I know when you’re going out of town.
If you’re anything like me, you hate leaving your dog for a vacation or even one night at a friend’s house, but trust me, your dog hates it too. They dread your departure so much that they’ve learned the signs of when you’re about to go – such as pulling out your suitcase. Dogs will associate this action with the next action they know, which is usually you leaving them for an extended period of time (they learn very well through association). This is why you’ll see your dog’s behaviour change when you’re packing up, as they slink into the corner in a mild depression, getting ready for your imminent departure. Dont want to leave your dog at home? Dogtipper.com offers tons of great content on doggie travel tips to help you prepare! If you ARE bringing your dog with you, be sure to prepare for unexpected messy adventures along the way without your regular groomer available to clean them up. Grab a Dog Belly Cover and Dog Leggings to keep them clean and fresh longer so theyre looking their best on your travels!
Otherwise, give them lots of love and tell them you’ll be home soon (they can understand what you’re saying, I swear…keep reading for proof).
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Horses can safely eat a wide variety of household foods which can make great supplements to a traditional diet. However, there are several common foods that are toxic to our equine friends.
So how do dogs remember us at all?
Until recently, we believed that dogs had only one very basic type of memory called associative memory. This is a kind of memory where an animal remembers the relationship between two things.
A good example of associative memory in action is how your dog responds when you pick up their leash. They know that a walk is likely to follow when you pick their leash up. We used to think this was how our dogs remembered us as well.
Studies have recently found evidence suggesting that dogs also have a more advanced memory called episodic memory. And it is this memory that they use to remember us.
Episodic memory helps dogs form a connection between people and experiences. In other words, the more great moments you share with your dog, the more important you are to them.
Do Dogs Really Miss Us When We Leave the House?
Is it the extra laundry? The new sneakers set by the door? The way I’m preparing and setting out my senior dog’s medication, in a foolproof organizational fashion for my husband, who is staying behind?
It’s likely all these things – certainly the cumulative effect of all of these things. The more things I do to prepare to leave town on a business trip (I’m going to Kansas City for Petfood Forum), the more depressed and glum-looking my dogs get – especially on these work-related trips where I leave my husband behind to take care of the dogs.
When the two of us take a trip together, often one of the first steps I take in preparation for leaving is to deliver my two dogs to their respective favorite caregivers. Senior Otto usually goes to my sister’s house, where he gets to play 70-pound Gulliver in the land of Lilliputians (my sister has three small dogs). Six-year-old Woody is the same size as Otto, but his playful demeanor and exuberant body language makes him a better fit with my friend Leonora, who owns Woody’s best puppyhood friend, 5-pound Samson. They are mismatched in size, but perfectly matched in energy and interests.
Both of my dogs begin looking joyful when we approach their respective caregivers’ homes. They leap out of the car with joy, and barge into their temporary homes as if they’ve just returned from their own too-long vacations.
But this is a work trip; they are staying behind with my husband. All they have to look forward to is mealtime. My husband’s motto? “Food is love.” Even though he never feeds the dogs when I’m home, he enjoys preparing lavish meals for them when I’m gone. The last time I left town without him, I came home to a refrigerator that contained none of the eggs, lunch meat, or bacon bits (which I enjoy sprinkled on my salads) that were there when I left three days prior. He had mixed all of those ingredients into their food while I was gone!
But these meals are clearly not on their minds (yet) as I pack my bags. It seems as if they are focused solely on conveying how much they’d like to come with me (as evidenced by their following me from room to room, or parking themselves by the door and following me to the car with every piece of luggage) or demonstrating how miserable they are going to be while I’m gone (demonstrated with glum, sad-sack expressions and deep sighs every few minutes).
Do your dogs care about your vacation preparations or react to the sight of your briefcase being packed for a trip?