DirecTV to Offer DogTV, a Channel for Your Pet

Cable and satellite TV providers give you access to hundreds of channels, but all of them are clearly intended for human viewers. That's about to change.

Bloomberg reports that DirecTV will soon start showing DogTV, the world's first television channel whose target audience has four legs and a tail.

The network explains on its website that it features 24/7 programming "created to meet specific attributes of a dog's sense of vision and hearing and supports their natural behavior patterns."

It goes on to explain that the channel "helps prevent mental fatigue, depression and boredom." Clearly, the idea here is to keep your dog from getting anxious or restless while you're off at work. Some of the programming is meant to relax the dog by showing other dogs chilling by a pond or sleeping peacefully; some is meant to stimulate the dog by showing other dogs at play, as seen here:

We can't help but wonder if seeing those lucky dogs frolic and play might provoke feelings of canine jealousy in a housebound pooch. Another possible scenario is that your dog will get a little too excited and try to join in on the fun.

But the channel's animal behavior experts insist that the veterinary science underlying the approach is sound. If you want the channel for your pooch -- or you think you'd enjoy watching dogs play on your television all day -- you'll be able to get it in the third quarter for just $6 a month.

Matt Brownell is the consumer and retail reporter for DailyFinance. You can reach him at Matt.Brownell@teamaol.com, and follow him on Twitter at @Brownellorama.