In case you didn't know, if you have a dog he can read you like a book. Just like AI he knows more about you than you yourself. One of the many things that flip me out about my dog is that if I leave the room, he knows my intention.
If I'm getting up to do something food related he'll follow me, but if I get up for any other reason he stays put, and it happens every time. How the heck does he know? Even if I try to psych him out and think "FOOD! FOOD! FOOD!" when I'm not getting food he isn't fooled and he stays put. Is he a body language expert? It blows my mind.
I live off of peanut butter cheese crackers. They come six to a pack. When I finish them I let him lick the traces of peanut butter that stick to the wrapper. Whether it takes me two minutes or half an hour to eat them he knows when I'm on the last cracker and about to give him the wrapper, and he gets up and comes over.
Even if he's out of the line of sight he still knows when I'm on the last cracker. It's beyond impressive, like a magic trick. Can he count?
Every now and then I'll watch a video about how to tell if you've bonded with your dog and things like that. I always ace that stuff and I know we're bonded but I still watch those videos occasionally just to recalibrate and tell myself I'm a good person, at least when it comes to dogs.
One video I just watched said that dogs react when they see you treat others with kindness. As I write this I'm getting misty and it doesn't bother me. Dogs see you and your family and friends as members of the pack. Dogs tend to take care of each other and it actually makes them happy to see you being kind to your "pack." It's been studied.
They say that dogs are happier, healthier and more secure when they see their owners treat people kindly. Does my dog fit the bill? I think so. He's the sweetest dog in the world, and while I can't necessarily take credit for that, I did set out to raise him to be as sweet as possible, and he's seen me treat others with kindness a time or two.
I looked after my mom and dad for years and my dog understood that I was trying to protect them as it were, and he'd help out in his own way. He dearly loved his grandmama and granddaddy, and they loved him.
When I first got him he was afraid of storms, but he could see that I wasn't afraid and in fact enjoyed them, so he quickly lost his fear of thunder, which many animals never do.
99% of the time I've had him he's never more than a few feet away from me, as he is now, but when I was looking after my folks and a storm would roll in he'd go sit with mom and dad to keep them safe and make sure they weren't afraid, even though I might be out on the porch enjoying the storm, which is when most dogs would be glued to their owners if not under the bed. That used to give me a serious fuzzy. He was keeping his pack safe.
Anyone who's gotten to meet my dog will back up what I say about him. He literally has a fan club. Thirty years or so ago he'd have been the greatest chick magnet in history, but as it is he's a goodwill ambassador, and that's much better.
He's cured four people of a serious fear of dogs, and to me that's huge. There was a neighbor girl who was maybe four, and she was terrified of dogs. When we'd see them out walking she'd hide behind her mom, even though Bert would be wagging his tail and obviously wanted her to pat him.
When we'd see them the little girl's mom and I would try to assure her that he was friendly and encourage her to pat him but she was afraid. It went on for at least six months, but finally one day after much cajoling she finally gingerly reached her hand to him and gave him a tiny pat. He licked her hand.
It was a beautiful moment. Her mom burst into tears and I got a bit misty myself. The quality of her life improved forever on that day. She got to like Bert so much that occasionally they'd knock on the door to see if Bert could come out to play. That was awesome. That's my dog.
As I've said before, and although I can't prove it, I believe God sent me this particular dog to show His love for me. Several people have said that he has an angelic spirit, and I agree. I believe that we entertain angels unaware. Who says a dog can't be an angel?
I do know that he's my bud. I'd say that we were joined at the hip, but since he's a true comedian and I at least used to have a sense of humor, I say we're joined at the funny bone.
I look after him and he looks after me. I try to stay in a good mood for him as much as for me, but when I'm sad, like when my mom recently died, he won't leave me alone. He'll paw me and lick me and honk and snort at me and try to get me to play and do everything he possibly can to make me feel better. He's a jewel.
He makes people happy when they see him approaching with his tail wagging. The last time I took him to the vet they said he looks like a happy dog and that they thought we have a good relationship. That's cool.
What's the moral of this story? Your dog knows whether you're a decent person or not so much. Be kind to your pack.
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