“Every snack you make, every meal you bake, every bite you take… I’ll be watching you”
As you probably know, dogs love to watch you while you eat, but this behavior has several hidden meanings. For instance, if your dog is guarding you while you eat, sit on the toilet, relax or shower, it wants to show you that it loves you enough to protect you even if there is no real danger around you. So, they want to make sure that you are safe no matter what kind of activity you do.
“Guarding behavior is often a sign that your dog feels you belong to its pack. A guarding dog might sit next to the table, facing away from you while you eat or stand immediately in front of another dog if you are sitting nearby,” said Szydlowski.
But even though this is a cute and pretty habit, many animal experts recommend you discouraging this guarding behavior because it can actually lead to several behavioral issues and your pet could also develop territorial-related problems.
Your dog can herd your family members
When you are in the park, together with your dog and family, try to focus on its behavior. If you see that your dog is trying to keep your family members going in the same direction, it means that it activated the herding behavior.
“Herding is a way of showing affection for the ‘pack.’ For example, if someone in the family or another pet steps off the sidewalk, some dogs will herd the wayward member back onto the sidewalk and safety,” said Szydlowski.
Nonetheless, you will see this behavior more in certain dog breeds, such as border collies and Australian shepherds, because they originally controlled the herds of cows and sheep.
2 thoughts on “”
Of course animals can show their love! Even wild baby animals I rehabed to be released back to the wild, recognized me a their “mother”. But, wild animals do not make pets!!! When hormones kick in, you can have a very different animal to deal with. So, it is best for you and the animal for it to be returned to the wild. One must guard against human imprint on a wild baby.
If it is not raised with it’s own kind, wild counter parts will not accept it. Plus, the poor baby won’t know what it is. I always raised babies in a group, of at least, 2 or more, so they learn interaction with their own kind. It is also critical to feed them the same foods they are likely to find once released. There are now powered milk formulas – one for felines and one for dogs. If you don’t know what to do, contact an experienced rehab person or organization for help. In some states it is illegal to own a wild animal unless permitted. Raptors are especially protected under law. It could be illegal to even have feathers from one.
The most important thing is before you add any pet to your family, do your research! This way you will know what to expect in the future. Don’t buy or adopt on a whim! Educate yourself first! It can save you and the pet, a lot of future distress and heartbreak.
Mankind does not know what is in a animal’s mind, but it is still cute to imagine what is in their mind!