Socrates famously calls dogs "philosophical animals" in Plato's Republic. In this vein, a friend of mine, Gary Borjesson, has a book coming out that's in large part a philosophical meditation on our relationship with dogs and the nature of friendship. I'll get to posting about the book itself this summer, but he had a nice conversation with KMO of the C-Realm Podcast not too long ago that's worth a listen. Midway through he has a nice discussion of thumos (or "spiritednesss") and the Socrates' tripartite soul which we never did get to in our discussion of the Republic. (Maybe next time; it is a long book.) There's also a nice bit about understanding our own authority and its proper use.
-Dylan
http://www.jcrt.org/archives/11.3/mccullough.pdf
“The revelatory event happens uneventfully—silently and privately—in Derrida’s bathroom as he stands “stark naked” before a cat.”