Companionship
Companionship - The fellowship existing among companions.
Companions - One that keeps company of another.
Company - Association with another.
DOG = your companion
Dogs are our companions, we are our dogs companions. When you add a dog to your family, you have taken the step to create a human/canine life and connection. This means that you have made the conscious decision to have a member of the canis lupus species living in your home with you. Weird eh?
The more you learn about your dog, the more you will be able to connect with them.
But bringing them home and having them live seamlessly in our home; along side us day in and day out is something all together different. Many people choose a dog from a shelter, rescue, breeder or the guy down the street; bring them home and figure that’s it. “Now we have a dog.” Right? This is how a lot of people live with dogs, but there is so much more to know.
Dogs are extremely complicated, emotional beings; infact they are sentient beings. They have emotions, thoughts and individual personalities. The connection and bond that can be formed through learning about our dogs is immense and at times, mind boggling. A dog can come into your life and completely change you into a different person (in a good way). They can alter what you consider to be important in your life.
Dogs are amazing creatures; they are often a much better species than we humans are.
So what does companionship mean in the world of the k9/human life? To live a truly k9/human connection life with your dog means;
You will learn about them and strive to fulfill their needs.
Build a real relationship with them.
Share your life with theirs, as it slowly becomes meshed and entwined.
Once you discover the secrets kept within a canine, you will NEVER be the same.
Your dog is family.
Many people consider dogs as “just dogs.” The sad reality is that many people are tempted by that adorable puppy. They bring the puppy home, are very quickly overwhelmed and in the yard that adorable puppy goes. A dog that lives outside without the companionship of family is not a good life for a dog.
Your dog is not “just a dog,” it is your dog, a member of your family. The way you talk about your dog says a lot. If you call your dog “the dog” then you probably feel that they are just a dog. But, if you say “my dog, or Bengi” then you will feel like your dog is indeed, a family member. Imagine if you said “I’m going to take THE KID to school” when talking about your child? Most of us would not call our child, THE KID.
When you delve into the world of dog, your dog; you will have a whole world open up for you. When we take the time to learn about the animal living in our home; we are given a unique opportunity to explore more.
A great deal of time should be spent just hanging out with your dog. Getting to know who they are; what their likes and dislikes are. Quality time spent with your dog is how you build a connection, a bond.
Trust
Trust is an essential part of creating an amazing connection with your dog. Trust building is one of the most important parts of confidence (for both of you) rowth as you forge your bond and companionship life together. When your dog understands through action that you will never hurt them, always have their back and be by their side through thick and thin; that is when you will have fully connected.
Domestication-where is started
Dogs are only our companions because they were domesticated maybe 23,000 years ago in Siberia. I am only going to touch on domestication very briefly as it seems after much research that facts are still be discovered and may never be known for sure. It was thought that the ancestor of our dog of today was the Gray wolf; but it may not be that at all. To date, much of the information around domestication points to an ancestor of the gray wolf as the animal that was in fact first domesticated.
Once they were domesticated, it was we humans who sort of fine tuned the dog into different breeds for our own needs and wants. We started creating dogs for what we required for our day to day. Each group of people wanted something different which is where it all began. Dogs who were not friendly, didn’t fit the bill of what they were looking for or needed were culled from the breeding program. It was not pretty but it is how it all began.
It took a lot of breeding to get to the point where we are today. But know that dog beside you came from wild dogs most definitely. The exact animal is still awaiting more research.