Upcoming: Workshops
Hi, all!
I’ve spent a year now working on my mental stuff (still, and always, a work in progress) and figuring out what I enjoy that doesn’t also burn me out and/or create massive anxiety.
You know what I miss? Teaching dog language. Relationships require good communication. Our dogs are trying. Very few dogs hide how they’re feeling or what their intentions are, but virtually no humans learn even the basics of their language to understand.
We expect them to learn human languages. (Sit. Stay. Come. Don’t eat that. You’re getting on my last nerve. Good dog.) We’re not doing our part.
It breaks my heart to see a dog who is so obviously trying to communicate with their owner, and the owner is oblivious.
The thing is, it’s not the owner’s fault, either. It’s hard to find videos or books or anything on how to understand dog language. I know of only two dog trainers who teach it, and I taught both of them.
People used to call and say, “How do I get my dog to stop barking?”
I’d answer, “Why are they barking?”
This would usually get an, “I don’t know,” in a baffled tone, as if the question had never even occurred to them, or they’re not sure why I’m even asking.
Here’s the thing: if the dog is barking because they’re anxious and afraid, there’s a way to deal with it, and another way to cause worse emotional trauma. If the dog is barking because they’re bored, there’s a way to deal with it, and a way that will make it worse. Naturally, the thing that will improve one will worsen the other, and vice versa. This is why you get a lot of “maintenance” training. Rather than teaching the dog not to bark, someone tells you to close your blinds, because no dog trainer wants to make it worse.
What’s the solution? Listening to your dog. Not listening to them bark (although you’re probably doing that, too), but “listening” to their language, which is primarily expressed through the physical positions they take on. The cant of an ear, the tip of an eye, the height of their tail in relation to their spine, when and how they use their tongue; these are their words. Combine two things, and this is their sentence structure. They are always talking.
The key to good relationships, any professional will tell you, is clear communication. Do you want a relationship with your dog? Do you want them to trust you? Do you want to know if there might be a problem long before it starts? Do you want your puppy to grow into sweet and confident, knowing that when they talk to you, you’ll listen?
This is my passion. This is what I want to teach.
Sometime spring 2023 I’ll be running a language workshop. It’ll be the first of hopefully more, with the idea of a weekend retreat if it works out.
How much stronger would our bond with our fur kids, our best friends, and our biggest supporters be if we just listened? If we tuned into them just a fraction of the time? How many problems could we resolve if we knew what they were saying? How much trust and love and joy could we bring?
I’m going to come back to this in late January. Stay tuned.
Jenna
