The human brain and the brain of a dog both have the same ability to produce a chemical that bonds us across species lines forming feelings of love and attachment.
Humans have this with each other too but studies show that less of the chemical is released over time between two humans, yet remains the same between a human and a dog.
Why?
Communication.
The most important facet of effective communication is the act of listening.
Listening not for the one word that hits a nerve.
No.
Listening for the sole purpose of making a person feel
like you are there attempting to connect.
Dogs seem to do that so willingly.
Dogs can’t respond with words yet we feel we have been heard.
Why?
Because we have their full attention.
In those moments we feel their presence and we feel acknowledged.
What we need is to feel acknowledged by our own species to feel validated and understood.
Acknowledged by a person.
A person who is there and doing their best to understand something from your view-point.
Present in the moment.
Our dog may not respond with words, but he is there not interrupting us, and we can feel it.
That invaluable attempt to connect.
Acknowledgement is not an assertion that a person is right or wrong.
It is simply the gesture of saying…
I am here, I see you and I am really listening.
#strikeamatch
CDM Think Tank LLC 