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chaotic good

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the little red show pony

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Man and his dog with matching hats early 1930′s, Maine.

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hello! I was scrolling through your blog (delightful) and found the post about Beef and his whiskers position, and I'm ashamed to say that in all my near-thirty years of being around cats and thinking I understand them pretty well I never thought to pay attention to the 'circle shape'. could you please expound a bit on what to look for when it comes to whiskers position and how to interpret it? Beef is an absolute sweetheart but looking at a brachy cat as an example makes it a bit hard for me to generalize. thank you!

Thank you! And also thank you for your patience--- I wanted to give some really good examples and have been scouring my blog for the best circle whisker cats I could find.

Picture heavy post under this.

so this is the cat grimace scale. It's a sort of way to visually see if a cat is in pain/distress, and it gives a simplified view of the things I'm going to discuss. It's important to recognize that whisker shape/position is just ONE piece of communication and doesn't tell the whole story. A lot of this is also based on CONTEXT as well.

When you're looking at a cat face, here are the things you really want to pay attention to:

Ear position—Ears facing forward, ears slightly pulled apart, or ears flattened and rotated outward.

Orbital tightening—Eyes opened, eyes partially opened, or eyes squinted.

Muzzle tension—Muzzle relaxed (round), muzzle mildly tense, or muzzle tense (elliptical).

Whisker position—Whiskers loose and curved, whiskers slightly curved or straight, or whiskers straight and moving forward.

Head position—Head above the shoulder line, head aligned with the shoulder line, or head below the shoulder line or tilted.

Calypso's huge whiskers give a REALLY good visual on the 'circle shape' to look for. You can see her whiskers are pushed forward and are loose and curved. She's feeling playful and engaged! She really wants to know what I'm up to and what's in my hand (spoiler alert, it was treats)

Compare that to this later picture, taken after she heard a dog bark nearby:

Her muzzle is tighter. Her whiskers are pulled back a bit, and are straight. Her ears are set differently as well, one pulled back a bit. She's concerned, but not terribly worried about this strange sound.

You can also compare it to this handsome lad:

Again, his whiskers are fairly straight. They aren't pulled back as far, but he's still very tense. He was extremely tense and upset that I took his water dish away from him (because it needed to be cleaned and changed).

Milo is another great example of excited whiskers. They're pushed forward and curved, forming a sort of circle. Like Calypso, he's interested in what I'm doing and feeling playful. He was very interested in the toy I was throwing for him.

Gumdrop is a good example of a more relaxed whisker position. She's curious, but not feeling playful. Her whiskers are held very loosely rather than being pushed forward. Her tail nub is up, indicating friendliness and confidence.

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We checked out Shoshone Falls after the trial yesterday. Poppy did settled in well with the giant crowds after 10 minutes or so. Very proud of her!

#Poppy #tallest falls in the US fyi if you’re ever in a trivia contest #belgian tervuren #belgian shepherd #dogblr #dog #2 years

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High in Trial for Advanced Scentwork today!!! 😁Poppy had a super speedy 26 seconds in containers! She was hoovering up dried cow poop during exterior though. 🙄 silly girl On to Excellent for Exterior and Containers, should get our last Advanced leg in Buried tomorrow.

#Poppy #need ​to find more trials for interior we’re still novice there lol #belgian tervuren #belgian shepherd #dogblr #dog #scent work #2 years

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Poppy enjoying the lovely spring day. We are going to have fun at a Scentwork trial this weekend!

#Poppy #belgian tervuren #belgian shepherd #dogblr #2 years

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Laika to Ground Control

Prints

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Happy Friday!

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Poppy enjoying the hose the other evening 💧

#Poppy #belgian tervuren #belgian shepherd #dogblr #dog #2 years

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he was a model in his past life

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#that face! <3

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camping weekend

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#meeee #I can’t plant for another few weeks and I have a list of varieties longer than what I can plant lol

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Please stop reading in bed and play with me.

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The Ranger chicks are growing fast! They’re voracious and active little guys. I think they’ll have enough feathers to be in the garage soon (with plate heaters ofc), which is good because I think they’re going to hop out of their container any day now!

#backyard chickens #sustainability #meat birds

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Look at Pandolf’s scary crocodile face as he approaches this tiny kitten!

It looks like he’s going to devour her!!

But he just wants

to pull on her tail gently to attract her attention.