Thinking about all the changes that Ray has made in his attitude to our world, and watching him now interact with other dogs on a daily basis, some comparisons with us are inevitable:
He readily accepts the attention of, and will socialize with, puppies and senior dogs. We usually give children, especially young children, lots of attention… but the elderly?
He clearly does not care whether they are overweight, or looking malnourished. He does not care what collar and/or harness they are wearing He befriends them anyway. Are we that non-judgemental or are we still stereotyping? Are we really open minded about body piercings, tattoos, motorcycles, studs, pants where the waist line is well below the waist? Do we believe that obesity is simply an education issue? Do we believe that anorexia is a choice? Are we really prepared to look beyond the outward appearance and treat everybody equally?
He does not care what color or breed they are! Are we that open minded? Really? When one considers the size and breed of a dog, and also its overall appearance, and sees Ray approach it in a very friendly and accepting manner, we should perhaps ask ourselves “Am I really that receptive to variations in not only physical appearance, but also to cultural and religious differences?”
Then there is his attitude to life in general. Remembering that Ray is my first dog, I took issue with the concept of training with treats. I had a problem rationalizing that bribery could be justified because… where does it end?
As it was carefully explained to me, bribery is not involved. Quite simply, bribery was when the reward was given before the desired activity, in contrast to a reward which was given after the desired activity! As for having to maintain the rewards in order to maintain the desired activity? It was explained that dogs are an opportunistic species. When they perform as required, but no reward follows, their thought process is something like “Oh well…. I’ll probably get a reward next time.” The whole training method of reward based positive reinforcement suddenly made so much sense and, based on Ray’s progress, it worked extremely well!
This raises a point of interest though. If a dog can adopt a positive attitude to life in general, why do so many people have trouble grasping and applying the same concept? It really seems odd to look at Ray and think of him as role modelling life for us and, given the complexities of our lives compared to his, he really isn’t. Having said that however, we can still learn so much about ourselves by just observing our canine friends and making comparisons in behavior!
If we were just as accepting of our own species in all their variations, as dogs are with their species, the world would certainly be a much happier place. Food for thought.
Ahhh, to be as wonderful as my dog thinks I am. Now that’s something to ascribe to!
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Sam has set the bar very high hasn’t he! 🙂
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😍
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🙂
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There is so much to learn from Ray ! Woof woof 🙂
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But…. like any teacher, it is only of value to those who are open to learning. 🙂
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Thank you Colin for sharing Ray’s lessons with us 😦
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You’re always welcome Himali. 🙂
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* 🙂
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I think…Professor Ray is a paragon of the virtues to which more humans should aspire. Thank-you, esteemed Professor Ray!
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He would probably agree with you Ellen. 🙂
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Professor Rae says, we can learn a great deal from Professor Ray!
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Without doubt! He’s got twice as many feet as us firmly planted on the ground as well! 🙂
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Yes, taking and accepting everyone the way they are… I guess that is the secret of world peace!
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🙂
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☺
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I just figure that dogs are better than us. There are plenty of examples to support this hypothesis.
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🙂
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Agreed!
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Great post, Colin.
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Thank you Chris. Thinking often gets me into problems but, overall, making people think is I believe a good thing…. I think! Just thinking! 🙂
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You think, therefore you exist.
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I exist, therefore I think.
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You often make me think Colin. Both you and Ray. Although, thinking often gets me into trouble too. Are you trying to get me into trouble?
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Molly, I don’t really know you very well, but I am getting the distinct impression that you can get yourself into trouble without any help from me! 🙂
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we can learn a lot from our dogs!
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We certainly can. 🙂
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You couldn’t be more right! Great post.
We need Ray to go around spreading his message of acceptance. Can he come visit the Highschool that my teens go too? 🙂
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Could not get him there unless an airline would be prepared to let him in the passengers area… but then your customs people are really obnoxious so US Customs probably would not let him in!
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“HaHa!”….Yes, you may have a point there. That may explain why things that I send to Canada don’t always end up where they are supposed to!
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🙂
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Totally agree! We can learn so much from our dogs.
I like that they live in the present.
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🙂
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Amen, brother!
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🙂
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