Your Dog Wants You to Know You’re Wasting Your Time
Try listening because she's probably right.
One of my biggest peeves in all of life is seeing people who are supposed to be walking their dogs but instead, they’re at a dead standstill on the sidewalk with their faces in their phones.
Yet, as loving and loyal as dogs are, they don’t complain. They just stand there sniffing the same spot on the ground anticipating their chance to cover more ground.
They don’t understand the little rectangular object mom or dad is holding, but it always brings them to a standstill, ignoring what’s happening around them.
And completely ignoring the poor dog.
The condo I just moved out of backed onto the most populated walking path in the neighborhood. For seven years I watched dog walkers every day from sun up until sundown.
It was baffling how many immobile humans I watched out there, scrolling through their feeds while their poor doggos were forced to a halt. They gaze longingly up and down the pathway watching other dogs getting an actual walk.
Some of these people stand there for ten whole minutes, face down, completely unaware that their pup’s opportunity for delight is dissipating while dog-mom is wasting her time.
It makes me sad for the dogs.
A daily walk is a dog’s ONE time to shine that day.
It’s their chance to smell the curious air outside of their idle homes — ironically, also where mom sits with her face in her phone.
A walk is a dog’s ticket to freedom. An opportunity to forage for intriguing scents that don’t reek of their own stale yards. A chance to pretend they’re hunting for mice in the tall grass, just like wild dogs do.
The sole reason we’re out there with our dogs in the first place is to WALK THE DOG. I highly doubt we’d be going for a leisurely stroll each day if we didn’t have a canine companion.
Do I think we need to live every waking moment for our dogs?
Of course not. We have human lives to live, jobs to work, and bills to pay. All the things that take us away from time spent with our dogs in the first place.
So when it’s time to hang with our ride-or-die partners, that’s what we should be doing. After all, they will ride or die for us. Is it too much effort to return the favor?
Why have a dog if not for the enjoyment of having one?
Nobody gets a pet just so they’ll have more chores to do. We have them for the companionship, loyalty, and unconditional love that we often can’t find in humans.
But some people make it seem as though taking their dogs out to frolic is the most intrusive interruption in their day.
We’ve been dog parents for decades before cell phones were a thing. We’ve never needed a phone to go for a walk then and we certainly don’t need one now.
Sure, I take my phone on walks but not so I can respond to pings when I hear them. Nothing on the other end of that phone is more important than being present with my dog.
The only reason I bring my phone is for the camera. I love capturing Dezi’s amusing antics and sharing her with the world on Instagram, just as millions of others do. It’s such a pure form of entertainment.
But that doesn’t mean I’m updating my feed in real time.
Yes, I probably could waste hours perusing pet antics on social media but I make a conscious choice not to because I have my own dog to love. Besides, Dezi is like a toddler. The minute I pick up my phone she misbehaves to get my attention.
And you know what? I listen to her because I’m aware that she’s telling me I’m wasting my time.
Dogs are like a reality check on four legs. They’re much smarter than we give them credit for.
I feel like I’m coming across as super judgey about people scrolling through their phones while walking the dog.
How do you feel about it? Are you the live-and-let-live type or does it bug you too?
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"Dogs are like a reality check on four legs. They’re much smarter than we give them credit for." The ones I write about would agree with that sentiment.
I love walking my GSD and hardly ever bring my phone. I can drop the lead and let him run and seek and sniff at his pleasure because he has pretty darn good recall. Except when he has a squirrel in his sights!