Do dogs smile? Google this question and you will find most dog behaviorists yammering that dogs don’t really smile and that it is just a form of anthropomorphism as people try to make their little buddies little people. It is also a common theme that although dogs don’t actually smile like humans, they sometimes happen to make expressions that look like smiles.
My response to those animal behaviorists is that they’ve never taken their pups, or should I say “subjects” mountain biking. If they had, they would know that dogs smile. . .big time.
I know my pups, Poki and Tula, smile all the time. And nothing brings their smiles out more than when they join me on a mountain bike ride. My dogs can get fired up about most anything. They get excited about a walk around the block, a drive to the post office, or the sight of a Frisbee or tennis ball. But let me tell you, nothing brings out the smiles more than when they realize that they are “in” for a mountain bike ride. I see this as pure joy defined.
As a mountain biker, I am blessed to live in Santa Fe with an abundance of singletrack just minutes from my front door. If you are willing to deal with snow and cold, the riding can be great 12 months out of the year. I average about five mountain bike rides a week, year round, and my little buddies get to join me on about half of those adventures.
My furry friends know when I am getting ready for a ride as I get on my togs and prepare my hydration pack for the day’s fun. Some might think I am making them a little too human on this, but they watch my every move with anticipation. I know the question that is going through their not-so-little brains is, “Bob is going mountain biking, are we in today?”
They are relatively cool and collected as I move forward with my pre-ride rituals. All four eyeballs are pegged to my every move and if they could talk, they would be asking, “are we in, are we in?”
Filling the water bladder and packing my gear does not give them a hint as to my intentions and neither does my decision on what bike to break out of the quiver. When I move toward the pantry they follow in unison. They know this isn’t a sure thing but if nothing else they might get a cookie out of the food closet. However, if they see me pull out some treats and then bag them into a small zip lock their tails start to wag as they know this is a strong indication that they are in for some sort of outing. This isn’t a guarantee of a mountain bike ride yet, but treats are treats.
The clincher comes when I retrieve Poki’s bear bells. Just like Pavlov’s dogs, once the bells let out a jingle, the pups know they are joining me for fun and the grins come out on all three of us. It actually gets a little out of control and downright embarrassing, as all hell breaks loose. Poki announces her excitement with a few barks before gluing her nose to the front door while Tula starts jumping up and down like she is on a pogo stick. Her leaping continues as we walk out the door and head to my truck.
Admittedly, it isn’t all smiles at this point as Poki can be all business, but Tula and I are smiling big time. Poki breaks out the grins once we get to the trailhead and I release the hounds. Once I get on my bike, Poki is off the front spinning donuts, while Tula starts off with the pogo stick routine. After we are a few minutes into the ride, the insanity dials back, but the smiles are plastered to all our faces for most of the duration of our time on the trail.
My dogs aren’t the only ones that break out the grins for a mountain bike ride. My friends often bring their dogs on our rides, and they all make it clear that life is dog-gone good when they get to go mountain biking.
So do dogs really smile? My response is “hell yes.” While this might not be true in a lab situation, on the trail, this is the real deal. Besides, dogs are people, too.
Bob Ward has been mountain biking since 1985, and he published his first mountain bike guidebook, Mountain Biking in the Northern Sierra, in 1986. His first mountain biking magazine article was published in ’86 or ’87, and he’s been freelancing and writing about mountain bikes ever since. Bob currently lives the mountain bike life in Santa Fe, New Mexico with his two dogs Poki and Tula.
Article last updated on 01/06/16 at 10:08am MST.
