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Consent Test
Hey all, hope you’re having a great weekend!
I was just reading the Allie Bender and Emily Strong Canine Enrichment book from our last segment on enrichment. On page 108, they talk about how not all dogs want to be petted and provided a video example by eileenanddogs on youtube on how to perform a consent test. I thought it was a good video and ties in nicely with our new topic on body language, so I’ll just put that here…????
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6 Replies
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Thanks for sharing! My dog likes chest pets and will let us know if she is enjoying it by tapping our hand if we stop (she especially likes this in the car since its soothes her and she isnt a fan of rides). A while back I reached out to pet her head and paused to test/ read her reaction and with that moment of hesitation it was very clear she would much rather not! Without the ask it would be very hard to tell that she “tolerates” a lot of human petting and only truly enjoys some. She will often roll over and expose her belly for a soothing rub (paw to hand if you stop) but at other times non-consent petting will rile her up and get her asking for something else in return. Its hard to convince everyone else in world that she doesn’t love all of their physical affection and merely tolerates it as an exchange.
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oh and butt scratches are always welcome. I think I will try to reintroduce the consent concept to the rest of the fam!
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She doesn’t love all of their physical affection and merely tolerates it as an exchange. – Lisa D.
Brilliant observation, Lisa! Good for you!
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I’m with @LisaD – great share @Marcybel – thank you!
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Love this, @Marcybel ! Eileen is brilliant and I’ve learned a lot over the years, from her blogs and videos. I love sharing this consent test with clients, too. My Aussie, Joy, HATES being petted on the head, which is exactly what most people do. She’s so tolerant of it. She’ll “exchange” as @LisaD said – it’s worth being patted on the head if they’ll then throw the ball… lol but once the ball is in play, she rarely comes in close enough to be touched at all, whereas other dogs might rub up against your leg to show you the ball, or between your legs, as my old Vizsla (may she rest in peace) used to do.
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Thank you so much for sharing this great video, @Marcybel ! What a powerful way to help normal dog owners. It’s like a “doggie social story” (like they make for kids with Asperger’s or autism) of what to do. After all, we are a totally different species that continually looks for our dogs to mirror us and our emotional state in many ways, but they are INDIVIDUALS!
One thing that used to frustrate me was when my Berner was a young pup still, if I cried (not often), he would mouth me or bark, instead of the typical dog response of crawling up by your side and resting their head in your lap with puppy eyes. I am sure he was frustrated, too. He did not know how to handle this emotional display. Over the years, he became that dog who would run to me and try to soothe.
Also, as a pet sitter and walker, too, I see so many owners in the initial meeting that are surprised when I don’t run up to their pet and throw myself at it or paw them. I explain that it’s always important to let the animal come to a new person. I don’t even reach for them when they do come, eventually almost all the dogs or cats will end up near me by the end of the visit, asking for some kind of attention (even non-physical). I always respect animals for the individuals they are.
Hoping to share this with a few peeps! Thank you!!!
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