5 ways to show your dog that you love him
5 Ways to Show Your Dog That You Love Him! “How do I show my dog that I love him?” this is a question every good dog owner should ask. Indeed, the dog is a special species, it has been with us for so long in our evolution that it would be hard to imagine life without it. But in a human world, do we really do what it takes to make our pets happy? Do you really know your dog? Are you doing whatever it takes to make him as happy as possible? Here are 5 tips to show your dog that you think of him and that you love him!
1 / Get to know your dog
The first thing to do to show your dog that you love him is to know him as a dog, but also as an individual. Your dog, just like you, feels emotions. He can be sad, happy, fearful and have cravings. Any upheaval in his life may cause him to adjust his behavior (whether you like it or not!).
Your dog is also an opportunistic carnivore. Which assumes that yes, he might want to “steal” the food from your table or open up the trash. He’ll never think it’s a steal, he’ll just think those two activities were just too much fun! It can also to your dismay, kill your cat or rabbit even if it has grown up! Just as your dog is able to be the nicest in the world and therefore he will be able to bite the child of the family. Not out of spite, but because, as a dog, his mode of communication can be through a bite.
While for the dog this is fully justified and controlled, it will not be less painful for the victim and often not understood by humans. These are called communication signals. Understanding the natural behaviors of your dog is to open a better way to communicate and understand your dog to avoid accidents.
To learn more about your dog’s communication signals you can click here: Calming signals how to read and interpret them?
2 / Satisfy your dog’s needs
Dogs, like all species, have specific needs in order to guarantee their well-being and balance. Besides, the needs of man’s best friend are still too little known and it is because of this that many dogs find themselves unhappy or abandoned. Here are the main needs that your dog should have thanks to you.
Social needs. Your dog is a social animal, he needs to share regular moments with fellow creatures and other species. These moments of communication and games should go as naturally as possible. We must therefore avoid meetings on a leash and prefer loose encounters. This allows your dog to fully express himself. These social meetings must be done in the most positive way possible so that the dog keeps a good impression and not comes out traumatized. Your dog should be able to share moments of play, petting (if he likes it) or even freedom with you.
Your dog will need to be stimulated every day outside of the house and his garden. Indeed, the dog needs a minimum of 30 minutes of daily walk when he is an adult. The dog lives in a world of scent. If he has not come out of his garden, or too little, he cannot meet the needs of his species.
3 / devote time to it
Your dog is a social being. He often needs contact with his human and other family members. Do not get a dog to leave it alone in the garden. get a dog because you have time for him. So are you ready to devote several hours every day, for 365 days a year and for more than 10 years? If not, don’t bother taking a dog.
Naturally, your dog will find his balance if you give him time and this time is experienced as something positive and constructive. Devoting time to your dog can take many forms. This should be done according to the dog’s abilities and personality. But quite often, going for walks in pairs in places like the countryside or the forest is a good way to spend time.
If your dog likes to play, you can also give him different games every day to stimulate him as much as possible. Do a sport for two. Something that will make this moment of sharing more fun. There are lots of fun activities like:
agility
cani-paddle
frisbee
canirun
dog crossfit
cani-mountain bike / cani-cross
oberhythmic
etc.
4 / Give him the choice
It might sound silly or simple, yet most of our dogs have no choice but to lead their lives because they live in a human world. Realize, they can’t even choose when to go to relieve themselves. When we are not with them, they are dependent on our home, our goodwill, the environment in which we leave them.
So when you can, let your dog choose what he wants to do. Not for all, we wouldn’t want them to put themselves in danger. But, you can give him the choice of a ride. He chooses where he goes and if he wants to stay several minutes on a scent. After all, this is his ride!
Give him the choice to come to you, don’t force him. If he wants a caress, massages, give it to him. He wants to roll in the mud, let him do it! Isn’t he allowed to have cravings? Giving him the choice to learn, to make your relationship positive, ultimately means strengthening ties with him.
Whenever possible, give him the choice. In our society, dogs are not allowed to bark, cannot hunt, and should not sniff the needs of other dogs. People who love dogs want their dog to be happy. For this to be possible, dogs need to be given the choice to act like dogs.
5 / give it freedom
Most dogs have very stressful lives and we should do everything to free them when we can. It may take some effort for the teacher. But, we are responsible for the being we adopt. It is therefore our duty to ensure that he can enjoy some freedom. Our dogs are captive animals in that they depend almost entirely on humans for their physical, emotional and social needs. This doesn’t mean that dogs can’t be happy in human homes. But the reality is that humans have to work on them in order to make their dog as happy as possible despite the constraints.
The first logic of freedom is to be able to be detached as often as possible, but if for that you have to work on the human / dog relationship, trust and positively renounce the environment when necessary. Being able to move at your own pace in the direction you want is a very important freedom. But it is not the only one.
Your dog should have the freedom to be himself as much as possible. Let him express his personality. Don’t let him get locked in emotional distress. He must be able to express normal dog behaviors such as digging in dirt, rolling in mud or even in a dead body. He must be able to let go and also be able to find safety or isolate himself. In short, he should be free to be a dog as much as possible.