🧐 Who am I for my dog ?
The perception of your dog
Even without having access to their thoughts, we can get an idea of how your dog perceives you.
You have several roles: you manage food, you organize his walks, you keep a close eye on his interactions with other individuals of the same species or other species, you watch over his sleep, you take care of his health, you protect him when he is worrying, you play with him, you brush him, you teach him various behaviors.
You are the being to whom he can turn to if he has needs to satisfy, if he needs to be reassured, secured, if he needs to be stimulated.
The perception of the other humans
There are many labels that are given to humans who live with dogs: owner, master, parent, human. Some have acquired negative connotations, others are denigrated, and some others are loved.
Owner : person who owns a good, an animal, etc.
Whether you like this notion or not, from the moment you welcome an animal into your home, you own it. You don’t let him wander as he pleases. You take care of him. It can also be sold, rehomed, depending on the human’s wishes. Even if they benefit from recognition as sentient beings, dogs remain beings that belong to us. Would you let your dog be stolen? Would you let him choose another family if it got lost? In fact, you are responsible for him. He remains under the influence of your decisions. Even if you take into account some of his preferences, it turns out you do control his daily life and his future.
Master : person that teaches ; who commands ; the keeper of an animal
Very often, this word is not appreciated because of the connotation linked to the subordination of slaves. Personally, I feel this word especially in its definition of teacher. Regularly, I have clients who tell me that their dog "behaves as the pet's teacher because his mistress is here". In certain arts, the master is the one who guides, the one who sheds light on knowledge, the one who transmits his skills.
As the "master" of your dog, you are responsible for guiding him so that he integrates as best as possible into your environment, into your lifestyle, for teaching him behaviors to adopt, for relying on you in certain circumstances, for taking care of him by feeding him, grooming him, taking him out, stimulating him, etc.
Parent : person who adopts and/or raises a child
Behind the terms "dad" and "mom" sometimes used to describe the relationship with the dog, I think there is an anthropomorphism linked to education, care, the relationship of dependence of the dog on humans as young children are, to the adoption into your home of a being that you treat with kindness and that you integrates into your daily activities.
S’il ne s’agit que de mots pour qualifier comment on se perçoit par rapport à des responsabilités, la problématique se pose quand on oublie qu’un chien n’est pas un être humain, qu’il n’a pas à être habillé avec des robes, qu’il n’a pas à avoir ses griffes vernies, qu’il n’a pas à marcher sur ses pattes arrière, qu’il perçoit le monde et communique différemment. Dormir avec son chien est une chose ; le promener dans un landau alors qu’il dispose de ses pleines capacités physiques en est une autre. If these are just words to describe how we perceive ourselves in relation to responsibilities, the problem arises when we forget that a dog is not a human being, that it does not have to be dressed like a doll, that it does not have to have his claws polished, that it does not have to walk on his hind legs, that he perceives the world and communicates differently. Sleeping with your dog is one thing; walking him in a baby carriage while he has his full physical capacities is another.
Human : kind and considerate; relating to mankind
When I was able to hear that term, it happened more to distinguish the species : A is the dog of B, who is the human of A. That does not indicate anything as for the relationship between the beings, only a factual indication of the species.
Words often have a value that is attributed to them and that is particularly subjective and dependent on each individual. For me, name yourself as you wish considering your dog, your actions and your relationship, the trust he shows you and his relaxation in your presence do say more.
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