Hi folks, I have received a fair bit of correspondence about my "guess the Dog Listener error" blog of last week, and as usual with Dog Listening, the answer is obvious (if you step outside the box, so to speak).

In fact, the comment put on the YouTube video clip about people not thinking like dogs was as close to the answer as it was actually way off target. If you add a few words to what they put, and it reads, "... people do not THINK they think like dogs." you are there.

The truth is, there are two animals (not one) whose nature we deny - dogs and humans.

Society is a thin layer of wallpaper, trying to cover up the crack in the wall that is our Nature. We may not like the idea that we are animals, but all it takes is one natural disaster, or famine (or Easter holiday if you found yourself in a supermarket just before Good Friday!) and our nature is revealed.

Have you ever looked up and seen somebody you don't know staring at you? How does it make you feel? That feeling in your stomach is your adrenaline coursing through your body, ready to run away from, or fight off, the predator that is looking at you. Your instinct takes over and prepares you to avoid getting eaten, and YOU CAN'T DO A THING ABOUT IT.

In denying dogs nature, we make it so much harder to understand our dogs behaviour. But, once you understand this, you can start to appreciate the true nature of our amazing relationship with dogs.

Or you could try putting up another layer of wallpaper... the crack is still there though, isn't it?  Cheers, Tony Knight.

Hi folks, thanks to my work as a dog listener, it seems yours truly has once more been able to escape the cold snap by the skin of his teeth.

I remember in January this year leaving Gatwick airport a few hours before Britain froze solid, and now at the end of the year the same thing has happened. Watching images of the white-out from Australia seems like deja-vu...

However, the Aussies aren't necessarily too happy right now either (and not just because of the cricket). The East coast is unusually wet and not too hot either (whinging Aussies...), although I briefly visited Broome in the West and suffered the quickest dose of sunburn ever - 10 minutes even with sun tan lotion on.

It is at times like these that I ponder the issue of Man's place in Nature. We like to think that we are the masters of the planet, and indeed we are capable of the most amazing feats, far surpassing our own limitations. However, Nature does have a habit of reminding us on occasion that we are just ants on the anthill, and at any moment the kettle of boiling water that is the weather can descend upon us and cause chaos.

Those right now on the cold half of the world are more affected by the lack of daylight than the huge amounts of snow. The condition known as S.A.D. is due to a lack of vitamins provided by the sun, coupled with the continued need to work with the same intensity as in the summertime. Nature understands this and either shuts down or heads somewhere warmer. Geese do this and laugh at us as they go....

One of our biggest obstacles when working with dogs and training dogs is our reluctance to admit that we (and they) are animals with a very powerful nature. Once we accept the nature of the beast, we can work with it, not against it. As soon as we ignore it, we are setting ourselves up for a shock.

Funny how we accept a cat's nature far more easily - if you get scratched by a cat you are told that the solution is to leave the cat alone. If a dog nips, then it is an aggressive monster. One is accepted for its nature, the other is not.

When somebody tells me that they were "bitten" by a dog, I ask how it happened. Chances are they approached the dog  - and invading personal space without permission can lead to being told to go away...

Check out these clips of what is possible when you accept the force of Nature and can manage it.... and when you don't. You shouldn't laugh at one of them, but see if you can help it! Stay Warm, Tony Knight.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYFoF5UIX0U
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CT0a-Hgumo

It's a national crisis in France. People are up in arms about it. The newspapers are full of stories about it. The President is unavailable for comment.... That's right, it seems that cats are now more popular than dogs among the French. Zut alors!

Now, as I often say, never trust an animal with 20 flick knives. Especially when the owner of said weapons will attack you with them should the mood suit them. I once did a talk in Holland, and when I asked the cat owners in the room to raise their hands, they were all wearing long sleeves (I rest my case).

Apparently, the main reason is that cats are more affectionate. However, I reckon that the other reasons given in the article are more valid - they are cheaper to feed, and more independent.

A cat can disappear for three days and there is not the same panic there would be if a dog went missing for three minutes. Once again, this shows how people will let cats be cats, but dogs are not allowed to be dogs.

Cats take less maintenance - in people's minds - because they believe that dogs need to be walked everyday. Of course, the enlightened ones like those who follow the dog listener methods know this is not true, but it is amazing how strong this belief is.

Then again, we used to believe so strongly that when there was a thunderstorm, it meant that the gods were angry and only a human sacrifice could appease them.

One other item of interest in the newspaper article - the most popular breed in France for so many years has been knocked off the number one spot. The French poodle is now in second place, behind.... you guessed it, the Labrador.

That is of course, because all Labradors are perfect....!!! Tell that to the woman who had her face chewed off by one here a few years ago. Tell that to the New Zealand electric meter readers, who have the Lab at the top of their list of dogs to avoid.

When we stereotype a dog breed - for good or bad reasons - and expect the same dog behaviour from that breed, we deny them their nature and individual personalities. Labradors are dogs, and should be treated with the same respect as you would a German Shepherd (number 4 in the French pup charts).

Trust me, not all French people wear berets... Cheers. Tony Knight

ALLONS ENFANTS DE LA PATRIE...

Hi folks, for those of you who may be unaware, here in France there have been national strikes for the last few weeks, with people taking to the streets protesting about the plans to raise the retirement age by 2 years.

It's affecting our dogs too! Friends of mine were in the car with their dog who is nervous around loud noises, when they were slowed down by a group of protesters in the road, handing out leaflets.

At the precise moment they stopped, somebody in the crowd let off a flare. This caused the poor dog to fly into the footwell of the car, in fear for his life. Now there was a time when his reaction was much, much worse, but fortunately his owners, having taken on board the Dog Listener approach are much better at dealing with it than before, and his trauma was short-lived.

The other thing that has struck me has been the panic-buying of petrol over the last few days, as the refineries are blockaded. It shows only too clearly how quickly humans will go into "survival" mode when there is a sudden doubt in the availability of something important.

I'm sure you've witnessed this phenomenon in the lead up to Christmas, when in the rush to get as much food as possible in for the festive season, the aisles turn into a scene from Mad Max... I'll never forget the sweet, little old lady who rammed me with her shopping cart to get to the milk first!

You've probably heard me say that in all of the Natural world, we denied one animal its true nature - the dog. However, I have changed my mind. I now include people. Society is a bit like wallpaper put over a crack in the wall - it may hide what is there, but it's still there just below the surface.

For an example of how the nature of these two animals are ignored, check out the article below about the previous French president -  funny how at the end of it the dog was fine, even though the reason for its "depression" was still not resolved.

All dogs, no matter how small, should be given the same respect and understanding.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/6256829/Jacques-Chirac-forced-to-give-away-depressed-dog-Sumo.html  A la prochaine, Antoine