For anyone who works with dogs, this has been a good week. A study by Dr Stanley Coren, a canine expert and professor of psychology at the University of British Columbia, confirmed what we professionals have been saying for a while: those smothering hugs your dog “loves”? Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but he/she actually hates them, because it stops them being able to run away. Dr Coren studied 250 images of dogs being cuddled by adults and children, and in eight out of 10 of those images the dogs were showing visible signs of stress or anxiety.
For this kind of information to be shared so widely is a gigantic step for dog and human relations. Dog charities and trainers, like me, are always trying to find ways to impart this crucial information as it can have such a big impact of the relationship we have with our four-legged best friends. The trouble is humans quite often don’t want to hear it.
Dogs communicate differently to us. They use subtle signals that we often miss as we seek, instead, body language that we recognise and anthropomorphise. For example, we might think a dog who is licking his lips is hungry or satisfied after eating, when really, lip licking is most often an early signal to convey discomfort in a situation.
Dogs don’t just communicate with one part of their body, but use every part - tail, ears, eyes, mouth - to send us messages about how they’re feeling. Learning to understand this is crucial, not just to understand what they’re trying to tell us but, more importantly, when to remove them from a situation they’re finding difficult to deal with.
Here are five other things your dog may not like as much as you think they do...
1. Petting them on the head
Many dogs dislike this action as they cannot see where your hand is going, which can make them feel uneasy. Dogs often duck away or turn their neck to try and follow where the hand trying to pet them, but they can’t follow a hand coming from above with no warning. A dog feeling cornered by a patting hand may often use aggression to get it to stop - nervous specimens may even bite in this situation, if they feel they have no choice.
2. Constantly picking them up
This is most common with puppies and small breeds. Just because you <can> pick them up all the time doesn’t mean that you should. It is a constant invasion of space and very often dogs which have been over-handled may start to growl when being lifted or moved as they try to put a stop to the constant contact. My rule is simple: before you go to pick up a dog, think if you’d do so if it were a large breed such as a Rottweiler. You probably wouldn’t. Don’t subject small dogs to unwanted, uncomfortable and unpleasant picking up just because they’re pint-sized.
3. Staring into their eyes.
Eye contact is crucial for dogs and humans, but to stare into a dog’s eyes can feel threatening. Dogs use really subtle signs that humans confuse with our own emotions. Similarly, staring straight into his eyes may seem to him like you’re trying to start a fight.
4. Allowing a child to follow them around
When a dog gets up and physically removes itself from a situation, it’s stating very clearly that it needs some space. Parents often confuse this with their dog feeling too hot or wanting to get comfortable elsewhere, and allow their children to follow and pat it, sit next to it, even go under the table to stroke it. Don’t. Your dog’s space needs to be respected otherwise he or she may start using aggression to get rid of whoever’s bothering him. Think of a dog walking away as saying “leave me alone”.
5. Waking them when they’re sleeping.
All dogs require a safe place to reside, to rest and to be able to retreat to safely. It’s your dog’s own personal space and it shouldn’t ever be invaded. No matter how well you know or love the dog, they should never be prodded, moved, picked up, carried or laid upon whilst sleeping.
If you were in a deep sleep and at 3am someone jumped on you, would you be able to control your reaction? It is for this reason that we should really let sleeping dogs lie. (telegraph)
