How the Man in Black saved daycare

Hello to all of you in the blogosphere! I would like to first thank you for all of the great feedback about the first post from Bark Place. It really means a lot. This is going to be a short one today, but there is something that I feel I must share.

I have read many studies about the effects of music on dogs. Some say classical music can calm a dog down, some have said music with a slow steady beat can calm a dog down, some say that heavy metal will make dogs aggressive, and some say Barry Manilow can cause a dog to jump out a window and try to end his own life. Whatever the study, I have tended to read them with some skepticism….except the Barry Manilow one…I totally buy that. There has only been one instance when I have seen with my own eyes music truly affecting a dog’s behavior. We had a dog at my last daycare that would howl every time Van Morrison was playing. For real. I thought it was a coincidence at first, so I put him in a room and tried almost every genre of music, multiple artists, even Barry Manilow (the room had no windows), and there was no reaction. But when Van Morrison came on, it was like he was singing right along. This was over 2 years ago that we first realized this, and I still have not come to a conclusion as to why this dog would only react to Van Morrison. If anyone has any insight please feel free to share.

The only other time I have seen any effect that music has on dogs is when I am driving with my dog Max. But, I really think that the reaction is more to my singing than the actual music. It’s not even so much a reaction that Max gives. It’s more of a look like “Dude…you really wonder why you’re not on Broadway? Really?” Then I remind him that I am the provider of food and shelter, and if he has a problem with my singing he can see how he would fair on his own.

So, beyond that one exception, I was skeptical at best about music having an effect on behavior. That was until today. We had a particularly rambunctious group here, and all morning it kind of felt like we were standing on a powder keg. Anyone that has been in a room full of dogs probably knows what I am talking about. No one is fighting or instigating, but you can feel a definite tension in the room. We always have music playing in the play area, and thanks to the glorious invention of the 30 gig music player, we always have a large assortment of music playing. (Side note, for anyone that is interested, Wednesday is Broadway day, so if you want to see rehearsals of the all puppy version of Guys and Dolls, stop by on Wednesday. For those of you that are wondering what happened to the all puppy version of Rent we were working on, we could not find a dog that would keep their fishnets on long enough to play Mimi. Perhaps we will try it again in the fall.) So, I thought nothing of it when I turned on some Johnny Cash. However, much to my surprise, as soon as the soothing baritone of The Man in Black filled the room, the tension seemed to dissipate. One by one, the dogs stopped running around, they each found their own corner, and they all slowly drifted off to sleep. It was like a total calmness filled the room.

This just happened today, so at this point I cannot really say if it was a coincidence or not, but what I can say is the reaction was convincing enough to make me go back and reread some of those studies I was so cynical about before. I will be sure to let you all know if I find a direct correlation, but for now, let me leave you with this: No matter if you are happy or sad, young or old, boxer or beagle, rich or poor, there is one thing that is certain… We could all use a little Cash.