more about negative thinking

the really cool thing about dogs is...when the going gets tough, they may well think in negative terms. BUT when hope starts to float again, they can switch their heads in to more positive thoughts. luna really is steam rolling ahead...tonight we are playing, she is enjoying me stroking her face and her ears and is even letting me kiss her head. I am goofing around with her toes and nails, getting her used to me playing with them in anticipation of being able to one day soon, clip off those needle sharp ends.

the other thing that is really cool about dogs is while negative thinking happens..it does not spread thru the group like a disease like it sometimes does with humans. however...positive thinking in dogs does spread thru the group. so luna in witnessing the other dogs cheerfulness, their positive interactions with us, and it influences her and helps her to develop more positive and open minded thoughts.

here is the thing about negative thinkers...they are writing a story that has not yet really happened inside their heads...they are expecting something or someone to be unpleasant and so they prepare themselves to deal with that. what is interesting about this is..negative thinkers are really their own worst enemy. while they are writing the unhappy upcoming story, they are behaving in ways that reflect their unhappy thoughts so in a sense they actually bring the negativity that had not yet happened, right to them.

it is a vicious circle..they expect the worst, they act like the worst is already here and because of their defensive, suspicious, aggressive or protective actions and reactions, the worst arrives to prove them right and it reinforces their negative thoughts.....pretty damn sad.

the good news is... it is relatively easy to break the negativity cycle in dogs (not so easy with humans or cats!) all it takes is a group of happy dogs who happen to really like humans and a really big and fun kingsized bed!

luna is pretty damn smart, she is actually getting it...good dog!