Most of you have probably heard the saying "be the person your dog thinks you are," but have you ever taken the time to think about what this actually means? To all of the dog owners out there, I think we can all agree that we would do just about anything if it meant making our dogs happy. So what would happen if we rendered this kind of behavior into how we treat each other?
1. To your dog, you are the most giving person in the whole wide world.
We feed, walk, groom, and praise our dogs on a regular basis. These small duties may seem superficial, but to them, it is their entire lives. Our dogs know they would not survive with out our care, and this is why they love us so much. Further, we care for our dogs in a way that is free and unconditional. We take care of them to the best of our abilities and expect nothing in return. So, what if we chose to serve each other in the same free and unconditional manner we use in caring for our dogs? Don’t you think we would all benefit by being more charitable and less self-serving? I sure do.
2. To your dog, you are the most considerate person in the whole wide world.
Within you and your dog’s relationship is a mutual respect that never seems to fade. You keep them alive, and in return they provide you with endless love and happiness. Now what if we chose to respect each other in a similar way that we administer to our dogs? I’m not saying that we all need to provide one another with endless love and happiness. However, I am saying that if we integrated the same consideration we have for these four-legged creatures into our everyday human interactions, then this world would be a far more pleasant place to be.
3. To your dog, you are the most empathetic person in the whole wide world.
If you are, in fact, a dog owner you must know that the only way to take care of your pet is by showing them empathy. This simply means that you understand their needs and motivations. You wrestle with them when they are feeling playful, comfort them during a thunderstorm, and take them out whenever duty calls. Even if it means putting their needs before your own, like when duty calls at 3 a.m. and you have to be up for work in a few hours. Now, I know if you could understand life through a K9’s perspective, then you could easily see into the lens of another human being’s. In my opinion, this is one of the most essential abilities we have as humans, to be able to step into another person’s shoes. It requires us to possess a sense of selflessness by taking the focus off of our own needs and putting it on someone else’s. Practicing empathy is something all of our fury friends expect from us, and it is also something we should all expect from each other more often.
4. To your dog, you are the most forgiving person in the whole wide world.
We all like to think and say that our dog is "perfect," but sadly this is just not true. Even our seemingly perfect pets make mistakes. They might knock over a wine glass, bark at the neighbors, or run through the screen to the screened in porch. Then we can choose to scold them all we want, but who can stay mad at those big black eyes looking up at us? I know I can’t. So we forgive them approximately five minutes later, and apologize for saying what we said whether they understood us or not. Don’t you wish every fight were this quick and easy? Well it can be. The only reason the confrontation is so short lived is because only one party is doing the criticizing. Next time you are angry at someone, try and say all you need to say, and then drop it. Or if you are the one being scolded, stay calm and humble without talking back, and maybe you will receive that apology within five minutes.
5. To your dog, you are the most accepting person in the whole wide world.
You may not think of it this way, but you are your dog’s "person." They come to you for literally everything and do not care what anybody else thinks of them. Your opinion is the only one that matters and you are their only true friend. In return, it doesn’t matter if they came from the shelter or the color of their fur, you love them unconditionally and they know it. So why not treat people with the same form of acceptance? If you would be willing to give a stray dog a home, then wouldn't you consider accepting a person's minor flaws to be a small price to pay? You will find a great deal of peace when you start accepting those around you, and will find it a lot easier to accept your own self, too.
Remember when you were younger and thought your parents were like super heroes and could do no wrong? Well, this is how our dogs view us all of the time. To them, we are the most giving, considerate, empathetic, forgiving, and accepting people in the whole wide world. It is okay if we do not fully measure up to these highly set standards our dogs arrange for us, but why not try our hardest to be the people they think we are? I’m not saying that we would conquer world peace, although I do believe we would be much better off. Now I will leave you with this final question: If your dog had the capability to know who you truly were, would you make him or her proud? Who knows, maybe they already do.
