Dogs are absolute masters of body language, both reading ours and using their own, and they pay attention to everything that we do, and often way more than we realize. And here's a great example from my own house If I get up off the couch to go grab a cup of coffee, my dog usually stays put, he barely lifts his head. But if I get up, knowing that I plan to go downstairs, he's suddenly right behind me. I don't say a word, I don't even look at him, but he can tell just from the way that I move whether it's a coffee trip or leaving the house moment. I have figured out that when I just get up to go get coffee, my movements are slow to normal. There's no urgency, my shoulders are just upright with my body, I'm just sauntering into the kitchen. But when I plan to leave, I get up with a little more urgency, I think, since I know that I'm going somewhere, my movements are a little bit quicker. I also walk with a quicker pace and my shoulders are forward, a little bit more aerodynamic, because, again I think in my mind I have somewhere to go. So no sauntering allowed. Now you're probably thinking yeah right, these movements are so subtle, no way your dog picks up on them. But he does, honest. Try it yourself.

Now, why is this important? Well, it's not really, but I do use this knowledge to my advantage. For example, let's say I need to leave, but I'm not going to take my dog with me. Instead of inadvertently alerting him 30 minutes before that I'm leaving, I remind myself to saunter to the bathroom to brush my teeth, to casually walk up the hallway with no urgency in my movements. At some point he'll figure out what's going on and I can gently tell him that he's not going with me. But the more time I have to get dressed in peace, the better.