Dog lovers like to emphasize the loyalty and the affection dogs have for their owners.
Movies, TV show plots, and probably songs and poems were made about this. But seriously, are dogs really like that?
I’ve had a dog for more than 4 years. My wife and I treated him very well, played with him occasionally, and always let him sleep on our bed. It is a Yorkshire Terrier.
Recently when we briefly moved back to Riyadh, we took him with us. We put him in my in-laws home. Over there, he was free to roam about the huge house as he pleased. He could go outside and play in the big grass, and he was treated well by everyone. They gave him treats, held him, petted him, played with him, and let him sit on their laps.
He seems to be happier than when he was living with me and my wife in our crummy apartment where we only played with him occasionally and had him on a strict diet where treats were only given sparingly.
In our in-laws home, I would occasionally visit him. Whenever he saw me he’d get excited. He’d cry, jump around in circles and stand up and lean on my legs. This would last for about 30 seconds. Once this initial short phase of excitement is over, he would go back to sniffing around the big house for food crumbs and “surprises” as if I weren’t even there…How loyal is that?
So, are dogs really as loving and loyal as they’re portrayed in the media? No, people and the media exaggerate and dramatize these traits in dogs. If a dog can find a better life, it will have no problem leaving its current owner. And I bet if that dog could speak, it’d say to its owner “no hard feelings” with a genuine smile.
