Need a Little Joy? Spend Some Time With a Dog; a Young Dog If You Can…

People lose their ability to easily find joy when way too soon. We become “grownups” and forget how to find or create joy within every day. Many dogs, on the other hand, create joy every single day for most of their lives. (Yes, there are more serious dogs, but we’re looking at the silly ones today—you know who they are!)

These are the dogs who play like no one’s watching…and they don’t care if you do watch. In fact, they’ll probably play harder and invite you into the game. They experience complete joy and are totally in the moment. They choose what makes them happy or feels good—running while shaking a favorite toy, randomly rolling on the floor or rubbing along a couch. Some dogs cover a toy and then dig it out. Some race around the yard leaping and kicking. All are completely involved in the moment and experiencing pure joy.

We, on the other hand, become conscious of what we’re doing and what might be perceived as too “silly.” We become concerned about what someone else might think if they see us. It shouldn’t matter, but it does. You might even remember when this first happened to you.

For me, it was when I was still a young girl. I was headed home and was skipping down the street swinging my ponytail behind me. A neighbor, Sally Ann, who was the same age, was further down the street, past my house. She started mimicking me, in a way that was obviously meant to mock and humiliate. So, I stopped. And just started walking calmly through life, no longer skipping. If I had been a dog, I probably would have waved and skipped at a more exaggerated pace and smiled more broadly, not caring what she thought.

But now that I have dogs, I can be silly. For Cocker Spaniels, the sillier you are, the better the game. I hide from them, hide their toys, wrestle with them once they’re grown and have the impulse control to wrestle safely. I name toys and join in a search party to find the right one and I get down on the floor to play and retrieve toys pushed under the couch (is that on purpose?) All quite respectable…😊

So next time you have a serious day at work that weighs you down, play with your dog the way he wants to play. Get silly and carried away, you know, like no one is watching.