Your dog feels what you do. How you affect your dog.

 

Are your dogs feeling your feelings?

Have you ever thought about how you affect your dog? Not just with where you live, your routine, and all the other stuff you do together every day. I’m talking about your mood, attitude, and feelings.

When you are in a bad mood, you’re not the only one who feels it. Likewise, when you’re in a good mood. Your dog is extremely perceptive of everything about you. That’s pretty much their job as far as they’re concerned. So they notice all the unseen things, all the signs, the words, everything you do.

How do you know if you affect your dog?

If you are grumpy or impatient, your dog probably gets extra quiet, or maybe they stay out of your way. When you’re sad, they’re right next to you, showing you love as best they can. And when you’re happy, they’re all smiles and wagging tails. This is because they are aware of what you’re feeling, and they’re trying to help. When you see them respond to you, it’s because they know.

Did you ever have one of those days? A day that does something like this; first, you spill a drink and have to clean up the mess. Then you step in mud or something (you do live with dogs, after all). Finally, you realize that you forgot to do something important. By that time, you’re in a funk and grumbling, maybe cursing just a little. And you look at your dog.

What’s your dog doing? Are they staring at you? Maybe they’re lying in the corner and watching you from a distance. You affect your dog with your actions, thoughts, and emotions. So if you’re noticing this type of behavior from your dog, it might be worthwhile to take a look in the mirror, either figuratively or actually. Chances are pretty good that your dog is reflecting what’s going on with you.

Since dogs are so skilled at reading us, much of what they do is because of us. We’re just so wrapped up in ourselves that we may not notice it.

How can you affect your dog in a positive way?

The first step is to be aware that it’s possible to affect your dog by what you’re seeing, feeling, thinking, and doing. Once you’ve accepted that, you might consider when, specifically, your dog is responding to what’s up with you and consider whether that’s good, bad, or indifferent for them. Hopefully, they experience the best. That’s the way it would be in an ideal world.

But we don’t live in an ideal world, so most of us have some good stuff and some bad stuff that we deal with. How we deal with this stuff can make all the difference. Are you aware of what you do when you’re dealing with less than positive situations?

If you’re used to grumbling and letting your stress get to you, it might help both you and your dog if you can take a deep breath and think before you react. Or whatever else you’ve found that helps you relieve stress. One of the best ways I’ve found to relieve stress is to play with my dogs. It’s a win-win situation! The more we calmly deal with our stress, the less negative effect it will have on our dogs.

Everybody will be happier.

Being aware of how you affect your dog can help both you and your dog live a more peaceful life. Of course, there will always be stress, but one of the best skills you can learn is to destress whenever you can. This is one thing that our dogs can help us with—just another reason to have dogs in our lives.

For more about stress and dogs, read this post from ElleVet or my post about How to help your anxious dog.

What do you do to relieve the stress for you and your dog? Tell me about it in the comments below.