All You Need is Love!
Thoughts on Adding a Dog into Your Life
E
Paula Bergeron - Grafton, NH
very week I get phone calls asking for advice on whether a client should add a dog to their pack, or bring a dog into their family. We relish the idea of having a dog, receiving the unconditional daily love that only a dog seems able to give. In fact, I saw an advertisement the other day for a dog rescue group captioned… All they need is love. I caught my breath
and thought YIKES! … dogs need a whole lot more than love, in fact, it is almost insulting to think that love from us is all a dog requires to live a full life. Dogs have a hierarchy of needs that should be acknowledged when considering adding a pet to your home and life and affection is lower on the list than you might think.
A DOG’S HIERARCHY OF NEEDS 1. Your dog needs to feel healthy and physically safe. Providing healthy nutritional food, routine vet care, and a safe environment out of the weather, away from traffic, off-leash dogs, and wildlife takes more than an abundance of love, it requires a certain level of financial commitment and stability. 2. Your dog needs to feel mentally safe. To feel safe a dog needs a trustworthy and competent leader. As the leader, you provide routine in their day, structure within your home, and boundaries with follow-through regarding acceptable behavior. 3. Your dog needs an outlet for its physical and mental energy as well as their specific breed’s behavioral instincts. A dog with frustrated energy will have to find a way to release it, and that doesn’t usually end well. Dogs in general need to walk or travel with a leader that they trust every day. A dog’s breed will significantly influence other needed exercise as it dictates their impulse to dig, chase, retrieve, swim, herd, guard, bark, play, run , etc... Research can help you find suitable outlets for your dog breed related impulses. 4. Your dogs crave affection attention from their pack. We tend to excel here so I will only say we need to be mindful as to how and when we give affection. Too much becomes damaging. Constant contact, protection from anything challenging, and giving excuses for behavior set dogs up for emotional imbalance. Separation anxiety, generalized anxiety, unwanted and guarding behavior are often a result of unrestricted privilege and attention.
It is important to take the canine hierarchy into account as you decide on bringing a dog into your daily life. Do you have the time, energy, finances, and disposition to provide for your dog not only what you WANT to give, but what they actually require to have a full and happy life, something I know we all want for our beloved canine friends. Food for thought my friends. Happy Training, Paula and Company Paula Bergeron and the gang at Good Dogma embrace a holistic approach to bringing balance to your dog’s behavioral issues. Exercise, training, relaxation, massage, grooming, play, socialization, and energy healing are incorporated into your dog’s routine. www.Goodogma.com 42 4 Legs & a Tail
Spring 2021
