If you’ve ever walked a dog, you know the drill: you’re taking a lovely, brisk stroll, and suddenly, your furry friend stops dead in their tracks to intensely investigate a single blade of grass, a fire hydrant, or your shoe for what feels like five minutes.
It’s easy to think, “Come on, let’s keep walking!” But to a dog, stopping to sniff isn’t a delay—it’s the entire point of the outing.
I used to get so frustrated with my dog, Gus. He’d stop every few feet, nose to the ground, tail wagging, completely oblivious to my pleas to “walk nicely.” I’d tug on the leash. I’d sigh dramatically. I’d mutter things like, “It’s just grass, Gus. There’s nothing there.”
Then I learned what was actually happening. And I stopped tugging.
Gus wasn’t being stubborn. He was reading the morning news. He was checking his social media. He was catching up on the neighborhood gossip, the weather, and the emotional state of every creature that had passed by in the last 24 hours—all through his nose.
