Every Dog Needs a Job!

On Sunday afternoon, I took Desi for his pet assisted therapy visit to a local nursing home.  Desi loves doing his visits!  He wags his tail for every new person he meets, puts his head on laps, lays on feet, and nuzzles the hands of patients who don't move their hands on their own.  I didn't teach Desi to be a good pet assisted therapy dog.  Desi IS good at it intrinsically.  He loves meeting people and never shies away from attention of any kind, in fact, he seeks it out.  Pet therapy is Desi's job and he is excellent at it.  And then there is Ozzie.

Ozzie is, by nature, aloof.  While he is friendly with people he knows, and downright goofy with family, he doesn't seek out the attention of strangers.  He'll surprise me on occasion and walk right up to someone in greeting, but for the most part, he lets Desi do the socializing.  In fact, if kids run up to the pet the dogs, Ozzie will often cross the street!  Thus, pet assisted therapy is not Ozzie's job of choice.  While he will do occasional visits with me in a pinch, I don't take him to very many because I know he doesn't enjoy them and is only doing them because I've asked him to.  So what is Ozzie's job?  Ozzie likes to perform.  No surprise given that he is a direct descendant of Lassie, right?  Ozzie likes to do tricks, learn new behaviors, and basically show off how smart he is, even to an audience of one, namely me.  He'll perform even without treats, if he's really in the mood.  And that's the key with Ozzie. He has to be "in the mood." If he's not feeling it, he'll just make me look stupid as I try to get him to do any one of the behaviors he knows how to do.  Ozzie also likes herding.  I wish we could do it more often for his sake, but I just don't have the time to drive him to herding as frequently as he'd like to go. I've often said we just need goats in the backyard and Ozzie would be happy as a clam moving them around. Ozzie also loves to hike.  He will eagerly run to the car and is always ready for the next hiking adventure. Desi does not like herding or hiking at all.  He looks on livestock with disdain and is more likely to get run over by the sheep than move them anywhere.  If you try to hike with Desi you will be forced to carry him for half the trip.  I know because it's happened before. To each his own.

The whole point of my rambling is this: Every dog needs a job.  It doesn't matter if you have a Chihuahua, Great Dane, or a mutt, all dogs need jobs.  Whether it's a sport like agility or flyball, or an activity you do like pet therapy, dogs need to have something to do.  Activities stimulate their minds and keep them mentally and physically healthy.  Help your dog to find the job that's right for him.  There have been so many times I've turned people away from pet assisted therapy because their pets just weren't suited to it; the humans very much liked it, but their animals really didn't.  And even if the job your dog chooses is playing fetch in the yard with you, or solving puzzle feeder toys, that's okay too.  Every one of us is good at something and the same goes for our pets.  And if you're really lucky, you may have a dog who is good at several jobs, so their choices are limitless.  It's all about giving them choices and trying new things to find out what is a good fit.  And what ends up being a good fit for your young dog, may change when the dog gets older.  Be flexible and help your dog find their job.  The rewards for doing so are profound.

As always, if you have questions about your pet's behavior, you know where to find me.

A story of two dogs: One who likes to hike steep trails and one who likes to cuddle little kids.