In search of ponies: All dogs angels to their owners

Snarling, snapping and stretching its leash as tight as it could go while it's owner pulled in the opposite direction, all I could see was two rows of dripping white teeth backed by a forward angled physique — all pointed in my direction.

"Approach slowly and give him a biscuit. Don't worry ... " I remember the not-reassuring guidance of his owner.

Yeah, we had talked about the loved family pooch having "socialization" issues in public settings, but that had painted a picture of a pup quivering shyly behind his person's legs — nothing, absolutely nothing in those conversation had ever implied insane, snarling, chop licking human-hater.

And, providing said menacing dog with a cookie seemed: 1. unfair and overgenerous given first impressions, and 2. just a tad dangerous and potentially stupid.

Trying hard to be diplomatic, I encouraged his owner to instead demonstrate the effectiveness of the calming cookie and silently revamped my definition of "socialization issues" while at the same time suddenly seeing the shoe chewing and occasional puddle at my house in an all new light.

But by the same token, my shoe chewing woes could just as easily be intolerable to someone else.

Inherently subjective, perspective is its own animal, and apparently most dog owners are not exempt.

It seems only natural that one would believe their pooch is the coolest dog of all, however, while it doesn't seem like a point in need of statistical backing, as of this week, said statistics exist.

According to a study done by a pet supply company in the UK, about 67 percent of dog owners rated their dogs at the higher end of the behavior scale.

Slightly more interesting was the measly 19 percent who admitted their dog's behavior was on the lower end of the scale.

Even more curious, overwhelmingly, dog owners pointed the finger at other people's dogs, with nearly half of those surveyed rating other pooches in the bad behavior range.

Incidentally, at the same time, only 30 percent of them had done socialization training, showing that many dogs aren't taught to have manners but their owners overlook the deficiencies while holding other dogs to a higher standard than their own.

Not all dog owners are in denial though.

Just two days before the behavior study was released, Lucy "The Destroyer" was anointed the "Worst Behaved Dog" in North America by a pet care franchise who combed through hundreds of entries to find the most terribly of them all.

In interviews, Lucy's family had no qualms about saying that while they love the almost 1-year-old husky mix, she's a nightmare. Chewing, dog directed aggression, dashing off and more, she earned her title and will be rewarded with, among other things, a year of free training.

But where there's Lucy, there's apparently hundreds more bad dogs still out there with people who aren't ashamed to admit it and who are in need of intervention. As a result, the company said it extended the contest and will do weekly competitions between the remaining finalists, giving training for winning bad behavior.

Whether "bad dogs" are cast into the spotlight or hidden behind denial coated accolades of endearing "Puppykins" smooches, the bottom line seems to be that they're really just — prepare for a novel concept here — dogs. Better yet, dogs who are held to human standards and expected to live in a non-dog world, which is takes work and is never 100 percent.

Some may luck out with the perfectly amiable canine straight out of the gate, but realistically, chewing, inappropriate barking, poorly timed restroom using, digging, fence jumping, and yes, even snarling, are all simply part of being a dog.

And even when assimilated, they too have a perspective and more often than not, it doesn't match yours, or for that matter, the Jones'.

But then again, maybe that's exactly why we love them like we do.

Sharna Johnson is a writer who is always searching for ponies. You can reach her at: [email protected] or on the web at: http://www.insearchofponies.blogspot.com