# Through the eyes of love



## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

The look of trust Tally gives the world makes me happy. Positive training methods do myriad good things for and between dogs& their people, but my favorite is the willing, loving eye contact and focus.


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## ssories (Jan 20, 2009)

Awww  Tally loves you!


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## KodyBear (Dec 2, 2008)

what a gorgeous golden!


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## Debles (Sep 6, 2007)

Jill, You know your Tally boy is one of my faves!


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## AlanK (Jun 28, 2008)

Trustful love and devotion, happiness, he has it all.. and never ending admiration of you. What a wonderful picture of your great pup! 

Al


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## EddieME (Nov 25, 2007)

Tally is such a beautiful pup.


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## mylissyk (Feb 25, 2007)

Love, love, love that look they give when they completely trust you.


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## Oaklys Dad (Dec 28, 2005)

You must feel adored by her. Great pictures...really capture the love and devotion.


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## SoGolden (Jul 17, 2008)

I know that look. It is wonderful.


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

I feel like this thread is not just a testament to Tally as a wonderful dog but to the whole idea of training as a method of building a positive relationship.

To that end, here's a picture of what positive training makes Comet do when you say "Comet" and then one of what positive recall training did for both Comet and Gus. Both of them learned to return to the recall whistle, even in a super-interesting place like a trail, with joy, rather than with only dutiful obedience.

Frankly, the pictures are also a bit of a testament to LJilly, who taught me such good methods for positive recall training.


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## Karen519 (Aug 21, 2006)

*Wow!*

Wow!

Tally, Gus and Comet all have that LOOK OF LOVE-they have wonderful Dads and Moms! Lucky dogs!!


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

That picture of Gus& Comet coming back to you is perfect. They can't wait to get there & be with you. The lighting in the photo is poignant.


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## Riley's Mom (Jul 6, 2008)

It's really amazing how expressive these guys are. Riley has me so wrapped around his paw :--big_grin:


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## coppers-mom (Jan 9, 2009)

Thye are beautiful!
I get the look of devotion, but need to work on the positive recall. Mine are just as likely to ignore me. is it in a thread on here?
thanks,
Teresa


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## keri (Feb 2, 2009)

Wonderful pictures. I totally agree with positive training too.


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## paula bedard (Feb 5, 2008)

Beautiful dogs, all of you. I think a Golden is so expressive anyway, and then to see them with calm adoration gazing up at you, that's priceless. Jobs well done ladies


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

Riley's dad is Tally's grandfather- it's so much fun seeing Riley pictures.


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## Abbydabbydo (Jan 31, 2007)

Those are beautiful pictures and a great testament to the bond you have!

I admit, I cheat, I think mine only come back for a liver treat!


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

Seven year old Grace is a clicker pro, and Tally has to retrieve to her hand. Each dog listens for Grace to call his or her name before fetching the ball.


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## Swanolck (Jan 17, 2007)

I love the pics of all the goldens!! The one of Gus & Comet running with identical tongues is great!


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## peeps (Sep 12, 2007)

LOVE the pics!


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

I figured I'd throw a couple more up here, since I have so many of Comet's wonderful expressions. In the first, he's looking for instructions from Andy, who uses positive training wonderfully with him, and in the second, he's just checking in with me while we're on a walk in the woods, so I turned the camera down toward him and clicked. Both times, he's so interested in what we have to say since he enjoys training so much. He's not working for cookies in either picture, incidentally. I just love how much trust he has and how much he loves teamwork.


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## moverking (Feb 26, 2007)

tippykayak said:


> I feel like this thread is not just a testament to Tally as a wonderful dog but to the whole idea of training as a method of building a positive relationship.
> 
> To that end, here's a picture of what positive training makes Comet do when you say "Comet" and then one of what positive recall training did for both Comet and Gus. Both of them learned to return to the recall whistle, even in a super-interesting place like a trail, with joy, rather than with only dutiful obedience.
> 
> Frankly, the pictures are also a bit of a testament to LJilly, who taught me such good methods for positive recall training.


I love this second pic....I've yet to capture the true essence of my girls when they return *'uncalled'* on the trail from yards ahead, multiple times, simply to say "Thank you, thank you for this glorious walk".


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## beargroomer (Jan 2, 2008)

Tally is one of the most handsome boys on this forum!!! I love the way he looks at you! Doesn't it just melt your heart when they look at you like that? I feel almost bad sometimes because Gibson thinks I'm so much cooler than I really am. LOL.


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## AquaClaraCanines (Mar 5, 2006)

Happy, beautiful dogs shown here! 

Love the pic of Gus and Comet running...


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## AquaClaraCanines (Mar 5, 2006)

Here's some happy goofballs I've recently captured


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## Emma&Tilly (May 15, 2005)

Aw Tally is so gorgeous, I just love that look of love for you! There is something magical about that look...from a dog that has never encountered a moments fear of their owner...beautiful!

here is my Harry eager to work for me...and wondering what on earth we are doing on a table!


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## AquaClaraCanines (Mar 5, 2006)

You can tell Harry is your soulmate- he's just so into you. Momma's boy!


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## Emma&Tilly (May 15, 2005)

AquaClaraCanines said:


> You can tell Harry is your soulmate- he's just so into you. Momma's boy!


yeah he is...he's a big softy alright! You know your dog loves you when you are just sat watching TV and you realise your dog has been staring at you for half an hour...he's such a little weirdo!


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## AquaClaraCanines (Mar 5, 2006)

Rig stares at me! It FREAKS people out... even total strangers. He is NOT dominant or anything. But he looks right in my eyes. And it still gives me butterflies, 11 years on.


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## cham (Feb 21, 2008)

I melt when I get that look from my dogs, especially Mitchell. And I hope they get the same look back from me and the family.


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

These pictures all make me so happy- like Harry not knowing why he's on the table exactly, but totally willing to go with it and expecting the wonderful .


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## AquaClaraCanines (Mar 5, 2006)

Actually, I just realized my own avatar is a training pic too... I snapped it after a recall. I was only a young teen when I took it. Love it.


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## Sucker For Gold (Jan 13, 2009)

Since we lost our Rusty, I have been trying to figure out why I am so hopelessy obsessed and enamored with goldens. Not just Rusty, but all goldens. I think I have finally figured it out....their eyes. I loved Rusty's looks, I loved his proud majestic gait and majegestic sit posture, I loved the goofball clown, and that crazy serious cocentrating look that only goldens get...I loved every little detail and every little behavior. But now I realize it was his eyes. I guess I somehow missed it, maybe because I was always so caught up in it, but it's the eyes. When our eyes would meet, we became one, and that's a very rare very special experience to have with another living creature, and while I may be wrong I think it's something you get only from a golden.


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## AquaClaraCanines (Mar 5, 2006)

You already know I love Rusty's face and eyes!!!

Whippets can have some pretty amazing eyes too. Get me every time... especially when I am eating


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## Emma&Tilly (May 15, 2005)

AquaClaraCanines said:


> But he looks right in my eyes. And it still gives me butterflies, 11 years on.


aw Jenna, thats lovely! Harry does that too, it is a bit odd...he can be just laid on the other sofa staring at me...for AGES....I'd love to know what is going through their heads!


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## Emma&Tilly (May 15, 2005)

Jenna, those pictures are adorable...almost looks like they use eyeliner!


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## AquaClaraCanines (Mar 5, 2006)

I love that! LOL a judge once rubbed and rubbed on Rig's eyes at a show. He was checking for makeup- so apparently some do. It's not needed though- most US show Whippets have amazing natural pigment. Rig's 12 this year and he still has pitch black shoe polish nose, lips and eye rims.


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

I've never seen a whippet puppy before your photo. The baby picture is charming, and I agree about the eyeliner.


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## AquaClaraCanines (Mar 5, 2006)

Baby Whippets... the last two are of Rigby, now an old man! The other fawn and white is Epic, and the brindle is his half sister (or similar). The tiny new babes are relatives.


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

Oh, that was good stuff, seeing those puppy shots! Thanks. When they're really tiny, their muzzle look so much shorter. Love the gleam of mischief in the first picture- those are beautiful dogs, and to me, very exotic& glamorous as well.


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## AquaClaraCanines (Mar 5, 2006)

It's fun to share them- Many folks haven't ever seen a puppy sighthound before. I myself have only seen a few baby Greyhounds in the flesh. Seen lots of baby Whippets and Salukis and Borzoi, and they're sooo cute. It's the only time they're clumbsy, so it's really sweet!


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

When I really think about it, they are really rare in Maine. I have never seen a puppy sight hound in real life, and only a handful of adult greyhounds, two whippets, and one saluki. They seem so elegant.


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

I've never seen sighthound puppies either, and yours are adorable. We do, however, have tons of adult greyhounds in New Haven since there's a strong rescue operation for retired race dogs.


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## Debles (Sep 6, 2007)

Here are selka and Gunner on a recall, I love Selka's smile : )









And Selka giving me those love eyes but it's from a distance for the viewer. I think you can tell though.


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

Great eyes of love from Selka and Gunner. It makes everything right in my world to see that trust just beaming.


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

I love the recall pictures, because there's just that little element of craziness to the love. Something about running full tilt with the mouth open is just silly enough to really tug my heart. I have millions, so I'm punctuating my posts with pics.


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## paula bedard (Feb 5, 2008)

AquaClaraCanines said:


> Rig stares at me! It FREAKS people out... even total strangers. He is NOT dominant or anything. But he looks right in my eyes. And it still gives me butterflies, 11 years on.


Sam and I had that same connection. He watched me constantly and would make eye contact to make sure he had my attention. He'd wake up and look around for me, make eye contact and go back to sleep. His last 2 nights with us when we knew that he was going to the bridge, he and I laid side by side and just stared at each other. I cherish those moments and memories. I miss him.


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## Debles (Sep 6, 2007)

God, Paula, I know so how you feel. It was that way with Max and me. But Selka is that way too. he has always looked right into my eyes. He's actually like a person. : )
Gunner on the other hand doesn't always like eye contact. Most of the time but you can tell when it makes him uncomfortable. He's my anxiety boy.


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## paula bedard (Feb 5, 2008)

Debles said:


> God, Paula, I know so how you feel. It was that way with Max and me. But Selka is that way too. he has always looked right into my eyes. He's actually like a person. : )
> Gunner on the other hand doesn't always like eye contact. Most of the time but you can tell when it makes him uncomfortable. He's my anxiety boy.


Ike makes eye contact but then he wants to run me over and play. I'm hoping he'll mellow a bit as he ages and we can 'just be', like Sam and I were. The scene in Marley and Me where John and Marley were sitting on the hill and looking out over the farm land, that was how Sam and I sat every day, though we were looking at our neighborhood lake. I swear he and I shared thoughts.


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

paula bedard said:


> Ike makes eye contact but then he wants to run me over and play. I'm hoping he'll mellow a bit as he ages and we can 'just be', like Sam and I were. The scene in Marley and Me where John and Marley were sitting on the hill and looking out over the farm land, that was how Sam and I sat every day, though we were looking at our neighborhood lake. I swear he and I shared thoughts.


This is why I can't fathom people who say they don't like dogs. Can they ever have known/shared such a moment as you&Sam looking at the lake together. I'm in awe that two completely different species connect so deeply&profoundly.
It's magic.


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## AquaClaraCanines (Mar 5, 2006)

I don't bond that way with every dog to be certain, but the ones I do, it is so special.

I dread life without my heart dog. It scares me more than anything (except maybe childbirth... both are pretty much the two worst disasters I can ever imagine having to endure in this life, and I face both sometime in the not so distant future). One can hope I have at least a few more years with my dog.


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## T&T (Feb 28, 2008)

*LOVE IS IN THE AIR *


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

It's true. It's easy to fall in love with a dog!


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## missmarstar (Jul 22, 2007)

Emma&Tilly said:


> You know your dog loves you when you are just sat watching TV and you realise your dog has been staring at you for half an hour...he's such a little weirdo!



Sam does this!! Sometimes I'll be watching tv or typing on my computer, and get that weird "someone's staring at you" feeling.. and I'll look and Sam will be sitting on the floor across the room just staring at me. And when I look over at him, he'll give me the "smiley face" and come running over to me.. like he was just WAITING for me to acknowledge him. It's adorable. 


I am loving all these pics you guys are posting!! These dogs really have the most expressive sweetest faces... its obvious how much they love you.


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## Rhapsody in Gold (Dec 22, 2007)

Ljilly28 said:


> The look of trust Tally gives the world makes me happy. Positive training methods do myriad good things for and between dogs& their people, but my favorite is the willing, loving eye contact and focus.


This is what we all strive for and you have it right here. So beautiful. Such a strong connection there. Brings tears to my eyes - - - because this is it - - - this is exactly how it should be. Thank you for sharing these.


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## Rhapsody in Gold (Dec 22, 2007)

tippykayak said:


> I feel like this thread is not just a testament to Tally as a wonderful dog but to the whole idea of training as a method of building a positive relationship.
> 
> To that end, here's a picture of what positive training makes Comet do when you say "Comet" and then one of what positive recall training did for both Comet and Gus. Both of them learned to return to the recall whistle, even in a super-interesting place like a trail, with joy, rather than with only dutiful obedience.
> 
> Frankly, the pictures are also a bit of a testament to LJilly, who taught me such good methods for positive recall training.


I love you : ) This is so inspiring. What a wonderful life your Goldens have. I want to be just like you. Thank you.


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## Faith's mommy (Feb 26, 2007)

getting that look cures an awful lot that may be wrong


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

I read that dogs share a very similar "emotional" brain structure with humans, but just not the exectutive/analytical one. I do think their inner lives are more complex than nonanimal lovers admit.


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## moverking (Feb 26, 2007)

Ljilly28 said:


> I read that dogs share a very similar "emotional" brain structure with humans, but just not the exectutive/analytical one. I do think their inner lives are more complex than nonanimal lovers admit.


I believe that too. Yesterday I picked up the book "Animals in Translation - Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior". It looks like a good read...I'll let you know.


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

Oh, I read that! By Temple Grandin? It was really interesting.


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## rik6230 (Jan 8, 2008)

Ljilly28 said:


> The look of trust Tally gives the world makes me happy. Positive training methods do myriad good things for and between dogs& their people, but my favorite is the willing, loving eye contact and focus.


That second photo is fascinating. Thank you for sharing !!


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## Miss Happy (Dec 22, 2007)

This is a good thread. I enjoyed all the pictures and remember how Sweet Katie always looked at me with those big eyes.


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

Rookie really has the eyes of love:http://www.k9data.com/pedigree.asp?ID=60556


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## bb'smom (Jan 3, 2009)

I know what you mean-I'm sitting here in tears looking at these beautiful expressions! I miss my Boomer so much--he had those big, hope-filled eyes too!

It's a month tomorrow and I am still so raw.


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

rik said:


> That second photo is fascinating. Thank you for sharing !!


Lol, it's all drooly from hours of swimming in the ocean! I wish I knew how to take photos half as good as yours, especially the sense of motion you capture.


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## Hudson (May 18, 2005)

Love that look....... Tally is a gorgeous dog.


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)




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## paula bedard (Feb 5, 2008)

Wow Jill, The clarity of that last shot and the look in their eyes and on their faces...it's amazing. Well done! I think you've caught 'adoration coupled with joy' perfectly.


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## *~Pry&Kasper~* (Dec 25, 2008)

love the looks in their eyes:new (8):


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

*~Pry&Kasper~* said:


> love the looks in their eyes:new (8):


That is definitely the exact look that Kasper has - wondering and totally trustful.


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## nellie'smom (Dec 27, 2007)

Very sweet, just beautiful!


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