8 Things Your Dog Wishes You Knew Today

Today, I want us to look at life from your dog's side of the relationship.

Dogs don't think exactly as we do, and trying to humanize their thoughts can frequently cause us to misunderstand our sweet buddies.

But dogs do communicate with us.

They show us what feels safe, what creates uncertainty, what predicts something good, and what they need from us.

If we translated some of those patterns into plain English, your dog might have eight things to tell you today.

Let's talk about those eight things.

Actually, dogs have a lot more things to tell you than this, but these are eight of the big ones that I wanted to talk about today.

The first would be, I notice your voice more than your words.

Sure, dogs can learn words, of course, including familiar cues and the names of favorite toys or people, their own names, etc.

But words are only part of the message.

Dogs also hear volume, pitch, speed, rhythm, and emotional tone in your words.

Think about a dog who stops at the back door because there was thunder earlier.

They're a little scared, a little hesitant.

The owner says, come on, you're fine, but says it loudly and impatiently because the owner is late to work and has to get going.

The words are really meant to reassure by the owner, but the voice and body say something different.

The dog thinks there's pressure here.

The dog crouches or backs away and the owner thinks, why won't you listen? You see the miscommunication that happens when we do this.

The dog may be listening very carefully.

They're just listening to the entire message that you're delivering.

They pay a lot of attention to our words and how we say them.

This is especially important with fearful or defensive dogs.

I can't emphasize that enough.

If your voice gets faster and sharper, adding words usually doesn't create clarity.

Slow down.

Lower the pressure.