Hi collaborator,

I hope you’re doing well! Muggins is due for a heartworm test, which means that they need to have their blood drawn. Muggins has a hard time with medical procedures, so Tom and I are taking some time to teach Muggins about the procedure, including what equipment will be used (our amazing vet gave us a butterfly needle to practice with!), where on their body they’ll need to be touched, and how they can tell us when they’re ready for it. We both had some free time the other afternoon, so we set up the our practice space as Muggins was waking up from a nap. We were all ready, so I called Muggins and asked them to join. Muggins did not come. I peeked into the other room and saw Muggins rolling on their back on the carpet. I showed Muggins the training tools and asked them again. We waited a few minutes, but Muggins continued their roll-around and then went to the door. Tom and I shrugged our shoulders, and I switched gears and got ready for a walk instead.  

Sometimes we have an agenda, a plan, a schedule, or an idea and we just need our dogs to say “yes” and join us. And sometimes, our dogs have other ideas. Rather than force Muggins to work on our schedule, we adjusted to Muggins. We could have been frustrated about this change of plans, but that wouldn’t have done any good. Muggins wasn’t ready for the activity, and part of practicing cooperative care is listening to the dog and only moving forward when they say “yes”. That’s because dogs have feelings, and their emotion feelings are directly related to their sensory feelings. They may feel differently about an activity than you do because the activity feels different to them than it does to you. For Muggins, being touched on their body (especially with needles) feels scary because the sensations of being held and poked feel uncomfortable, and probably even painful.

I am so grateful for the ways Muggins teaches me about sensation, and timing, and choice, and being flexible. I am grateful for the ways Muggins reminds me that we have plenty of time to get everything done, and there is no need to rush. And I’m grateful that Muggins shows me how sensations like movement and sniffing help prepare the body for scary activities. After our walk, Muggins was ready and we had a great practice session.

What is your dog teaching you today?

What lessons or gratitude can you find when your dog says, “no”?

Hit reply and let me know, I’d love to hear!