Every so often, two of my interests collide. Sometimes, it’s finding out that a race car driver also likes one of my niche bands. Sometimes, it’s discovering the beautiful world of Animal Crossing crochet. Today, it’s discovering that people have actually taught dogs to drive.

I can’t take credit for this discovery, because apparently it had been an internet sensation almost a decade ago, and my stepdad recently sent a video along to me because I had no idea what he was referencing. And, my god, I’m in love.

Just. Stop whatever you’re doing. Stop and enjoy this video.

The video was created in partnership with the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) in New Zealand, in part to show that shelter dogs are delightful lil creatures that can still be trained, even though they might be older or have come from a background of neglect. In fact, these dogs can be trained above and beyond what you’d expect a dog could do.

Which is a silly stereotype to believe, since there’s a long history of , but hey. People stink.

These three dogs—Porter, Monty, and Ginny—were given an eight-week training period to learn how to drive, according to . Which is pretty impressive, considering it takes the average teenager a hell of a lot longer. But the dogs generally learned one skill at a time—shifting, for example, or braking—before applying it all at once. We generally ask kiddos to do all those tasks at the same time, which can make it far more stressful.

Admittedly, a trainer was directing the dogs from outside the car, but y’know what? That’s okay. They’re dogs. They’re doing their best. It took my dogs ages to learn to sit unprompted before I gave them a treat, even though I asked them to sit every time they got a treat. And the purpose of the video is less to legitimately teach a dog to drive a car than it is to show that dogs can be trained to take on a complicated series of actions. I’ll hear no slander in the comments.

Now excuse me while I attempt to teach to become an iRacing pro instead of licking the couch cushions.

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Culture
Covid-19 Cases Shut Down Production Of Toyota's Bestselling Models In North America
Covid-19 Cases Shut Down Production Of Toyota's Bestselling Models In North America
A Covid outbreak at one of Toyota’s suppliers has forced the automaker to stop the production of some of its bestselling models. There have been 10 positive cases at Toyota’s supplier Toyotetsu Canada, Inc in Simcoe, Ontario, according to and a from the supplier. This same supplier had 25...
Oct 19, 2026
The Nissan 370Z Is Really, Truly Dead Now
The Nissan 370Z Is Really, Truly Dead Now
Try to buy a new . Just try! See what happens. You probably won’t have much luck, as 2020 model year examples of the sports car have all but evaporated at dealer lots across the country, reports. Now, this isn’t surprising. Nissan told us last year was to be...
Oct 19, 2026
Rental Cars, Like Everything, Are Getting Hard To Find And More Expensive Than Ever
Rental Cars, Like Everything, Are Getting Hard To Find And More Expensive Than Ever
Nobody is safe from the never-ending . Not manufacturers, who are unable to build new cars. Not consumers, who can’t buy them. And not even rental car companies, which typically buy their fleets from automakers in bulk but have recently had to turn to purchasing used vehicles at auction...
Oct 19, 2026
Uber’s Business ‘Clouded’ By Treating Everyone Like Scum
Uber’s Business ‘Clouded’ By Treating Everyone Like Scum
Uber is having a hard time getting its side hustle of providing cabs back up and running, but having no trouble with its main business of government grift. All that and more in for May 4, 2021. Who knew that if you ran an entire business treating the people...
Oct 19, 2026
Porsche's Star Wars-Related Tweet Implies All Cars Are Part Of The Dark Side
Porsche's Star Wars-Related Tweet Implies All Cars Are Part Of The Dark Side
Today is May 4, which, when read aloud in the English language, sounds like “may forth,” which is close enough to the iconic sci-fi series Star Wars oft-repeated line “” that the day has become sort of an informal holiday where people talk about Star Wars stuff and The...
Oct 19, 2026
Blip: It's Heavy!
Blip: It's Heavy!
If you read that ad copy for this 1972 Oldsmobile Delta 88 coupe, it’s pretty revealing of how much what carmakers say about their cars has changed. I’m not sure any carmaker would just volunteer “it’s heavy” as a key selling, point. I also like that an awful lot...
Oct 19, 2026
Copyright 2023-2026 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved