Dog Language. What they learn from each other.

Fri 24 Aug 2007 by Sue McCabe

It never ceases to amaze me how new dogs just seem to slot in and settle, despite the worries or anxieties of owners. I am a confident handler who reads dogs very well and perhaps the dogs know this but even so, personalities clash and some dogs often just don't like each other. After all, I don't like every human I meet!

Despite the mixed age range and personality difference, there is rarely a squabble on my walks. Most dogs are wonderful at displaying just enough assertion, without taking things further than they have to.

One new dog, a silly, bouncy puppy began the first walk by bashing into every dog. He tried to initiate play, tried to bowl over the males and mount the bitches. He was told in no uncertain terms that this behaviour was unacceptable and with a certain degree of tolerance, but with just enough warning, each dog in turn told him to calm down or back off.

He now knows which dogs accept his advances and which to avoid as they are not interested. A great lesson in dog communication skills for an otherwise boisterous, friendly puppy. And all this learnt during a fun run in a freshly cut stubble field. What more could any dog ask for?

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