Conversations with Dogs: Sometimes an Accidental Communication

I heard a woman talking with her dog this morning. She said, “Leave it!” Her dog was charging toward another dog on the street who was off leash.












That is a great direct conversation to have with a dog. She was saying, “Stop doing what you are doing!” and she expected an action. Dogs – animals in general – are all about action, and a conversation with a dog that includes action is very good.

This imperative statement “Leave it!” took a lot of discussing between dog and human for the dog to understand the conversation. Some call it training. That’s okay. People talk about ‘training dogs’ so, use the words which make you understood to the people you talk to.

In reality 'Leave it!' is a conversation between dog and human using mutually accepted jargon.

But the woman this morning said it all wrong. In the emotion of the situation, she said it all wrong. It is amazing that the dog even stopped. She screamed the words in an incredibly high, shrill voice.

No matter the words she screamed, she was telling the dog “Danger!”

Now, depending on the dog’s temperament, he could react in one of two ways. If you tell a dog “danger is there” he can decide to protect you from that danger and attack or he can move closer to guard you. But understand that a dog who loves you will protect you if he senses danger.















This woman could have had a bad accident with her dog. And it would not have been the dog's fault.

It is an axiom in the horse world that the horse is never at fault; the human is at fault – for accidents, injuries, or bad behavior.

I want you girls to think the same way with dogs. You need to be very clear in your conversations with a dog, especially when it is important to your or his safety. Or you could have an accident.
















So this woman could have precipitated an accident because she was clearly communicating to the dog but it was not what she intended to communicate.

So how do you communicate clearly?

You have a conversation.

And it is not mysterious or magical. You can learn it.