When you raise your own dog, you can take steps to ensure that he has positive, constructive, educational experiences at this age that prepare him to confidently and appropriately handle a variety of situations. You want to buffer against potential problems by deliberately educating your dog about the conditions that are most likely to present the greatest challenges for him.

Taking into consideration all four elements of L.E.G.S.®, think about what conditions (environment) your puppy is being exposed to moment to moment, and how he might have been designed to react to those conditions (genetics). You can deliberately work with him, teaching him (learning) how to handle potentially challenging circumstances at this opportune time in his life and development (self). The goal is to get one up on Mother Nature, not wait for instincts to kick in. This critical period gives us the largest window you will ever have in your dog’s life to use learning to compete with the less flexible influences of genetics and the unpredictable and complex nature of the environment. An ounce of prevention, as they say, is worth a pound of cure.

Meaning and Baggage

What does it all mean? Ah, the quintessential question of scholars, poets, philosophers, and the sentimental throughout history. We poor humans agonize endlessly in our own minds, to friends, and in therapy to understand the meaning of events in our past, the behaviors of others, and even our own thoughts. We desperately try to organize the experiences we are having, attempting to make sense of it all.

We look over at our dogs enviously. They are so lucky. They don’t have to deal with all of this stuff. They don’t ask themselves what it all means. Or do they?

Your spaniel may not experience the onslaught of life events in the same way you do, but she is indeed constantly working to make sense of both big and small stuff in life that seems important to her. It’s not that your dog is contemplating her purpose in the universe as she peers out the window at the sunrise. But the need to discover meaning in one’s world—as well as the resulting acquisition or abandonment of certain ideas about that world—is a fundamental characteristic of every living being. Your dog is no exception.

What does it mean when you yell and stomp around the house holding a small black box to your ear? You don’t seem to be going anywhere, and there doesn’t appear to be any threat outside the house, but clearly something is wrong!? When you act this way, it can make your dog want to run away. He lowers his head and approaches you with tail slowly wagging, reading your face for signs of approval. Is it safe to be near you? Has he done something wrong? When he lifts his head under your hand and you shoo him away, he is frightened. Maybe sitting next to you when you are on the couch is a bad thing? He is so confused, trying to make sense of your actions. What does it all mean for him?