One of the best pieces of advice parents of young children are given as they are learning to speak is to watch what they say around the kids because they soak everything up like a sponge and will start repeating what they hear. Really, the same can be said about showing compassion, affection and helping children to mimic the same actions.
What if the same is true for your pet? While man’s best friend won’t be shouting any sentences out at you they can show aggression, fear, timid behavior and even have an overall short demeanor all based on your own actions.
Results from a recent study conducted by the School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States, found that the dynamic between human and canine can affect the development of that canine’s behavior problems.
Specifically, the research published in Frontiers in Veterinary Science found that there are actually a number of dog characteristics that are influenced by their owners. For example, in dogs they observed, there was a direct correlation between the canine being an aggressive dog and the owner being someone who is emotionally unstable, shy, tense or undisciplined. On the end of the spectrum, there were also dogs that showed higher levels of stranger-directed fear when their owners were not found to be extroverts or have emotional stability.
So what now? Working together on both personal mental and emotional growth as well as providing your dog with positive reinforcement and training so they can feel confident and more easily adjust strangers and new situations.
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