For some reason, there seems to be a continual shift towards the humanization of our canine friends. Humanization, meaning we attach human characteristics and emotions to animals, is one of the main reasons for the growing epidemic of poorly trained, poorly behaved, and unhappy or unfulfilled dogs.

Dogs are our oldest friends, and the first domesticated animal on Earth. All across the globe, we made friends with the canines around us, and in doing so realized we could use them for jobs and tasks we could never complete as humans. Need to fend off a yapping pack of coyotes from your livestock? Get a livestock guardian dog. Need to move 200+ sheep to a different area in an efficient way? Get a herding dog. Need to travel across the arctic with hundreds of pounds of supplies and a built-in GPS? Get a sledge dog. Need to get the rodents out of your living space? Get a cat — or, get any terrier or toy-sized dog to gather up the entire infestation in an afternoon.

But you know all of this! If you decide to get a German Shepherd, of course you know you have a herding dog — it’s in the name! Except a lot of homes nowadays have rescues, typically megamutts with a dozen different breeds in their DNA. Now, I need to reiterate for the billionth time in my life: I love mutts. They provide such an interesting mix of looks and personalities that are rarely found in purebreds. Their existence tells a story. That being said, it creates the problem of knowing how to work with that dog, because you can no longer predict how it will act nearly as consistently as a purebred. A German Shepherd I know will act defensive and suspicious when they meet me for the first time, especially at their own home, because that’s how we’ve made them to be. A big-eared, chunky-headed, gangly-structured mix? I have no idea how this dog will react to me!

That’s where attention to detail and knowledge of nonverbal expression comes in. This is not specific to any particular breed, nor even dogs as a whole.