i am whatever i have to be to get by

A dog raises a lip when a stranger reaches to pet them—I am uncomfortable—and we punish her for saying so. She snaps at another dog for jumping on her back—I don’t like what you are doing—and we tell her, “Be nice!” The comb catches a knot in her fur at the groomer’s and pulls her skin, and she growls—That hurts me—and she receives a pop on the nose. We tell our dogs over and over: No talking. We pave the way for the moments when they just can’t take it anymore, and reach the end of their rope because nobody has been listening to them. The entire point of ritualised communication, signaling and threatening behaviour in nature is to avoid actual conflicts and altercations. To assume that warnings are just an indication of intent to harm is backward. Think about it this way: In the wild, there are no veterinary hospitals waiting to provide stitches and antibiotics after a fight. So there are “words” that animals are born with knowledge of and, much likes us, learn to speak fluently over the course of their lives through experience. These words are basic language skills for dogs to use and comprehend. When they cannot use them, they are at a social deficit with one another, because they are robbed of their voice about their experiences and feelings. Our dogs are misunderstood and backed into a corner without recourse, simply because we do not speak dog.