Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Can We Talk?


Dogs and humans have different communication styles. It is quite obvious how different they are when Mom and I go to the dog park.  When we meet others coming up the path, we dogs circle and smell each other and then decide if we want to play together.  Humans say “hello” and decide if they want to stop and talk.

Dogs and human communicate with each other too.  Lots of that communication is by body language. When Mom stands with her feet apart and her hands on her hips when she looks at me, I know she is not happy about something I did. When I push my bowl against the wall, it means I want to eat.  I know they know what I mean cuz they usually say, “It’s not time yet”.

Sometimes it’s not what Mom says but how she says it. “Zeva” and “ZE VA” mean very different things and I know the difference.

But dogs are smarter than some people think.  We can understand spoken language very well.  I know some dogs who understand the same words in more than one language.  Mostly we associate words with objects. One thing Mom had to be very careful of when I was a puppy was to use the same word every time.  She couldn’t say “fetch” one time and “get it” the next time cuz I would get confused.

My Mom talks to me all the time. I like it when does.  It makes me feel important and loved.  She tells me where we are going and what we are going to do.  She tells me about work and the people she knows. She asks my opinion about lots of things too.  Dad laughs because one of Mom’s favorite things to say to me is “What are you thinking?”

It’s not just the sound of my Mom’s voice that I respond to.  I understand lots of the words. Just because I can’t say them, doesn’t mean I don’t know what they mean. The average dog can learn the meaning of around 165 human words.  A smart dog, like a border collie, can lean 250 words or more.  That is about as many words as a human who is two years old can understand.

One of the first words I learned was Zeva. That was probably the first word I learned because it is a very important word.  Some of my favorite words are:  cookie, toy, and dog park.  “What’s in your bowl?”  means I’m getting a special treat like chicken or eggs and “Do you want to help?” means one of the humans is going somewhere and I can go with them.

I’d love to know what some of your favorite words are.

Your friend,

Zeva

Blatant self promotion: The Holidays are coming and this year we've added several new designs to our collection.  The new Santa Paws Gift Basket is one of my favorites.

Sunday, November 4, 2012

Santa Paws' Helper


At Laurel Mountain Basket Co we're designing new gift baskets for the upcoming Holiday Season.  I love this time of year cuz as Product Tester for the Pet Division,I get to find and test all the new toys and treats before we order them for our Holiday gift baskets.

I've already found some sweet new toys in the catalogs that we just have to try.  I've also been searching on line for new and interesting gift ideas.  I found some really exciting things but I think they would blow my budget big time.
 
Don't know how I would justify ordering any I Love Dogs 52- carat Diamond Dog Collars at $1.8 million or Dog Tiaras at $4.2 million.  I think I would look stunning in the collar and I know my cousin Sophie would love the Tiara.  She likes to dress up fancy.

All the dogs I know like to roll in dead stuff so I don't think Les Pooch V.I.P. Dog Parfum at $3,000 would be a good match for our clientele or the Louis XV Pet Pavilion dog bed at $23,990 either since we like sleeping on our humans' beds.

However, I was impressed with the dog houses I saw.  Our friends at Kanes Krusaders are building houses for dogs who have to live outside but I don't think they are as fancy as the Super Dog House with a plasma T.V. and SPA that costs $410,825.  I also saw Paris Hilton's dogs' houses that have heating and air conditioning and something called a crystal chandelier. Rachel Hunter's dog's house has running water too.

No, we're going to keep making our gift baskets with fun toys and yummy treats and leave the fru fru stuff and bling for another day.

Don't forget when you write your letter to Santa Paws, make sure you let him know which of our gift baskets you want this year.

Your friend,

Zeva