I was recently staying on the Gold Coast without my dog and walked each day along the beautiful coastal walkway. I was very interested in the behaviour of the dogs and their people that I witnessed each day and without my own dog I had all the time in the world to observe those around me. What I saw is the following.
There were those who were walking the dogs and were very focussed on the dog and its interactions and behaviour. There were those who were checked out and not paying any attention whatsoever to the dog on the end of the lead. And there were those fitness people who were running at their human pace and the dog had no choice but to run beside them and keep up.
The last lot looked very engaged and focussed but it was extremely hot weather at the time and there was no space for the dogs to dawdle or sniff or pee and whilst this may suit certain breeds it doesn’t suit every breed to be run like that so it only works well when the owner is switched onto the mood and energy of the dog and can adapt where necessary to facilitate a harmonious interaction between the dog and its surrounds.
The first lot are often people who are ‘walking the dog’ and not actually walking themselves first and bringing the dog along with them. This is a kinda 101 when it comes to bringing the wisdom of your authority to your dog walk, ie you walk the human first and the dog energetically falls in behind that. Dogs need humans to know what is going on and to not be following the dog’s every need and whim as that leaves them as the dictators of the walk and prone to anxiety over time.
It is the middle lot however that really caught my attention. Observing people walking along lost in their human thoughts, totally absent from the activity and devoid of any interaction either physical or energetic with the dogs what I witnessed was the breeding ground of how to desensitise a dog away from its natural relationship with harmony. There were dogs trying to do a pee and being dragged along whilst they were peeing – the owner not even looking back to see why the dog was dragging. There were dog poos dropped in the middle of the pathway due to the same lack lustre energetic relationship – this slack behaviour would produce a habit no doubt, that the dog would become accustomed to and be taken way out of its naturally harmonious relationship with where and how to poo and pee. The body language of both the owners and the dogs was so miserable it was hard to recognise they were on one of the most beautiful walkways in the world. With the constant movement of the ocean on one side and the architecture of the beautiful homes on the other it is hard to keep your eyes on the pavement but this is no excuse to ignore the dog under your guidance who is at the end of the lead.
