Maybe this is only interesting because it's my dog, but one of Gracie's habits fascinates me.
She is a very confident stafford, she has always taken everything in her stride. I suppose you could describe her as 'bombproof'. I'd take her anywhere. She loves people and has no problems with encounters with new things that she may not have had experience with before. I was once being a bit naughty and patting the very friendly horses around the corner from my house when I had the dogs (on lead) and I was deliberately keeping Gracie a little away from them because she's never been socialised with horses. I was patting one horse when another came over and stuck it's head over the fence at Gracie. I wasn't sure how she'd react but they both sniffed each other respectfully and Gracie was just her usual gentle ball of love to living creatures. So she's very easy going and confident.
What fascinates me is that there is one situation that she gets worked up about and that involves people in water.
Say I go camping/to a water hole with my friends. The dogs may choose to hop in or they may decide not to. I might leave them with a friend who isn't swimming so I can have a quick dip and cool off. Abby doesn't care. Grace stresses out. She 'sooks', she never whines usually, but this sets her off. When I hop out, she'll still sook over my friends in the water. She doesn't really like us being in the water (so it seems) so usually I take her for a walk to get her mind off it.
She loves the beach and plays in the shallows, crashes into waves etc. Absolutely loves it. Doesn't stress if I come in as well. She'll swim to a sand bar with me no worries. But a water hole? She's just not that keen. If she does hop in, it's for a small swim and that enough. I never push the issue. But she certainly doesn't like it when her human friends are in the water.
It's one of those times where I truly wish I knew what was going through her head. Any ideas?
Are there situations that your dog's reactions seem out of character? I suppose it's a bit like a quirk thread really.
She is a very confident stafford, she has always taken everything in her stride. I suppose you could describe her as 'bombproof'. I'd take her anywhere. She loves people and has no problems with encounters with new things that she may not have had experience with before. I was once being a bit naughty and patting the very friendly horses around the corner from my house when I had the dogs (on lead) and I was deliberately keeping Gracie a little away from them because she's never been socialised with horses. I was patting one horse when another came over and stuck it's head over the fence at Gracie. I wasn't sure how she'd react but they both sniffed each other respectfully and Gracie was just her usual gentle ball of love to living creatures. So she's very easy going and confident.
What fascinates me is that there is one situation that she gets worked up about and that involves people in water.
Say I go camping/to a water hole with my friends. The dogs may choose to hop in or they may decide not to. I might leave them with a friend who isn't swimming so I can have a quick dip and cool off. Abby doesn't care. Grace stresses out. She 'sooks', she never whines usually, but this sets her off. When I hop out, she'll still sook over my friends in the water. She doesn't really like us being in the water (so it seems) so usually I take her for a walk to get her mind off it.
She loves the beach and plays in the shallows, crashes into waves etc. Absolutely loves it. Doesn't stress if I come in as well. She'll swim to a sand bar with me no worries. But a water hole? She's just not that keen. If she does hop in, it's for a small swim and that enough. I never push the issue. But she certainly doesn't like it when her human friends are in the water.
It's one of those times where I truly wish I knew what was going through her head. Any ideas?
Are there situations that your dog's reactions seem out of character? I suppose it's a bit like a quirk thread really.