As a dog owner, you feel compelled to provide a loving and safe environment for your best furry friend. You want him to trust you, follow your leadership and be a happy, healthy companion for as long as he is with you on this planet. While your intentions may be the most noble, you may be unintentionally scaring your dog with your own body language and mannerisms. These are things all humans do without really thinking about it, but forget that dogs are not humans and will read us differently than we read each others’ body language. These insights into your own behavior around your dog and easy tips to change them can make your dog more comfortable, trusting and help build a stronger bond with you.
The Lean Over
Small dogs, big dogs, and those in between can all suffer from the intimation that comes when a human leans over to greet him. The lean over would do the same to us humans if someone else much larger than us did the same thing. Most people do this even to small children, but a dog does not have that understanding that human leaning over to say hello means no harm.