The 2007 Indie Excellence Awards were announced in New York City on June 1, at the Book Expo America Convention. My Doggie Says…: Messages from Jamie. How a dog named Jamie “talks” to her people was the winner in its category: Animals/Pets. Needless to say, I was quite thrilled with the announcement. It’s very rewarding. The awards are sponsored by JPX Media, of Tucson. The complete listing of awards is available at the Indie Excellence web site.
What is Callie saying when she goes out to pee?
When I walk Callie out to the side yard to do her business, she, who is now a five-month-old Golden Retriever puppy, stops cold right outside the door for about a minute. I’m not quite sure what she’s doing, but I have a theory. Anyway, this time seems important to her, so I am letting her have it. I’m assuming that it’s an instinctive thing and that it should have an opportunity to develop.
Here’s my theory. Please tell me if you have a different one. It’s as if she’s checking things out to make sure it’s OK to go outside. It’s almost like the fire warnings in hotels, where they tell you to feel the door for heat and check for the smell of smoke before you open the door. I think she’s sniffing the breeze to see what odors it’s carrying. Also, she’s listening to the neighborhood noises, to see if there’s anything to be afraid of.
There are a few construction projects in my neighborhood right now, along with the constant grind of lawn-mowers on the nearby golf course. So I think every time we go outside, Callie is presented with slightly different sounds and smells.
This is a case where Callie isn’t really “saying” anything. She’s just acting on her instincts, I believe. In a sense the message is, “Hey, this is how I’m put together, and I need a minute to sort out all the sounds and smells. I need to decide if there are things to be afraid of.” I think these are important messages, too. It doesn’t seem like a good time to try to be the “alpha” animal. Why not let her have this time to be true to her breeding? I would think a good “alpha” leader would understand this.
Anytime your dog does something a little different, try to understand how it might be thinking.
