Sometimes, not often, Viva puts up her "leave me alone" face. Maybe it was the hot temperatures during that particular day. Or maybe she just had a bad hair day.
It is difficult for me to leave it with that. A Facebook friend wrote, after seeing the photo:
"She looks as though she knows
a thing or two - I have read about her on your blog. Glad she has
found her home. Dogs come to us for a reason - often to teach us
something we didn't realise we need to learn... The eyes are the mirror of the soul - one of my favourite sayings."
Viva does know a thing or two and according to
Stanley Coren, it is possible dogs do have a memory of things that happened in the past. And if eyes really are the mirror of the soul, it is not looking good in Viva's case. Was she dwelling in the past during these "leave me alone" moments? We will probably never know.
Whatever it is, Kenzo picks it up too. Viva means the world to Kenzo. He always looks after her and protects her. I saw him change after we took Viva in, now 3 years ago. Taking care of his big sister has become his number one priority. And when Viva has a "leave me alone" mood swing, Kenzo always charms her back to her happy self:
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| Kenzo making himself cute ... Viva ignores his attempts |
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| Getting closer ... ignoring becomes difficult for Viva |
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| Viva lunges ... "get away!" |
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| Now Viva is standing up, maybe a play-bow? |
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| Teasing by stealing her favorite squeaky toy? |
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| That worked! Viva is playing. |
I am investing a lot of time and effort in Viva's well-being, but I am not on top of the pyramid, with the responsibility to make everybody happy, healthy and fulfilled. Certain things I cannot fix or understand. Taking care of each other is team work. We all need each other, to be the best we can be.
Kenzo is a very deep pup, we think, to understand Viva needs some love!
ReplyDeleteSam
Thanks Sam! Viva is his everything.
DeleteTriyng to make my hovigirls happy is a full time work for me, even though they don't have "a past", like Viva. I do my best trying to understand them and to do the right thing according to their personality. You and Kenzo are doing a great work!
ReplyDeleteSilvia
Glad to hear that Silvia, it is fascinating, isn't it, trying to understand them and to do the right thing for their personality.
DeleteIt's so neat that Kenzo is so tuned into Viva and takes such care of her all the time. JD adores Jasmine too. It's very funny - when hubby leaves by himself and comes home, JD will make a mad dash to greet him. When, however, hubby leaves with Jasmine (taking her for her chiro etc) JD will make a mad dash right past him, to see Jasmine first. Only then he'll come back to greet hubby, "oh, you're here too?"
ReplyDeleteI don't think dogs dwell on the past the way we do. I believe that however good their memory is, it is associative. So something would have to trigger the past memories. On the other hand, it can be something subtle, such as a smell (you know how certain smells bring you right back to your childhood memories with grandma or whatever along those lines)
That said, I believe such sensory input would have to be quite unique and distinct, so I would think that it is more likely caused by pain, nausea or something else physiological. A dog can certainly be distracted from pain (that's why it's often difficult for a vet to observe pain signs in the office, as all the excitement overrides that). So my strategy would be to try and see whether it is something like that.
Thanks for your input Jana, and something physiological is the first thing to check. But it is not that in Viva's case. At least this time :)
DeleteI believe dogs have emotional lives and memories. For sure. Georgia goes looking for dumped food in the same spot in the park, even when she hasn't been there a while! ;) No doubt Viva has some sad memories but based on your pictures, I think she's now making some new good ones.
ReplyDeleteThat is nice thought. Let's add so many, there is no more room for anthing of the old ones :)
DeleteIt is adorable that Kenzo teases the goodwill back into Viva!
ReplyDeleteI agree with that Facebook commenter, it's grand that Viva has found her home with you. I think that people expect dogs to be a bit like "goldfish"; no memories, no expectations.
Kenzo with one of "her" toys is irresistible to Viva. He knows to walk the fine line. If he would hold on to it too long, she could get annoyed at him. He holds it long enough just so she gets out of her corner :)
DeleteAnd yes, too many still explain a dog from the "it's just a dog" dogma.
Nice to see Kenzo and Viva larking around. Have a lovely Monday.
ReplyDeleteBest wishes Molly
I'm glad they have each other (and you)! Around here that face is known as "stink eye."
ReplyDeleteI believe dogs have a very rich emotional life. But because they don't speak, we have to watch carefully to get a full sense of it.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like Kenzo is certainly cued in well to Viva's feelings and knows just the right thing to make her feel better.
Although I think dogs live more "in the moment" than reminiscing about their past, we'll never know for sure. And as long as your pups have each other and you, it sounds like they'll be just fine! It's always so heartwarming to see dogs when they are so in tune with each other.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great post - we definitely all need each other to be our best and you have two great teammates there!
ReplyDelete