As I was watching Cookie play in the bush, it got me thinking on the subject.
All dogs are different.
Even within the same breed, each dog is an individual. Cookie is a little more individual than most, particularly being a Rottie.
Many people pamper their dogs with fancy toys, fancy beds, fancy collars, fancy outfits, fancy strollers ... But how much of that does their dog actually appreciate?
Even if you try to pamper your dog with the things dogs enjoy, are those the things your dog enjoys the most?
Watching Cookie throwing herself through the tall grass hunting mice made me think how easy to please she is. Give her a chunk of land with some critters and she can be entertained for hours. She does love going for walks, exploring new things and new places, working with her bipeds ... But it is the hunt that makes her the happiest.
Jasmine and JD are the same breed. And yet, each of our guys has always had a strong preference.
JD loves to fetch.
He'd fetch until he'd drop. That is his favorite thing to do. Besides eating, of course.
He will go for a walk but doesn't have to have it and he has little interest in hunting for things (though now, seeing Cookie having all that fun with that, he's starting to get interested in that).
Jasmine loved hiking.
She wasn't interested in fetch a tall, unless it was in the lake. There she'd spend hours going after a ball or her flying squirrel. But what she loved the most was walking through the woods and trails.
Cookie is a hunter.
Technically, you don't need to walk her at all. Just take her outside, somewhere with little critters around. We'll never have a mouse problem with her around. At the ranch, we do go for walks but Cookie really just runs from one hunting spot to another. She appreciates it most when we sit down and let her do her thing.
So we spend most of the time with her just watching her having fun. That's what she wants.
I realized how important it is to know what your dog really wants and be able to give it to them. And that not all dogs can be pleased with the same things.
What makes your dog happy?
Related articles:
From The End Of A Lead Line To Casa Jasmine: Meet Cookie, Our New Adoptee
Creative Solutions And An Incidental Product Review
Taming Of The Wild Beast: Cookie's Transition To Civilization
Staying On Top Of The Ears: Cookie Is Not Impressed
Who's Training Whom? Stick And Treat
Observation Skills Of Dogs
If You Want Your Dog To Do Something, Teach It
Tricks? It's Not Just About The Tricks
What Constitutes The Perfect Dog?
Are Dog Training Classes Really For The Dogs?
Look Where You Want To Go: Finding My Reactive Dog Training Zen Zone?
Dog Training And Emotions
Dog Training And Emotions: Postscript
Dogs Love Sentences In Question Form?
Not All Dog Trainers Were Created Equal Either
A Thought On Separation Anxiety
Happy One-Year Adoptoversary, Cookie!
About Freedom, Trust And Responsibility: A "Pilot Study"
So, We Have A Bear