How to get your Dog to pay Attention and Listen to You

Do you sometimes wonder if your dog is paying attention or ignoring you? Do you want them to listen!?

Dogs can tune out our voices. In addition to hearing frequencies we cannot, dogs' ears have muscles so they can tilt, turn, raise, and lower their ears. They move their ears toward the direction of the sound they want to hear. We can look at our dog's ears to gain clues into how they are feeling. If their ears are forward and up, they are alert and listening.

Dogs will filter out sounds, while at the same time, staying alert for other sounds. We need to ensure our dog doesn't filter out our voice! We can do so by forming and maintaining a positive relationship with our dog.

Dogs are social animals. This means they want to listen to us. They look to us for direction and to model appropriate emotions and behaviours. We need to learn to communicate with them. When we correctly communicate with them, they listen.

Communication means we listen as well as speak. We need to learn to listen to our dogs. What are our dogs telling us? We need to understand our dog's perspective.

We must listen to our dogs without judgment, with acceptance and love. When we do so, our dogs feel heard, they feel they have control and agency. They feel understood. When they feel so, they will look to us as a guide. We mustn't become our dog's boss, give too many commands, or dominate our dogs. We need to become a confidnet, kind, clear, and considerate guide.

When our dogs feel safe and heard, they trust us and cooperate with us. They listen to us.