Understand your dog’s needs, desires and wishes.


In order to create a positive environment to care for your dog and to fulfil your role as a benevolent leader, it is important to understand your dog’s needs, desires and wishes as well as to address their concerns, fears and anxieties. This is even more so when you are caring for more than 1 dog. Whilst we have a vocabulary running into thousands of words, as well as gestures and body language, dogs cannot speak and so express themselves in the main through their body language. In the words of Santo  (How to Read Dog Body Language) “By understanding what your dog is trying to tell you, you’ll be able to predict what he’s likely to do next, which gives you the ability to prevent or manage his behavior.” Studies have shown that not only do dogs have personalities (such as (Davies, 2017), (Elyssa Payne, 2015)), but that they also feel emotions. The body language could be expressing both conscious and unconscious “intent and ensure their personal safety by affecting behavior in others. (Stilwell, CANINE BODY LANGUAGE, n.d.)” When one adds to this the store of experiences in the world, any medications or illnesses, and so on, something as simple as a wagging tail can mean anything from “Happy to see you” to “Back off, you’re stressing me out”. In the words of AnimalPlanet (Reading Your Dog), “A dog's tail, ears, eyes and mouth speak volumes without making a sound.”

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

from wolf to dog

The human/ canine relationship is thought to have begun between 40 and 60 000 years ago when man began to use wolves as a “tool” in hunting. It is thought that these would have been raised from cubs or be marginalised individuals who would be more inclined to form a mutually beneficial relationship (food, care and shelter in exchange for “work”/hunting). Both natural and artificial selection played their part in the diversion of the two species. Larson et al made a study of comparing the DNA of 700 modern dogs with that of the Newgrange series to suggest a dual-origin for the dog at each end of Eurasia, though as the eastern Asian population grew with time it replaced the European population so became the root of the modern dog. It should be noted that the modern dog does not descend directly from the modern wolf but from the east and west Eurasian wolves that are now extinct. We have to go back approximately 20 to 30 million years ago to find the common ancestor of the dog, the east...
Read more

At what age does a puppy’s critical learning period take place?

A puppy’s critical learning period takes place during its first 14 weeks of life. This is the time during which the brain is developing, and it is their experience during this period that will have the most impact on their personalities and behaviour. Scott and Fuller (Genetics and the Social Behavior of the Dog) carried out the 1st influential study in this field. They concluded that “dogs should be introduced gradually and sensitively to the circumstances that they are likely to experience during their lives.” (Genetics and the Social Behavior of the Dog, 1965) The critical learning period divides into a series of stages:   the neonatal (birth to 2 weeks) in which their mental capacity has yet to develop, the eyes and ears are still closed and nearly all their time is spent sleeping and feeding. Mild stress through gentle handling is very beneficial for the stimulation of the brain, and accelerates the development of motor and problem-solving skills as well as hair growt...
Read more

Is pack leadership based domination or the parental bond?

The dominance theory originates in the work of Rudolph Schenkel who studied captive wolves in Zoo Basel in 1947 in which he proposed the existence of an alpha wolf, that had fought his way to dominate the pack. He also drew on many comparisons with dogs to support his hypothesis as well as giving personal anecdotes about his own dogs. Further weight was given to this theory in 1970 when Meech published “The Wolf: The Ecology and Behavior of an Endangered Species” based on studies of wolves in Michigan's Isle Royale National Park. However as time went on studies moved onto wolves in the wild, and began understand that the wolf dominance theory was fundamentally flawed as wolf packs in the wild were related by blood, that is to say a male and a female would form a partnership and their off-spring would become the pack, so leadership was on the basis of the parental bond rather than domination. As the cubs grew up they would move on, find a mate and begin their own packs. On the oth...
Read more