The subject of dogs and what it is they feel will forever be a topic of interest to us dog advocates. I don’t think I would treat them any differently if I were to find out they had no “feelings” in the sense that we humans do.
A feeling can be like the weather in Seattle. If you don’t like it, wait an hour and it will be different! This is certainly true if our feelings are based on emotion alone. Living with humans, dogs are exposed to our fickle behaviors and moods whether or not they understand or join us in them.
I know when I have asked a client to confine (crate or kennel or keep a leash on their dog) they wonder if it will hurt their dog’s feelings. On behalf of all the dogs I love, NO! We don’t worry about hurting an infant’s feelings if we don’t let them run free and out of our sight before they are trustworthy.
I do believe dogs have feelings, and the rest is my life study. For instance, I came home from a training session to find that my dogs were frantically going through the phone book looking for a florist so they could send me flowers for my upcoming birthday. You can see their disappointment in my walking in on the surprise. I’d say they have feelings…
Are your dogs ever silly? I don’t know what the term would be in dog world, but in human language, it is best described as silly!
I have written previously about Melody, a tiny Yorkie with a horrible past. If she never exuded a moment of happiness or silliness, it would be understandable. She, however, is beyond animated when she sees me approach or is ready for a meal.
She crab crawls, wiggles, spins, rolls and turns in excitement. She reminds me that regardless of how someone appears or what their past experiences have been, inside there may be a little silly waiting to express itself.
We expect puppies to be silly and on some days look forward to when they grow up. Melody, on the other hand, is far from being puppy age and is getting her silly on later in life. She shows us that it’s ok. I think I’ll join her.
It is fascinating to read the studies on the analysis of dogs and their expression of emotion. We, of course, refer to emotion in the sense that we experience it. Dogs; however, live in the moment so their emotion may be more raw than ours. I don’t think they are capable of deceiving us by expressing an emotion they aren’t really feeling at the moment. They don’t pretend as well as we do!
There are fun photographs of dogs smiling. And they do! Some more than others, but it still qualifies as a smile. I also have seen more than my share of grumpy-doggy face. The “it’s you again” look on some dogs when I (the trainer) show up for another training session can be very comical - for us humans more so than the dog.
With the cooler temperatures, the dogs seem quite content to cuddle on their beds a little longer than normal. And, some days, I think they get up on the wrong side of their cedar-chipped, double-organic-fiber-stuffed, memory foam dog beds! Perhaps they have bad dreams and restless nights too; so, I will cut them some slack.
Regardless, I think it’s fun to notice that much like a little child, a dog’s expression of “emotion” shifts in a nano-second. In a flash, they go from grump-dog to tail-waggin’-ready-for-a-walk dog. I wish it were that easy for us two-leggers! Once again, we learn from our dogs how blessed it is to live in the moment.
