Animals and Their Purpose

Most of the animals that I work with feel they have an important role to play in the lives of their guardians.  From what I have learned from them, they come into our lives to help us learn and grow and they always have our best interests at heart.  Some people may say, "When an animal does this, this is what it means" but I don't think we can generalize that much because their purpose is so unique to each situation and each relationship they have.

Let's take barking dogs as an example. I have dealt with many dogs over the years who barked a lot and each one of them had a different reason for doing it, a different way they were trying to assist their guardian.

One dog I worked with told me that he barked a lot because his guardian never spoke up for herself so he was trying to "model" the behavior he wanted her to get better at. When I told her this, she confirmed her dog was right and she began working to improve in that area. And over time, as she spoke up more, her dog barked less.

So if you have a dog that barks a lot, should you assume that you need to speak up more?  Not necessarily.

Another over-zealous barker told me that her dad let everyone walk all over him, including her and she wanted him to learn how to set boundaries. She thought that if her dad could learn to set boundaries with her, that it would be easier for him to do it with the humans in his life too. He was so touched by her willingness to let him practice with her and soon he was finding it easier to set boundaries with other people in his life. (and miraculously, she stopped being an over-zealous barker)

And yet there was another barking dog that told me her parents argued a lot and she was trying to show them that it wasn't a good way to communicate. She also told me that the energy from their arguments made her uncomfortable and sometimes she barked just to release the energy she was feeling. (That was a conversation that had to be handled very gently and very gracefully with her parents)  :-)  Fortunately, they were receptive to the message and promised to work on their way of "communicating" with each other.  As they created more peace in their interactions, their dog no longer felt the need to add to the chaos by barking so much.

Another dog I worked with told me that her mom was scared all the time and she was trying to let her know she was "on the job" protecting her. She thought that her barking would help her mom feel safer.  When I talked to her mom about it and found out that her dog's barking made her feel even more on edge, we talked about things she could do to help increase her level of comfort. She came up with a few ideas (installing some motion sensor lights in the yard and having an extra lock put on the door).  Once she put those things in place, she felt safer and consequently, her dog's barking decreased dramatically.

I truly believe animals have a reason for the things they do and if we remember that they are here to help us, it's easier to figure out what they are trying to show us by behaviors that we might consider bothersome or label "a training issue."

How do you think the animals in your life are trying to help you learn and grow?