Willow Springs is a site located in southern Wyoming almost on the Colorado border that is home to archaeological components spanning almost 10 thousand years.
Walking around the site, you can see the Overland Trail goes right through it, and due to the freshwater resources became a small stagecoach station where people on the trail would swap and water their horses.
Also located in the area is a Paleo component with the bones of an extinct Ice Age bison. This excavation is led by the Office of the Wyoming State Archaeologist (Dr. Spencer Pelton) and a crew of volunteers.
Here’s a sample of what excavations look like on the High Plains.
This week I’m joined by archaeologist Dr. Alyce Cannon () for a conversation about dogs in the ancient world, archaeology, mythology, and one of the most devastating dog stories ever told.
When Odysseus finally returns to Ithaca after twenty years away, he arrives disguised as a beggar. No one recognizes him—not his servants, not his people, not even his wife.
But Argos knows.
Old, neglected, and near the end of his life, the faithful dog lifts his head, flattens his ears, and wags his tail. Odysseus recognizes him too, but cannot reveal himself without jeopardizing everything. He walks past.
Moments later, Argos dies.
Nearly 3,000 years later, audiences still remember that scene. It speaks to something timeless: loyalty, memory, recognition, and the extraordinary bond between humans and dogs.
In this episode, Dr. Cannon and I explore what stories like Argos can tell us about the ancient world, how dogs appear in mythology and the archaeological record, and why our relationship with them remains one of humanity’s most enduring partnerships.
Listen now on Spotify, Apple, or watch the full episode on YouTube
Why do dog stories hit us harder than almost any other kind of story?
In this episode of Ethnocynology, David Ian Howe sits down with classical canine scholar Dr. Alyce Cannon to explore dogs in mythology, history, literature, film, and popular culture. From Argos in The Odyssey to Seymour in Futurama, Hachikō, I Am Legend, and beyond, we examine why dogs have become humanity's most enduring symbols of loyalty, companionship, death, and remembrance.
We also dive into the role of dogs in ancient Greece, the Athenian plague, Diogenes and Cynic philosophy, dogs as psychopomps, and how canine-human relationships have shaped stories for thousands of years.
If you've ever cried over a dog in a movie, this episode explains why.
Guest: Dr. Alyce Cannon
Host: David Ian Howe
Dog Course: https://www.Fluent.pet/David
Merch: https://www.davidianowe.com/store
Timecodes:
0:00 Intro
1:48 Alyce's Work
4:59 Cynicism and Diogenes
09:38 Athenian Plaguye and Dogs
14:39 Psychopomps
18:40 Argos
27:23 Dogs Dying in Movies
31:54 Socializing with Dogs
35:48 Futurama
39:08 Greyfriars Bobby / Psychopomps
44:35 Lost
46:00 Dogs as Signals of Character
53:10 The Odyssey Film
Dogs aren’t just pets. They’ve been part of human life for roughly 20,000 years—about 10,000 years longer than cats and thousands of years before horses entered our lives. For millennia they’ve hunted with us, traveled with us, guarded us, slept beside us, and become part of our families.
There’s also biology behind it. Humans and dogs experience mutual oxytocin release when we interact, strengthening the bond between us.
Maybe that’s why losing a dog can feel so devastating. They’re often the family member we see every single day.
While there’s been 60-70 million years since we last shared a common ancestor, humans and wolves share so many similarities.
We’re both highly social mammals that live in close family groups, we’re top predators with similar prey breadth, and we invest a lot of time in rearing our young.
Through a language of food, reward, and cooperation, wolves were easily able to socialize and bond with humans - both socially and chemically- over 20,000 years ago. This process is why domestic dogs are still so prevalent today, and why their species name means - the Friendly Wolf.
In ancient times dogs were integral to human survival. Today they serve as tools and companions. And I have no doubt, as far into the future, they will remain alongside us to the end of days.
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