MEET LIMBIC
We also love dogs because of their boundless energy and joy- their love of the simplest of things such as a ball or a bone. But they are also naturally possessive and selfish when it comes to their own enjoyment- they don’t consider if the ball belonged to someone else or if another dog is waiting for the treat- they will take it or eat it- unless we train them to resist.
So limbic needs us to tell him what is right and what is wrong as much as we rely on him to protect us.
It’s not about ignoring Limbic, it’s about learning to keep him on a leash, to listen to his reactions and consider them rationally and know when to crate him and when to let him off the leash to run free.
Meet Limbic. He lives in your brain and is your very own super
guard dog. He is your best friend, designed purely to keep you safe
and alive.
Like any dog he can only respond to a threat in one of three ways:
1) Get angry and bark and growl,
2) Run away and hide
3) Halt with fear and wait for it to pass.
We know this as fight, flight or freeze. Or in terms of our behaviours- anger, depression, anxiety. These are our go-to primitive responses to danger.
Limbic is a great dog- very effective in his duties and we feel safe having him around. The problem is, he is a dog, he is not innovative nor imaginative, he is responsive and instinctive. His behaviour is entirely shaped by his experiences- and by his breeding over many years.
As you know- dogs are highly trainable. We can shape them to perform and behave however we want with the right balance of rewards and punishments. We can teach them what is appropriate and what is not.
But left to their own wild devices we know dogs get it wrong. They can be
scared of the hoover for example, or fireworks. They bark at perfectly
friendly visitors at the door or freeze and go dead legged when you
need to take them to the vet for their own good.