(September 2018)
“Dogs can talk, but only to those who know how to listen.”
Right on. I don’t remember where I read it or who wrote it, but I love it! Do you know how to listen to your Beardie? Do you pay attention to the message he’s trying to impart? Or do you just issue commands and give him the occasional pat on the head? The classic example of ignoring the communiqué from your canine is the embarrassed owner who has just realized his dog has relieved himself in the ring. The dog tried to lead him toward the door and got a jerk on the collar for his efforts. Then he began to sniff and circle. The notice was as clear as a neon sign. But the owner ignored it. In fact, “I gotta go” is probably the clearest bulletin a dog can convey.
There are others that are fairly apparent. As in: It’s dinnertime! I need some attention. Are you going to eat that? C’mon throw the frisbee! Can I go with you? Yippee, you’re home! I’ve had enough training for today. Most of these are transmitted through body language or expression. My girl, Keira, is master (or would it be mistress?) of the so-called ‘stink eye.’ She rolls her eye (the nearest one) to show as much white as possible to ask “Where are you taking me?” or perhaps “I don’t want to go this way.”
Scientists tell us dogs think in pictures. I have no idea how they’ve come to this conclusion. But then, I’m not a scientist. We know dogs are masters at interpreting body language. I know this because I’ve tried to sneak out the door without my dogs knowing I’m leaving. But they’ve deduced I’m departing by the time I find my keys. Anyway, I wondered if I could transmit messages or ideas via mind pictures. Something simple. I sat on the bottom step, closed my eyes and pictured Jordan picking up his ball and bringing it to me. Plop. The ball landed in my lap. Did it actually work or was it just coincidence?
There was the time at an obedience trial when I called my Beardie on the recall exercise and he just sat there. I quickly closed my eyes and pictured him getting up and coming toward me. When I opened my eyes a second or so later, he was nonchalantly trotting in. I’ve tried this on other occasions. Sometimes it has worked, sometimes it hasn’t. If it worked all the time, maybe my dogs would be posting 200 scores in obedience. But the judge would probably wonder what was going on if I closed my eyes during every exercise. Maybe he’d think I was praying, which is not a bad idea under the circumstances.
It may not be necessary to have pictorial correspondence with our Beardies. I’m convinced they’re mind readers. Why else would Dalton dive under the bed or hide in the closet when I just think about giving him a bath? Or let’s say I’m thinking of doing a bit of training and I walk into the kitchen, open the fridge and take out the baggie with liver treats. Keep in mind that I’ve walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge a half dozen times to take out iced tea or chocolate or cheesecake and no one has stirred. But the minute my hand touches the liver, I’m surrounded by eager Beardie faces — with attached wriggling bodies, of course. So yes, I’m convinced that conversation of one kind or another with our Beardies is possible if we just devote a little time and effort.
However, I’d like to air my pet peeve about media people who write as though it’s their dogs talking. That’s okay when they pen normal speech. What’s irritating are those who write like their dogs are uneducated toddlers? They purposely (I hope) spell words incorrectly, mess up sentence structure and generally botch up the English language and it’s supposed to be cute and endearing. It isn’t. Human children learn to speak by copying adult speech. If our dogs could utter actual words, they would imitate their owners’ speech. No self-respecting Beardie would indulge in such gobbledegook and I imagine most other breeds would be insulted to be portrayed in that manner also.
So, have you had any interesting conversations with your Beardies lately? Mostly I tell mine I think they’re wonderful. And they tend to agree.
— alice bixler, Summerfield, Florida, Bearded Collie Club of America.
