Robyn Stories of Airedale Communications

From Robyn

One thing that has amazed me the most with all my Airedales has been their ability to communicate. 

My first ‘dale, Beksley Heath, quickly taught me in obedience school that he would not respond to orders or harsh commands. But if I asked politely in a soft voice, he’d happily do most anything I requested. He often sat next to me in the car and seemed to ask – by a piercing stare and a paw on my arm – where we were going. He wouldn’t stop until I told him; then he seemed to say “okay” and would resume looking out the window. He knew our daily routes, and if I deviated from them with an unexpected turn, I’d quickly get the paw and stare again. I soon discovered he was highly skilled at reading my emotions and thoughts too. While driving, if my thoughts became angry or sad, he’d rest his head on my shoulder or paw anxiously at me, as if to say “don’t worry, be happy!” I swear his goal in life was to make me laugh. Once, while sitting on the floor together, I asked him out loud if he would like to attend a workshop in animal communication with me. He leaped up barking and put his paws on my shoulder as if to say “Yes! It’s about time!” So we attended the workshop, and I was always amazed at the things he told people. One lady silently asked him who his favorite humans were. She said he answered with something like “Ordo..ortho…oreo….” My father’s name was Orville, and Beksley loved him. 

We had many “conversations” after that as I tried to learn his way of talking. I’m getting better at it, and my current Airedale, continues my training. He sits on the couch while I sit on the floor, and he throws his ball to me. I retrieve it and throw it back to him. He catches it and I say “good catch!” Then he throws the ball to the floor again in his version of fetch. He once told an animal communicator that he is “a good catcher.” He also told her that he didn’t really like agility training because he couldn’t be as good as the other dogs and he thought that disappointed me. I had received a similar message from his body language, so we stopped going to agility. Months later, he would still tense up and whine a little whenever we drove past the training site. He seemed to have fun there, but the pressure was too much I guess.

Since then I’ve become extremely aware of my dogs’ body language. Believe me, Lassie has nothing on Airedales! They’re all experts at saying, in their way, “Follow me! Come look! You have to see this!” They so want to share their experiences with us, even if it’s just a bug they’ve found or a raspberry they want you to pick for them.
They also try their best to protect us. My mother and I were staying in a motel once. I had gone out for a while, leaving my mother with the dogs. She was recovering from a cold and had a sudden coughing attack. Both dogs ran back and forth from her to the door, barking frantically. I don’t know if they were trying to find me, or take my mother outside, or alert someone; but it was pretty clear they were trying to help. One of my ‘dales, Sioux-Z, used to run and sit by my father’s side whenever he sneezed.

I believe we are very connected to our Airedales in more ways than we may realize. And just as they try their best to entertain us, they also want to communicate with us, care for us, and teach us how strong our bond can be.
Robyn