Understanding Dog Personality – Why Labels Can Hurt Understanding
Have you been told that you're wonderful and sweet? Or maybe grumpy and unpleasant? Such labels can influence who you believe you are. And what we believe about ourselves tends to guide our development. Unconsciously, we try to fulfill an unspoken prophecy. The power of thought is strong, so we should avoid labeling ourselves, our fellow humans, or our dogs with negations.
Describe your dog's behaviors instead of labels
"He's so 'dominant,'" "assertive," "insecure," "pushy," "tough," "kind," "happy," "aggressive." No, no. He's none of those things. Perhaps he was. In a situation, right then and there. He is none of these things. He's an ordinary dog. With different attitudes in different situations. With a rich emotional range that generates different behaviors.
When describing a dog, it's better to explain how they behave in relation to different things or situations. That provides meaningful information and an opportunity to get to know the dog for real.
Dogs' emotions change with the situation
No one is always angry. But some may have a tendency to get angry more easily than others. But it also depends. It depends on what the dog is exposed to. The "dominant" dog is probably not a bully when sleeping, hanging out with their best dog buddy, or the neighbor's dog with a tennis ball. But it might ignite if some grumpy furball postures aggressively or if they themselves are having a bad day. Similarly, the 'happy' dog won't be happy with a thorn in its paw. For more on dogs' emotions, see our article on dogs' emotional life - not unlike ours.
Dogs' names and labels affect their behavior
If a person often hears that they're incompetent and lazy, they easily become that. If, instead, we emphasize initiative, strength, and ability, we bring out a completely different person. It's fascinating. Petli believes that labels matter for dogs too.
If we name our big, muscular dog "The Butcher" and consider him "tough," we and the world will treat him as such. And our handling of him will be colored by a preconceived notion. We may shorten the leash in a meeting when we didn't need to, tension arises, and The Butcher might react to it. But it wasn't him who created it.
We might watch him more closely in situations he would have handled just fine if it weren't for those stiff glances that made him anxious and tense.
Expectations of 'good' dogs can be unreasonable
Conversely, we might be a bit too casual with that "kind" dog who's expected to handle practically everything and everyone because he's just sooo kind. But a Barbie doll in the eye hurts, and the 4-year-old might get growled at. We believe that labels for dogs can give them unspoken ideals through our behavior, which they, in turn, live up to.
Preconceptions about dogs affect training
Like when the operations manager at a dog shelter hands out dogs to volunteer doggy walkers who take the homeless dogs for walks. "John, you can take Zita, she's calm and easygoing, a wanderer and sniffer. Susan, will you take Eros? He's quite tough and easily gets grumpy."
Already when John and Susan take the leashes off the hooks, they will have different attitudes, expectations, energy, and thus approaches.
Another way would have been to say nothing at all. To let John and Zita get to know each other and become what they are together, uninfluenced by anyone's opinion. Because Zita might not be calm at all when she's with John. And the walk in question might contain events that make her spin out of control depending on how she's handled.
Eros, on the other hand, might have become a couch potato in Susan's hands if they were gentle and fearless. If her gaze didn't seek out dangers to anticipate. He might still have been a hand full. Or not.
Describe behaviors and give concrete tips
I would have preferred information about dog behavior and common procedures in different scenarios. For example: Zita usually enjoys walking on a loose leash and sniffing, she usually passes other dogs unfazed. Eros usually likes to keep a brisk pace, appreciates the physical outlet, and sometimes stands tall when meeting other dogs.
And then solutions:
- Zita - give her plenty of leash, follow her, and make no fuss about meetings.
- Eros - take long strides, vary the pace and terrain, make a wide arc, and offer him a treat from a distance during dog encounters, and he'll take it in stride
Because the handling we offer makes a tremendous difference to the dog. Being angry is not a personality trait; it's the truth of the moment and not an all-encompassing characteristic. Erase the labels and see the dog through new eyes with curiosity about their approach and emotions. That way, your dog has the opportunity to develop their true self, beyond the mold that labels create. For more information on dog behavior, please read: dog language.
Written by: Caroline Alupo
Caroline Alupo is Petli's co-founder. She has a master's degree in ethology and is also a trained dog trainer and dog psychologist. She has 19 years of experience as a professional dog trainer. Read more about Caroline here.
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