communication.

Growling

The dog growled as the woman approached.  The woman was the canine owner's friend; but as she got closer the growling got more serious.  This is when the owner said "stop it" in a very harsh manner, pushing him several inches.  I heard her explain then "oh he's fine, he just like to talk."  Hmmmmm.   Let's have a look at this.

The dog was sitting with it's owner at an outdoor cafe.  They were sitting enjoying the day until the woman's friend arrived.  This other woman had on a very large brimmed hat and had a leg brace.  Nothing strange, right?  For us maybe but the dog saw things quite differently.  As the growling started the owner had gotten mad, scolding and even pushing her dog; a clear sign to the dog that all was not well.  Having lost his ability to communicate he was then on pins and needles.  I watched him watching the hat wearing lady.  His eyes were wary and ready for anything weird that she might do. Not a good scenario.  

"We don't allow growling at our house."  "My dog is not allowed to growl."

How many times have I heard this?  Too many times.  

When a dog growls and we quickly stop it by scolding our dogs; we ultimately cut the lines of communication.  We remove the "heads up" that a growl gives us.  A dog learns to not to growl; which in turn can be a very dangerous situation.  

Dogs are not allowed to communicate?  Too many humans don't want any type of growling.  Why?  Because they think that growling is aggression.  Growling is not aggression, growling is a means to avoid aggression.  It is a communication given by a dog to express their feelings.  It can have many meanings but if you don't allow it then you basically silence your dog.  If you don't know how to read body language; then you, my friend, are up sh&ts creek without a paddle.

Of course there are times when growling should not be allowed.  My JRT Jessie loved to bully Luke when he was younger.  She loved to growl and snap at him for nothing, that was stopped.  But even growling within a pack is important; it is that "heads up" that you need before any problems arise.  

If your dog growls, listen.  Stopping a growl should be done by addressing why the growl is being used.  Sometimes a dog just needs space.  In the above scenario, the woman with the hat could have simply taken it off.  It was very clear that the dog saw it as a threat.  Helping our dogs does not happen by shutting them up and not listening to them.  Yes they do have opinions, emotions and feelings.  

Don't silence your dog from communicating; it's not fair and can be very dangerous.   

Eye contact




Eye contact -  a meeting of the eyes of two persons, regarded as a meaningful nonverbal form of communication.

There are all different degrees of eye contact in dogs.  Eye contact is a powerful means of communication and it is something that I look for in puppies.  I love eye contact; looking down and seeing my dog looking back at me.  Eye contact is a funny thing; it is much more than a connecting of the eyes.  A lot can be said with a simple contact; that is depending on who the target contact is.

Elsa is a big eye contact dog, as is Luke.  The difference in the two now is simply age and experience.  Yesterday while Elsa and I were at the park; we passed by a dog who was giving Elsa a lot of eye contact.  She didn't like it; and it is quite understandable.  As we walked down the path and nearer to the dog; it just stood frozen staring.  The owner had it out on an extension and was not reeling it in at all.  I assessed the dog as best I could.  It looked older, maybe a Siberian/Cattle dog mix.  I knew immediately that Elsa was not going to like this as we got closer.  I kept my pace exact, my demeanor was calm and confident.  As we passed the dog, it continued to stare as I gave us some space by unnoticeably moving away ever so slightly.  

Just passed the dog and Elsa let out a huge snort.  She's a snorter and her snorts mean something.  They are typically when she is stressed or anxious; when she feels the need to say something.  Much like us saying "holy sh*%, what the heck or really?"  So when she snorts I listen; and I always look around to see what she is snorting at.  As we passed the man and his dog he said "she just likes to smell," but her smelling was an unnerving behavior for Elsa; who happens to be a reader.  It is what she does and she doesn't miss a thing. 

We could walk right past a dog with only inches apart and if the dog was minding it's own business, all would be fine.  As soon as that dog connects eyes, everything changes.  That is, it changes for Elsa; not all dogs.  Many dogs are oblivious to eye contact or they simply don't care.  Elsa doesn't dislike eye contact; she simply has a heighten awareness when it comes to it.  It is not just dog eye contact that she is aware of; she watches humans and their eye contact as well.  If someone stares at her she gets quite antsy.  She tries so hard to figure out what they are saying and if they are just staring and really saying nothing, it's just plain weird to her.  

Most dogs are very aware of eye contact; but like I said some are not.  When dealing with dogs, it is a good idea to be aware of your own eye contact.  Each and every time I walk into a new training clients house I will give no eye contact. Not until I see that the dog is completely comfortable with me and me moving around in their house do I give eye contact.  Even then I am careful and do it a bit at a time. 

We recently had a party at our house.  They were both loving everyone until; one guy who had a hat on startled Elsa.  He then tried very hard to be her friend by holding his hand out and staring at her.  Humans just don't get dog language.  How many times have I said to people "just don't look at her?"  Dogs care much more about eye contact than we do.  If you meet a dog who is shy or fearful; the worst thing you can do is to look at them.  You can look past them but not at them.  Dogs are very highly tuned to direct eye contact.  Even if I'm trying to round up Luke or Elsa for a bath, I will not look at them.  Once I do they know I'm coming for them. 

Luke use to be quite the guard dog.  But everything rested on body direction and eye contact.  When he was in the car; people could walk by just fine, even bump into our car.  But, if someone did the same thing and looked into the car at him, everything changed.  At 13 he doesn't care about a whole lot; nothing much gets him flustered.  But in his day he was very much an eye dog. 

When we meet new people each day, Elsa pretty much becomes a wiggle monster.  She adores people...but; if they look into her eyes when they are petting you can literally see her pull back.  There is a tiny message in those eyes; she is sure of it, even if the person means nothing by it.  For dogs, eye contact means a lot. 

Do you have an eye contact dog?  Watch them watch other dogs and people to see.  Eyes say a great deal, if you're paying attention.