As much as we try to teach our dogs about manners and obedience, there are some life lessons that they teach us simply by existing. In fact man’s best friend could be the best life coach you’ve ever had!

Below we’ve listed just a handful of the many lessons our dogs teach us, which may help us to lead more meaningful lives. It really goes to show that often the most important life lessons come from the most unexpected places.

We already love our dogs immensely, but after reading this, we may want to say an extra big ‘thank you’ to them for everything they contribute to our lives.

  • Live in the moment – for dogs, the present is all there is. Whether they actually remember the past is a topic for another day, but they certainly don’t fret about or plan for the future. All dogs want to do is have fun in the here and now. There’s no big master plan – life is about smelling the roses, digging the hole, endless enthusiasm and shiny possibilities!
  • Forgive and forget – sometimes there are moments when we don’t see eye to eye with our pooches, but fortunately for us they never hold grudges and quickly get over a moment of disharmony. It’s a great lesson to take from them as far too often unnecessary grudges are maintained which prevent us from moving forward.
  • Be loyal and dependable – if only everyone was as trustworthy as man’s best friend, the world would certainly be a better place. Dogs don’t care about material things – all they want is you. Therefore, they’ll be fiercely loyal and stick with you through thick and thin.
  • Love unconditionally – a dog’s love isn’t dependent on age, gender or race. In fact, it isn’t dependent on anything. We might have only been gone five minutes but our dogs will excitedly shower us with kisses the minute we step back through the door. Where else would you receive such a warm and affectionate greeting than in the presence of a dog?
  • Don’t judge by appearances – this reiterates the last point about loving unconditionally. A dog will never judge a book by its cover or discriminate based on looks - an attitude we could all learn from!
  • Be a good listener – they might not be able to respond to our worries, but they can certainly lend an ear. Sometimes that is all we need – someone to listen and be there when we need them most. And for anyone thinking dogs don’t understand, they are an incredibly perceptive species and will quickly recognise when we need extra hugs and kisses.
  • Enjoy the little things in life – whether it’s belly rubs, back scratches, praise or even the cool breeze on their face, dogs are so easily pleased and will show enthusiasm for the most trivial things. That’s because they live entirely in the moment and don’t yearn for anything more than what they already have.
  • Greet everyone with a smile – maybe not a wagging tail too, but smiling when we greet people is a simple way of spreading more joy and friendliness to those we come across. Smiling costs us nothing and yet it could really make someone’s day!

If you have any points to add, please share them with our other readers by commenting below. We’d love to hear how you think your dog contributes to your life and the wonderful lessons he teaches you :)

Written by: Hannah