Oh, these dogs just don't like people.

So Yishai and I have been socializing the puppies by pretty much just taking them everywhere, and lately that's been the SLO Op, our climbing gym. We put on a competition last weekend, which meant we spent about four straight days there taking holds off the wall and then putting them back up. There were probably 10 people there at most times, and even for Miss Daca, who is worried a bit about people, this was a decent amount to tolerate for an almost-five-month-old puppy.

So, they spent most of the time either running around, chasing eachother in the parking lot or on the padded floor, checking out what was happening, or sleeping. But very little of the latter.

Why? Because people cannot help themselves with the poking. SLO Op is big enough for the puppies to get space, unless people follow them.

At one point, poor Rippa was sacked out on the futon we have:

It's probably 10 or 11 at night. She's been there for 10 hours, at least. So, rather than let her alone, someone plops down next to her and pokes her. Poor Rippa, probably in REM sleep, leaps off the futon and barks at the guy, shocked out of sleep. This same guy has been trying to get Daca, whom I've explained to him he needs to just ignore and she'll come see him in her own good time, to play the entire night - and now she hates him.

"I guess these dogs of yours don't like people."

UGH. These are baby dogs who cannot spend every moment of every day as your plaything, thank you very much.

At some point each day I could tell the pups had had enough and put them into the truck for a break. No sense in putting undue stress on them. Daca typically tires faster, but Rips has her days. I remember when we came back the next day after a midnight session, and Rips was all friendly. The people were like, "Oh, she's so much better today." DUDE, she's a baby. She was TIRED. You would not leave her alone!

 Does this look like a dog that doesn't like people?

I need to get a photo of Daca rolling all over photographer friend Chris whenever she sees him. The puppies like people fine, so long as they (people) don't get all up in their biznass.

So this defines the difference between what people think "dog" looks like and what "dog" looks like to afficianados of my type of Australian Shepherd.

Yes, I like those dogs you meet who are all about getting loved up on and sit right in your lap and give you a nice playbow before tearing around the house/yard playing with you. That's totally fun, yup. There are plenty of Aussies like that and I dig them. They're fun, friendly, and easy to get through life with.

But when my dogs opt not to lick your face, and instead when non-dog people offer a hand for smelling (and seriously, both puppies, Fury, and my roommate's dog all go, "What's with the hand, yo? Pet or do not pet. I don't need the hand"), they turn away, I get, "Oh, she's shy."

No, she is not shy. Shy is a display of lack of confidence. It's a withdrawal of personality and openness, it's hiding from the world and avoiding it. Dogs who are shy are afraid. Daca has some fear aggression issues, as we've said - so, yes, sometimes she's shy. But as soon as she finds out that she's not going to get eaten or whatever it is she is sure will happen when dogs or people come up to her, her personality resumes: sometimes it's friendly and she'll play with the thing that made her shy, sometimes she goes about her business. But she no longer hides behind her family for protection - it's turning back into healthy puppy reserve.

 I have tried to explain reserve to people before: How would you, as a person, like it if someone came up to you and started huggin' up on you and giving you noogies all up in your space? And some people get that. Other people go, "How good looking is this person?" Even that is sort of a valid question. There are people Fury instantly loves. Rippa will go run up to randoms who have that "good looking" vibe, and others, she'll just tolerate. 

But seriously, most people need some time before you get into the other person's lap, right?

That's reserve. I like to think of smart dogs as having reserve. They're employing some intelligence to determine whether this person is friend or foe or worth their time. Fury, I always think, goes like this, "Do I know you? Then hot damn, great to see you, wanna play ball? Wait, who are you? Well, you can go to hell." 

I bet you know people like this, too. I always wonder if I appreciate this quality in my dogs because I am reserved, too. I mistrust men who greet me by kissing me on the cheek (those who come from cultures where this is accepted are exempted), overly effusive people (once, when I was kinda famous for my writing, someone recognized me and started squealing and took a photo with me - yeah, scary), and people who are overly familiar right away. For good reason. People like this end up being crazy. Seriously. Try it. As someone who guards her world so that it is mostly positive, loving, and supportive, it's important to keep the crazies away.

Is there any reason why I respect dogs who also would rather focus on the known relationships they have built?

Moreover, having had friendly dogs in competition, it's NICE to go into an agility ring (typically only roped off with a ribbon, not a fence) and KNOW your dog is going to be so focused on you, that she will not run off to go lick a child ringside (yes, that happened to me, sweet, but goodbye hard-earned $20 and how embarrassing!). One of Fury's littermates was actually returned to her breeder for being TOO friendly, if you can believe that. She was more interested in what people were doing than the stock.

This is not to say that a friendly dog can't be successful in a working environment - of course it can. If it has the drive, talent, and ability, yes, absolutely. But as I said, I appreciate a dog that's more focused on the people that matter. They're easier to live with - if you're not looking to take your dog to kindergartens and Alzheimer's facilities (homage to Miss Emma, our litter therapy puppy, and Reid, our elementary school outreach puppy - both of whom I think will make nice stockdogs, too). Why? I remember in a discussion about a widely publicized Aussie that mysteriously disappeared, my mentor, Terry Martin of Slash V aussies, said, "I would not be happy with a dog who let itself get stolen."

Amen.

As a funny sidenote to this - while the Flowers LOVE Baby Emma (that's what they call her), my roommate Laura reports her mother gets jealous when Emma displays affection to other members of the family - she was hoping for a bit more reserved puppy - one that was totally devoted to her and no one else. Laura's dog (she wanted an Aussie, but did a favor to her mother's co-worker and got a little mutt instead) is super reserved and Laura was bummed about that and had to work with him - but that's what her mother wanted! And instead,  Emma's okay spreading the love. Isn't it funny how things like that happen?