English as A Second Language
Dear Frankie,
I didn’t understand what my parents were asking me to do. My dad thought I had a hearing problem, but the vet said I could hear a refrigerator open a mile away. My brother said I was lazy and pulling their chain.
My mom wondered if it might be a language problem and enrolled us in an English as a Second Language class. The first thing the teacher said was that humans often were the cause of their dogs’ communication problems. She said humans were notorious for mumbling, not speaking clearly, or the big offender — using different words for a command.
She was convinced dogs could follow commands if their families did the following: 1. Call the dog by name. 2. Establish eye contact before speaking; 3. Consistently use the exact words and hand signals when giving a command, and 4. Give praise for a correct response.
You can’t imagine how relieved my mom and I were to learn an easy solution awaited us. After four classes, we had every command down pat and graduated with flying colors. Now, the challenge is getting my brother on board.
Mickey
Dear Mickey,
Thanks for your illuminating letter on communication and the four-step Command Process. It will get my human readers thinking about how they may be the ones with the problem, and communication is a two-way street.
The process makes perfect sense and should be easy to follow, even for someone like your brother. The teacher’s explanation of where communication breaks down between humans and dogs will greatly relieve my canine readers who struggle to learn commands and think it’s because they are dumb.
I get countless letters from dogs who blame themselves for all sorts of problems and never consider that they may be due to the failings of their human families.
My human readers might also find the steps helpful when giving directives to one another.
Best, Frankie
© 2025 Geneva Woodruff
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