17/03/2022
Before I say more about this video, I want to make the following clear, this is not a personal critique of Dr. Hamilton. I have immense respect for all veterinary professionals, especially those who approach their work with compassion and best intentions as is clearly the case here.
What transpires on this video is something we see every day when it comes to the handling and training of dogs. Now that this particular video has gone viral and made its way to Good Morning America, I believe thereâs a lot of value in unpacking whatâs going on here.
A general summary of the brindle dogâs behavior and body language:
The dog sits in the corner of the room crouched with her back against the wall, back and neck lowered, ears low and pinned, mouth closed, and displaying whale eye.
The person is seated in a chair a few feet in front of the dog making direct eye contact, leaning forward, and talking to her.
The person waves and then reaches their hand toward the dog.
She sniffs the hand by stretching her neck while the rest of her body remains frozen.
The person picks up and handles the dogâs leash. She follows the person with her eyes. Two lip licks are visible as her eyes dart back and forth.
The person lays down on the floor and positions their face directly under the dogâs head. The dog lip licks and turns away.
She briefly sniffs the personâs face and then momentarily looks into the camera, her ears move forward slightly, then turns her head away.
The person moves their arm up and over and pets the dogâs head, the dogâs head lowers and her ears pin back.
Her forehead is taught, facial muscles are tight, and her mouth remains closed.
As the person pets the dogâs face she looks into the camera, flinches, and leans her body away into the wall.
As the petting continues she lip licks and turns her head toward the wall.
The person kneels a few feet to the dogâs side and reaches toward her mouth with a treat in their hand.
The dog remains still with body weight shifted to the wall, head low, and ears back.
She remains in this position as she sniffs the food for a few seconds and then licks it. Her ears are back, her head is low, and the whites of her eyes are visible.
The person wedges themselves into the corner between the wall and the dog.
The dogâs back legs are braced and body weight is shifted forward as she reaches to eat food thatâs been placed on the floor a few feet away.
As the person continues to wedge their body further into the dog space, the dogâs back legs remain braced with her hind end weight shifted back and toward the wall.
The final segment depicts the person on the floor with legs folded.
The dog is leaning over the personâs leg with her head lowered as the person massages her head with both hands, then cup her face, pets her head, and kisses her.
The dogâs ears are flat, her mouth is closed, facial muscles are tight, her body is still, she lip licks and turns away.
At the start of the video Dr. Hamilton states that the dog doesnât pose a threat, but appears to be very scared.
Based on what we see the latter certainly seems justified. Itâs the former sentiment that the dog doesnât pose a threat that I want to address.
When we label a dog âfearfulâ what we really mean is that the dog is displaying behaviors the function of which is to increase distance.
In other words, a dog who is cowering, crouching, shifting weight away from the person, and showing a range of other stress-based behaviors is looking for the person to move away, not to come closer.
A dog whoâs tethered, restrained, or quite literally cornered canât get the distance they want so they ask for it with their body language and behavior.
In some cases it looks like the behaviors displayed by the dog in the video. In other cases it looks like barking, lunging, growling, snarling, snapping, or biting.
In many instances dogs whose lower intensity requests for distance arenât heeded, will eventually escalate to more overt signs.
And itâs those dogs that we label as âaggressiveâ and consider them threats when in fact the function of ALL of these behaviors is the same: to get the scary thing to move away.
Just because some behaviors are more palatable for us humans doesnât mean we should take them less seriously.
Itâs understandable why many people may look at this video of a person seemingly full of good intentions and armed with treats, pets and kisses and not see it for what it isâa repeated and highly risky violation of an animalâs personal space, physical boundaries, and agency.
This dog was desperately asking for some space, and unfortunately got just the opposite.
A dog who is cowering deserves no less space and caution than the one who is growling. A dog who is snarling deserves no less compassion than the one who is trembling.
GMA titled this video âThe story behind viral video of vet building trust with scared dog.â Two quotes come to mind when I think about trust:
One, by Dr. Susan Friedman who said that a trusting animal is one who âuses behavior to confidently approach, rather than escape a stimulus.â And another by Meg Dye who said âtrust is incompatible with fear.â These strike me especially poignant as I watch this video.
If we keep these sentiments at the forefront when working on trust with animals, our primary goal would be to center control and choice.
An animal who is afraid is an animal who is actively avoiding. Our goal is to decrease avoidance by helping the individual feel safe, give them choices, and meet them where they are.
If weâre going to use food in such instances, food cannot function as a coercive agent. When we use food as a way to get proximity between the dog and the thing theyâre scared of (read: seeking distance from), we are using coercion and creating conflict.
This is especially evident in the segment where the person is trying to move the dog out of the corner and using their body and placement of food to accomplish this.
Itâs clear that the dog wants the food (is reaching for it and eating it) but is actively keeping their hind legs braced in position in the corner. This is not a dog who is behaving confidently or voluntarily.
Dr. Hamilton correctly states that physically forcing this dog through an exam would create lasting damage. But physical force is not the only mechanism of coercion and its absence is the absolute bare minimum standard of care we should be setting.
For those looking for more resources on how to help decrease fear, anxiety, and stress during veterinary visits, please visit Fear Free Pets and collaborate with a reputable positive reinforcement-based behavior professional to put together a cooperative care plan for your dog.
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