What's wrong... Is Timmy in the well again?

[Patty, Duffy & Oliver]

Duffy will be 6 months old May 7th. We thought his biting days were long gone. All of a sudden, he starts mouthing our hand or if we have a long sleeve shirt on he would grab the sleeve and pull.  Of course we say "no Duffy, bad dog, stop that"!   As it turns out, Duffy wasn't mouthing us just to be mouthing. He wanted something, he had a purpose, a rhyme and a reason, he was going to lead you to what he wanted.

We figured Duffy out while we were just joking around and my husband got out of his chair while Duffy was pulling on his hand and he was asking Duffy if "Timmy was in the well". That's when we noticed that Duffy had a reason to be grabbing his hand. It was like a light bulb went off and suddenly we "got it". Had my husband not been joking around, we may have eventually just broke Duffy of the nasty habit and not been any wiser.

If Duffy wants out, he'll grab your hand and backs up with your hand in his mouth all the way to the door.  Water bowl empty? No problem, just grab a hand and lead you to the empty water bowl.  I'm just amazed that he has figured out this new communication skill all on his own and it works.  So far, he hasn't abused this new found skill. He only does it for important stuff. He doesn't seem to do it when he just wants to play, wants attention or just wants a treat. However he did lead me to the food container once and then stared at the container.  Yes, I gave him his dinner early that day.  Of course now I feel bad for all those times we scolded him when he kept mouthing our hands and we thought he was just puppy biting again & we were trying to break that habit. 

Now that Duffy knows that we caught on, if he grabs your hand and you are in the middle of something, we can say "wait a minute" and he'll stop and sit there. Then we can ask him "what do you want" and then he'll grab your hand and show you.  Well, unless he has to pee in a hurry and then he won't just sit there, he will be more persistent. Don't get me wrong, Duffy isn't a Lassie or an angel. It only takes one time of forgetting to put the cheese away to see how fast this counter surfing pup will find it. Although he does share his counter surfing loot with Oliver. It sort of makes you wonder if he shares just so Oliver will get in trouble too. lol

I guess the moral of this story is not to take a bad habit at face value. Sometimes a bad habit is just that, a bad habit. But first, you just might want to look a little deeper and make sure that Timmy is not down in that well again! 

[Becka]

Aww--what a smart boy! Many years ago when I was going to college out of state, our family dog would be so happy to see me that he would cry and then gently take my hand in his mouth and lead me around. 

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

Awww....I love this discussion :) I think Duffy is a genius!

[Lori, Winnie, Bob and Indie]

Sooo sweet! Duffy is such a smart boy! Some of the younger readers are probably wondering who this "Timmy" this. :-)  

I absolutely love how our animals communicate with us through their eyes, their ears, and their body language. What a gift Duffy has given you in being able to physically communicate that way! 

[Lori, Rooney & Zuzu]

That's amazing and so cute!!

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Awesomely smart pup!

[Debb, Lucy & Oscar]

Cute story! Doodles never fail to amaze me :-)

[Karin Frydman]

I think it might be the golden in him. Our golden used to take us by the hand and lead us to the couch.  She would then lay on the floor by us. She wanted us both in the same place so she could "rest", lol. :)

[Donna P.]

Very cute. Our golden doodle loves to mouth our hands too. She's never led us anywhere, I think it's just her way of holding hands