Thanks for sharing that story, Margaret. And thanks for your feedback. I appreciate it.

Yes, it's not only dogs' body language that can be interpreted by us as owners. But sometimes our dogs really can gain our attention by different kinds of barks.

I, thankfully, have never had to test out whether my dogs would alert me to a fire – and I would really need it, as I have a compromised sense of smell.

My Rottweiler, Kara, certainly does have different barks, though – one for warning off strangers, one for reminding me I've left her outside and she wants to come in …

Brigitte

I know dogs are very intelligent and use different barks depending on the situation.

One day I was boiling some bones on the stove and decided to go upstairs to do some work while the bones cooked. I don't know how long I was gone for but my dog, Murray, started to bark in a way I had never heard her bark before.

I came down stairs to see what she was barking at and as I turned the corner to where she was I saw the flames shooting up from the pot that I was boiling the bones in. Apparently all the water had boiled out and the fat on the bones caught fire.

Murray was my hero for alerting me to the danger. If it weren't for my Murray, it's hard telling how long I would have remained upstairs working and how far the fire would have gotten.

I'm enjoying your articles.

Thanks! Margaret

Failure to understand dog behaviors and not knowing how to properly train your dog is the cause of some people giving up on their dogs and even abandoning them in some instances……….