#Actions Speak Louder than Words

If you ever doubt that your actions speak louder than your words, get a dog. Get a smart dog like a German Shepherd.

Bella is a student of her humans’ behavior. She watches and listens intently when you think she is sleeping upstairs. I can be opening the closet door downstairs ever so quietly or make a trip to the bathroom on the main floor, and all of a sudden, there is Bella. Why does she appear? Because, maybe that person opening the closet door is going for a W – A – L – K (yes, we have to spell it because she knows what the word means) and she can go along. It took me a while to figure out that she appears every time I go to the bathroom because I always go to the bathroom before I go for a walk. Bella knows our routine down to each movement. She watches us closely as we move around. When we play B – A – L – L, she watches with undivided attention the potential position of our hands so she can calculate just where that ball is going.

She never barks when my husband or I come home but she hears and barks at every other car. How does she know the difference? Does she recognize the different sound of the vehicles or is it the timing that she knows? I have never quite decided. And of course, if the doorbell rings, that is an instant signal to bark and look fierce. If I pick up my shoes during the middle of the day, the tail begins to wag but not in the morning. She knows we are both going off to work in the morning and she must stay.

Every morning outside our bedroom door, there are 3 animals camped, all waiting for the alarm to go off. When the alarm goes off, a soft whine is heard. “It’s time to get up people and it’s time for breakfast.”  She happily greets us each day. Every evening, she waits for my husband to get out of his chair around 8 o’clock and she runs down the stairs. It is supper time. Sometimes the cat gets into things that she should not be in and we holler at her. Bella slinks away even though we have not hollered at her. She doesn’t want to be anywhere around that tone of voice. It amazes me how astute Bella is and how closely she watches us. So, if you think others don’t read your body language and your actions, especially your children, remember Bella.

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