My dog Rosa is very alert and aware of what is going on in her environment. I assume that most of this is innate, genetic, a result of the DNA of whatever breeds she, of non-pure bloodlines (a good thing, to us) is comprised of. It also may be, in part, to her early life, spent on the streets of Willcox, AZ, where she was found with her puppies and brought to the Humane Society in Tucson, from which we adopted her several years ago. We walk at least once each day in the local park, which is a “natural resources park”, most of which is in its natural state, except for trails, and is popular with other dogs and their humans. Also has lots of wild fauna, including lizards, rabbits, birds (including lots of mourning doves and hawks, especially Cooper’s hawks) javelinas (collared peccaries) and the occasional bobcat.
Rosa has roughly five levels of alertness (identified by me). Level 1 is the general awareness, turning her head, looking around for movement. It is her baseline, and I keep track of it to see if it moves to a higher level. The next, Level 2, means she spots something that holds her attention for at least a few seconds. It could be the movement of one of the ground animals (quail, lizard, squirrel, rabbit) that I often do not see, and quickly goes away. Level 3 means she spots something of significance, mainly a person or dog or more usually both together, that requires attention. I give it; sometimes we have to wait or move to avoid them, and sometimes it is an old friend with treats! Occasionally, her perception of the dog is that it is not benign. Although sometimes related to size and whether it is barking or pulling toward us, or whether the owner has decided that they do not need to obey the law and common sense and have a leash on their dog, I have yet to figure out the dog radar that lets them know that the potential threat level is up. We do avoid them as best as possible, and ask her to try to stand down. That is Level 4.
Level 5 is coyotes. That response is unmistakable; it is marked by sudden loud barking, hard pulling (which involves Rosa’s colleague, Molly) and significant strength to restrain them from (unwisely, usually) chasing after the coyotes. When she reaches Level 5, I know it right away and look for where the coyote is; often it has gone past us and is nonchalantly moving in whatever direction it was headed. Coyotes are not usually interested in approaching people or good-sized dogs (they might chase after and try to snap up a really little on if it is unguarded), although they too are much more vigilant and threatening if they have pups. The big problem for me is keeping the dogs under control. Once in a while I actually spot a coyote before they do, and can try to lead them away, but it is hard to be more on top of this than Rosa is.
Her alertness and reactions are different from Molly’s. They are similar to some other dogs we have had, though even more vigilant. She is a wonderful dog, but walking her in this environment requires awareness and attention.
