As an eight-week-old puppy, our Labrador ZsaZsa (now six) didn't really engage with us in the way I had been used to before. Born and raised outside she had spent the required amount of time socializing with her littermates, but hadn't had much interaction with humans. So she played like a maniac but didn't make much eye contact. It took quite some time for her to start relating to us and reading our body language.
I know it isn't true doggy behaviour to 'stand and stare' except in confrontational situations, but dogs raised with humans do this. They do maintain eye contact for non threatening reasons, they tune in and watch you.
Maia our mongrel, who is almost three, had had lots of human contact as a young puppy. At the same eight-week stage she had been played with and fussed over by her owner's young children and so was a people watcher par excellence. This has continued. She can read me like a book and I often catch her anxiously watching my face to judge my mood.
Which leads me on to Gassie, the internet rescue dog. We've had him for almost four months now and he has just started to copy the watching and eye contact behaviour of the other two. He has tuned into us. Of course, this has happened late for him, as we think he at least four years old. But it's nice to look him in the eyes and get something back.
He is curious and quick on the uptake. He definitely sits and puzzles things out. We've just got a new wood pellet stove and today he was sitting right next to me observing my every move as I performed the daily vacuuming ritual. It was almost like I'd said: 'OK Gassie, you have to do this tomorrow, so you'd better watch carefully.'
The same determined and concentrated attention was applied a few minutes later as I was bending over the bath washing my hair. Feeling something behind me I looked from under the water spray to see a large gentle face a few inches away. Gassie was sitting as close to me as he could, learning what hair washing involved. He has added that to his list of possible chores he might be called to perform at short notice.
Our engaging dog has now engaged with us – and it's lovely.