Small dogs are often labelled as being overly bossy or having ‘Napoleon syndrome’ or ‘small dog syndrome’ because of their tendency to readily employ distance-increasing behaviours. These can include barking, lunging, rushing, growling and snapping, as well as escape and avoidance (e.g. running away). Small dogs live in a world of giants.They are comparatively fragile, and even a friendly giant can hurt them if the play is too rough. Conversely, a small dog’s capacity to stand up for herself is limited by how far she can escalate matters… Even when small dogs are trying to move away, some large dogs (and many humans) approach them and greet them. It is little wonder that many small dogs learn to switch to a more forceful strategy. When all the whispers, polite requests and active attempts to avoid fail, but yelling sometimes works, then yelling will become the preferred option. Small dogs cannot be judged poorly for making that choice: life is not so easy for them.Next time you encounter a small dog, take the time to think what might have influenced their behaviour. Help them out by giving them the opportunity to be the master of their own destiny and have a choice in how the interaction proceeds.
“
| — | Making Dogs Happy by Dr Melissa Starling and Prof Paul McGreevy (via blueboyluca) |
faeryfancies liked this
star-wars-rebels-5 liked this
ziehmarie liked this earlybear liked this
bebegal liked this
sourcedependent liked this
bitunusual liked this
deppord reblogged this from blueboyluca
s-skysweetie liked this
agriffith96 liked this
weirdwildsoul liked this
snaccforyou liked this gl1ttersweet liked this
pockets-and-paint reblogged this from aquestionablemutt
gabe-souporta reblogged this from charliemcarthy justduckie1031 liked this
mosswoods liked this
charliemcarthy reblogged this from d-o-g-o-b-g-y-n
d-o-g-o-b-g-y-n reblogged this from dogjpeg
gryzslee liked this
decadentcryptid liked this
futchitachii liked this
demonnoid reblogged this from blueboyluca ghandisbuttcrack reblogged this from blueboyluca
dmjhxo liked this
writtenwolves liked this
bunnyflie liked this youresoclassic liked this
bellebon reblogged this from cockati3l
cockati3l reblogged this from blueboyluca
intergalactic-vampires liked this
cockati3l liked this rainicornsparklecake liked this
taylorohspencer liked this
itsrafaelasstuff liked this
notsooriginaltrash liked this
kafayatctg liked this
ace-teal liked this
pinknstyle13 liked this pencil-scrawls reblogged this from fjordfolk
pencil-scrawls liked this
beautiful-adicktion liked this
bombieluv liked this blueboyluca posted this
- Show more notes