Do dogs really howl at the moon?

I can tell you the doglets that inhabit my house don’t seem to have that habit, and I just wonder if any canines speak to the sky on any regular basis.

Now maybe you have some rare breed that is genetically engineered to take up conversations with celestial heavens anytime they are outside at night. And maybe they are inclined to bark, howl, whine, or speak in doglet language to the moon. But, I’m asking, do they howl when the moon is full. Or, do they save their conversations to half-moon nights?  Or, will any sliver of a moon illicit dialogue that you probably don’t understand?

My doglets are more interested in food cycles than moon cycles. Their vocabulary is quite large when it comes to meal time. Moon times, not so much.

I can tell what they are saying when they think it’s time to eat. And the hints come in stages.

1. A pitiful steady stare is the non-verbal hint that the clock has hit a certain hour.

                                                     

                  The ‘I’m starving’ look. Step one in the begging process.

2. If that doesn’t seem to motivate me to get up, then a bit of jumping is added to the stare.

3. It progresses to a pawing on my leg, while still staring and jumping. 

You don’t seem to be listening…it’s dinner time.

4. And when all of those tricks are exhausted and I’m still blissfully writing my blog about something they could care less about, then it’s time for more serious action. It’s door scratching time. Chili is especially adept at this trick. She seems to know that if she goes to the door, I will immediately get up, hoping to avoid a mishap in the house. But, on my way to the backdoor, if I pass up the cubby hole where the dogfood resides, she stops and refuses to go any further.

Ahhh, I say. You want to eat!

I’m slow, but I’m trainable. Apparently the doglets aren’t. 

If 5 o’clock is dinner time, begging time begins around 3:30. I guess they are afraid I will forget that they need nourishment.

In the 16 years I’ve shared a house with Chili, she has NEVER missed a meal. But, hey, there is always a first time. She doesn’t trust my memory as I age. And she wants to remind me that she is not afflicted with dog dementia.

5. But the demand for food isn’t over until the food is in their bowls, and safely guarded. 

 Jazz: ‘I’m guarding this bowl in case Chili wants my dinner.’

 Chili: ‘Don’t even think about it.’

Moon howling isn’t an issue at our house, but food howling certainly is.