Bored Panda got in touch with Juliana DeWillems, Certified Dog Behavior Consultant & Dog Trainer, and she was kind enough to answer some of our questions about our furry friends. Firstly, we wanted to hear what common misconceptions she’s encountered about dog behavior.

“Oh man, where do I start! Dogs are unfortunately very likely to be misunderstood due to humans not understanding canine body language. Dogs are constantly communicating with their bodies and behavior, but because humans are verbal communicators we often miss what they are saying.”

“When we do pay attention to a dog’s body language, we often misinterpret it and apply human constructs or human secondary emotions to the behavior. We are quick to label dogs as spiteful, stubborn, mean, or dominant, when in reality their body language tells an entirely different story about what they are experiencing and why they are behaving a certain way.”

“The human world is very tricky to navigate for a dog, and they are just trying their best! One of my favorite sentiments about dog behavior is: your dog is not trying to give you a hard time, they are having a hard time. The more we approach dog behavior with curiosity and empathy, the easier and less frustrating our life with dogs will be.”

We also wanted to hear her take on the old question, can one teach an old dog new tricks? “Absolutely! Dogs can learn at any age. In fact, doing positive reinforcement training with an older dog can be a great way to keep their mind sharp, help them feel fulfilled, and enrich their life.”

“If you’re wanting to change an old dog’s behavior, that is going to be harder later in life simply because you’re working against many years of habits being reinforced. It’s not impossible, it just might take more effort than if you’re wanting to build new habits in a young dog,” she shared with Bored Panda.

Setting aside training, we also wanted to hear her opinion on why dog content is just so common and popular online. “I think the human-canine bond is really powerful. As a society we LOVE dogs and they have become a huge part of our lives and our culture. They bring us so much joy and happiness, so of course that is going to extend to the internet. “

“We love dogs because of how silly, happy, and full of personality they are—which also happens to be the perfect formula for viral internet content.” A quick glance at any meme page will net you multiple articles on animals being cute or funny. While it’s often cats, dogs do get their fair share of attention.

Juliana left us with some parting thoughts. “The best thing you can do for your dog and the dogs in your life is to educate yourself about dog body language. Understanding what your dog is saying with their body language and behavior can dramatically increase your bond with them because they finally have a way to communicate with you.”

“However, once you learn about dog body language, get ready for a lot of viral dog content to be less entertaining because you suddenly notice all the subtle stress signals the dogs are showing in videos and photos. It’s not uncommon for humans to have a good laugh at an animal’s expense, often because we don’t realize just how distressed an animal is in the moment.”

“Understanding dogs is a double-edged sword because you can’t unsee the signs of stress, but it’s worth it. We’ve asked dogs to adapt to our human world—the least we can do is learn their language and understand what they are trying to tell us. A great resource for learning canine body language: Doggie Language: A Dog Lover’s Guide to Understanding Your Best Friend by Lili Chin (it’s literally a picture book!)”