Smart Dogs

Andrew and I have always said that dogs are smarter than people give them credit for.  We're constantly amazed at how much our dogs know, learn, and even teach us.  I think the key is that people have to be willing to observe, teach, and learn from their pets. 

The ability for dogs to pick up on things has become even more apparent in the almost year and a half we've fostered 30 dogs.  Even though we've had some dogs for less than 24 hours we've seen many of them learn new things, adapt to our household, and teach us new things about dog behavior and personalities. 

Dogs are like people, they have different personalities.  Some dogs click and get along from the beginning.  Other dogs tolerate but don't actually like each other.  We've seen this with our dogs.  There are some foster dogs they take to right away and enjoy playing with.  There are others they'll tolerate and I'm sure they're eager to see find a forever home (and be out of theirs). 

Beacon is usually the one we watch as far as foster dog acceptance.  The dogs that have been less predictable, too hyper, and too in his face are the ones he could do without.  He also likes female dogs better than male dogs.  Haven generally likes all of the dogs we've had but sometimes will follow Beacon's lead when it comes to accepting a new dog as one of the pack. 

People all over the place search for dogs.  Some look at breeders.  Others look to rescue groups.  They search for breeds, personalities, ages, etc. which they define as *perfect* for their home situation.  They think they're the ones choosing the dog. 

But I wonder if sometimes it's the dog that does the choosing.  I've volunteered at many adoption events and have done one-on-one adoption meetings for many of the dogs we've fostered.  I think some of the dogs pick their owners. 

Although it sometimes happens with (eight week old) puppies I think it happens more often with older (year+) dogs.  Last year we fostered a 1-2 year old male yellow lab named Brody.  I took him to one adoption meeting where he wasn't adopted.  He didn't pay any attention to the person who was interested in adopting him.  He was more interested in his surroundings.  The person talked to him and he ignored her.  Later in the week I went to another adoption meeting with Brody.  Although he was in a new situation with lots to smell around him he paid attention to the couple looking at him.  He looked at them when they talked to him.  He responded to their voices.  It's like he liked these people and was willing to go home with them.

I wonder if Ella didn't pick out her new family.  On paper and even when talking to the first family who was interested in Ella they seemed like a good match.  They were active.  They had another dog that Ella could play with.  But when they met Ella they didn't click.  I don't know why.  It just wasn't meant to be.  When they came back from walking Ella around and told us that they needed to think about it Ella gladly came back to us.  She didn't seem interested in this couple and their dog. 

Last night when we took Ella to meet what would turn out to be her new family Ella was excited but hesitant to go with them as they walked around the store and got to know her.  But she went and almost immediately was all over the attention she was getting from the kids and parents.  She calmed down once she got used to them.  When we went over to Ella to say goodbye to her she wiggled but didn't seem all that interested in coming with us.  It was like she knew she found a good family and wanted to stay with them. 

Since we've fostered so many dogs we've gotten into a routine.  For the most part we know what to expect.  There usually aren't any surprises.  We've even had special needs dogs and have dealt with various issues.  But each foster dog is a new experience because dogs have different personalities.  It's fun to see how much we can teach a dog in the short time that he or she is with us.  Even Beacon and Haven help a great deal in helping foster dogs learn.  This definitely makes it easier to help a dog find the right fit when it comes to their new home.