A nonverbal meeting in a forest

Hello collaborator!

This past Saturday, the weather was my favorite mix of warm sun and cool breeze with a hint of summer-to-autumn transition. We just had to get outside, so Tom and Muggins and I escaped to our most treasured forest-hugged lake: Dyken Pond. As we were exploring the Cherry Trail, we heard a family of humans up ahead.

Muggins took a break from submerging their nose into chipmunk holes and listened. They tensed their body and held their breath, wondering who else was there. Muggins has always seemed very curious about humans, and generally enjoys meeting them. However, in this quiet forest, where most of the trails are free of human footsteps, Muggins’s nervous system recognized that these voices were out of place, and automatically categorized the sounds as a potential threat.

Image shows a human seated lazily on a dock at the edge of a forest-bound lake. A black-and-white dog approaches from the left with tail held high, intent on thanking the human for this special outing.

Photo by Tom Fox * @tomfoxphotos * tomfoxphotos.com

Once we were close enough to see and talk with these humans, Muggins stood next to me with their nose outstretched; a conflicted pause between uncertainty and curiosity. The kind family encouraged us to go ahead of them, as they were busy zooming in on the local flora. I asked the humans, “How would you feel if Muggins came close to you and smelled you?” One of them replied, “That’s fine, we will smell him too!” We shared a warm laugh, and I told Muggins, “Okay, go ahead” as I released the length of the long lead that was attached to their harness.

Muggins tip-toed cautiously, ears back, tail below horizontal and wagging at the tip. I kept encouraging with a soft high-pitched voice, “good job, go say ‘hi’ to the neighbors!” Muggins gradually loosened their body and became more wiggly, even trying to sneak a kiss when the youngest human bent down to pick up a leaf.

This sweet meeting would not have gone so well if I hadn’t:

recognized Muggins’s fear
known how to communicate clearly with the other humans, or
used my body’s nonverbal communication to send messages of safety to everyone involved

Join me for Everything But The Words!

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Thursday, September 22, 2022 at 12pm EST | 9am PST | 6pm CET

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Many thanks for reading this - I look forward to collaborating with you!

In warmth and light,

~ Sharon ~