Does your dog turn left, or right?

Hello all. How long has it been? Too long. Let's get straight to it. This blog comes off the back of my evening sniffari with the favourite member of our family - the dog.

If you've not met me or seen one of my rehabilitation plans, you may not have come across Sniffaries. Sniffaries are simply a different kind of walk. They are less about the distance, more about the time spent ambling along at the pace of your dog, and wherever their nose takes you both. They can be 5 minutes, or 50 minutes long. You decide. But direction? That's mostly up to the dog.

We ventured out this evening for our sniffari and as we approached the threshold where driveway meets pavement I paused, looked at my dog and asked "which way today?"

With that, she very definitely chose to turn left. The day before, interestingly, she chose to go right. I never know which it will be but the fact that she makes a conscious choice which changes each day, reaffirms the idea for me that she needs choices in her life and the opportunity to be independent sometimes.

The main reason I asked her is that it makes no sense whatsoever for me to choose this particular element of my dog's day. Consider this; how many choices in relation to your dog's life do you control? I am sure it's many and varied but may include - what time they wake up, what they eat, when they eat, whether they can access water (let's pause and say that should be all of the time but still), whether they can say hello to the passing dog, whether they can chase the local stray cat, whether they can roll around in fox poo and possibly whether they can eat out of the bin.

Now, ask yourself how many choices do they control in their lives. This is an internal exercise to do in your own head - after all, we don't wish to shame anyone do we. But you must by now be reaching the point I'm keen to make. Your dog gets little choice in life. They are often remarkably laid back and accept the routine, and the choices you provide. Sometimes, when a dog is struggling behaviourally, they may even rely upon this level of structure in their lives.

However, sometimes, choice (and the wrong choices) can lead to frustration. Especially when those choices lead to a curb in instinctive needs. It's often no one's fault. It's broadly like this because we've had very many years of misinformation about canine management fed to people. So people are still led to believe that dogs will try to be dominant, become aggressive or act out in some way if we allow them control or if we compromise with them. I can categorically tell you that most of these things are not true and science and research can dispel these ideas. More so, science and research is now telling us that where we give choice, we can fill instinctive needs which flies in the face of some of the older outdated theories out there.

By giving choice to your dog we open up parts of their world that lead to a deeper level of fulfilment. In turn your dog receives surges in the brain chemicals that enable them to calm, relax and focus. Therefore, you get the dog you dreamed of - the third child that's no trouble ;)

So, in simply taking a moment to ask my dog which way we would walk tonight, I enabled her to engage her nose and tell me which scent took her fancy - the one on the left of the driveway or that on the right? As soon as she chose, we paused a few feet forwards and had a good long sniff. We continued and stopped often for another sniff. She explored with the greatest sense, one that she instinctively needs to use regularly, and she soaked up those scents. Sure, at some point I probably whispered to her that it's gross to smell pee and poo deposits others have laid but, said with humour, because I know, that in fact, it's perfectly normal for her - akin to reading the local newspaper.

Scent in pee and poo deposits tells a dog every single thing about who left it. Was it Fred from number 63? What mood was he in? How butch is he feeling (testosterine levels smells different), when did he pass by? Today, last week, last month? And was he stressed or having a chilled time. Heck a dog can probably even tell which human walked with them (yep shoe prints also leave residue scent). So, your dog is effectively reading the newspaper, or checking out their own version on facebook.

We continued down the street to a patch of grass she often pauses over. We stopped for ages. And then, soaking in the warmer night air than I've experienced for some time, I strolled on slowly. And it had to be slowly because there was a distinct step change in the pace of my dog. No longer were we strolling along together. My dog was now lingering behind me with the lead taught. Although still walking in the same direction as me, she wasn't with me. I paused, looked back and checked in.

As soon as I looked her way, she grabbed my attention and happily directed me to turn 180 degrees and head home. She'd had enough. Happy with her sniff and the use of the village public toilet, we headed back together and five minutes after our return she curled up happily on our sofa and called it a night.

So, my headline conclusion for you today is; where you can give choice, don't hold back, and always remember; who's walk is it?