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Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Sarah The Sweetest Girl Ever

My friend Sakoieta posted a video of 5 German Shepherd Dogs walking obediently behind their owner off leash. That got me to thinking of our three German Shepherd Dogs and how well behaved they are. The above photo is of our happy Sarah who is over 10 years old now and is so gentle and sweet. Each day we have a little ritual where after their breakfast we go out into the back yard together and I pick up the poop from earlier or late yesterday.

Sarah will protect me by checking out the surrounding area and then she will sniff her way around the back yard for a few minutes. It is a chance for her to have some alone time with me without her two brothers pestering her. I will tell her it is time to go poopers and she will go find a suitable place to relieve herself. I will then tell her what a good girl she is. She doesn't need me to tell her to poop because she has been doing it fine by herself for over 10 years. She likes to be told she is a good girl and we use that natural event to make a fuss over her and let her know she is a good girl. It is that time of day when she would go poop anyway and once praised she is generally always smiling.

We use every opportunity to tell our boys and girl how good they are and hence they know what we expect/like and do it to receive our approval. It may only be a little thing but they are in tune with what we desire for them. People are a lot like that too and need reinforcement and praise. It can be the smallest thing but in their life it weighs huge. Sometimes in our busy day we forget this basic need in our relationship with others. The poop routine only works with Sarah and if I complemented my wife on doing the same I'd be quickly taken in for a psychological evaluation. You have to be smart about what you use for praise and it must be sincere.

Every night I have another ritual where I go to where each of our fur family is and tell them good night and how much I love them. They surely don't need to hear that but it is reinforcement each and every day. We try to show it to them all day each day. They know the word love but they probably don't know any more than it is a good word. After all they actually live the word out in their lives every minute of every day. They like and wait for our little ritual each night and would think they had done something wrong if I failed to do it. I get down and right in their face tell them which I also believe is important in making that connection. Aren't people like that too? Not just the meaningless or passing ritual of saying "I love you" but they need to hear it with sincerity. If those two little rituals can change our fur families lives for good what could they accomplish if they were applied to our human family too?

Those two rituals are two of the most important things I do each day and the benefits are easily seen by anyone who visits us. Are you to proud to get down and look your pet in the face to tell them you really love them?  They may not understand the words but they clearly understand the meaning and intent. Our fur friends are devoted to us not because we demand it but because of a love bond that is reinforced each day.  Find someone today to tell how much you love them whether they have four legs or two. Get right in their face and look them in the eye and try it and see if you notice a difference in the relationship. I know our three furry family members will look right back at me and I can see the love and devotion in their eyes. Try it yourself because the rewards far exceed the small amount of time expended.

A final story about Lucas the wolf. Lucas was the pack leader at a local wolf refuge. When the alpha male gets old and can no longer defend their position in the pack a younger male will challenge them and assume that role. Lucas loved each and every member of his pack so much it was evident. When Lucas became old and the younger males in his pack could have easily taken alpha away from him none even attempted. Why? Simply because none could love more than Lucas. The rest of the pack respected Lucas for his ability as pack leader to love them all greatly. Lucas was pack leader because he loved so much..I think we could all learn a great deal from Lucas the wolf.

3 comments:

Carol said...

all true.........

Sakoieta said...

Excellent story. Just basic common sense and wisdom in its greatest form.

Kathryn said...

Lovely thoughts. Shared on fb.