The young female pointer in the video moved forward cautiously. The handler moved forward with her, maintaining a very light touch on the check cord. The dog stopped; you could see the intensity run through her like air into a balloon at its breaking point. The dog was full of confidence, as if the only two things in this world were her and the bird whose scent she was smelling. All stood still in total silence, the dog, the handler, the audience, and the cameraman. Everyone, captivated by the moment. The young dog was learning the joy of being entranced by the scent, and the audience was learning to read and communicate with the dog at the feet of a true master handler. The handler was Maurice "Mo" Lindley. Mo was a dog trainer’s trainer. The man who many professionals turned to when they needed advice. His knowledge and experience was vast, but what really made Mo special was his ability to read a dog. As if he saw clean to the heart and soul of the animal. And his physical touch with the animal was communication in its purest form. The dogs he worked with all loved him and left his instruction with great confidence in their job and how to do it. The dog currently at the end of his check cord was no different.
Mo lost his hearing in his 30’s due to Meniere’s disease, a disorder of the inner ear. With the loss of his hearing, Mo also lost his dependence on speech as a primary form of communication. Like a dog, Mo depended primarily on what he saw and what he felt. This may be why he understood dogs so well. According to close friends, the loss of his hearing was the catalyst that propelled Mo into the “silent world” of dog training, where he truly learned to “listen” and communicate with the dog.
The silent stillness was shattered by the rattle of the launcher as it tossed the pigeon into the air. The dog lurched forward, but was softly brought to a stop by Mo’s magical touch. I was impressed by what I saw. I would have loved to have been there in person, but that was not my lot in life. I had seen a video or two of him over the years, but the opportunity to meet him was never mine. I had actually come across this particular video on social media. It was a tribute to Mo, who had passed away in March of 2025. The news of Mo’s passing saddened me. With curiosity, I scanned through other tributes that had been posted. One was a video of Mo speaking, and his words caught my attention. “The hands don’t get enough credit, how you touch…” The timing of me discovering this video was just right: My next article was scheduled to be about how we use the physical line of communication with our dogs.
As I visited with some of Mo’s friends, it became clear that Mo was very skilled with the way he touched the dog. Whether through the check cord, e-collar, or his hands, his communication was clear, fair, and kind. It may be that Mo was born with “feel,” or maybe his sense of touch was increased as a result of his loss of hearing. Regardless, he had “it,” and his dogs responded well.
I believe that our physical communication with our dogs is the most important element in our relationship with them. It seems to be responsible for creating a strong bond and giving our dogs confidence in our leadership. When I speak of physical communication, I am referring to the communication our dogs feel from us. This communication is generally transmitted through our touch or our presence and emotion.
"Mo" Lindley was known for his vast knowledge on bird dog training, and his ability to read a dog. Using Our Hands when Dog Training Our touch begins with our hands. Like Mo, I believe that the hands don't get enough credit. The way we touch our dogs with our hands is the root reason our dogs behave the way they do. Our hands can create excited energy, playful energy, aggressive energy, calm energy, or nervous energy. Our hands can build confidence, and our hands can destroy confidence. They can express our approval or our disapproval. Our touch can be kind and affectionate, or harsh and mean. Our hands can teach behaviors, and our hands can stop behaviors. Our hands are the starting point of our relationship with our dogs. With our hands, we teach our dogs the meaning of our verbal communication, and our hands are key in teaching a dog how to read our visual communication. Our tools, such as a collar and leash or an e-collar, are simply an extension of our hands. They also affect a dog's mood and behavior. They become our physical communication from a distance.
Our dogs respond to our emotions and body language during training. (Photo courtesy of Tanner Smedley) How Dogs React to Emotions Our presence and emotions are also felt by our dogs. For this reason, I include them in physical communication. Scientifically, it has been shown that positive interactions between humans and dogs, especially petting, cuddling, or gazing, result in an increase of oxytocin in both species. This hormone results in feelings of attachment and trust, aiding in building a close bond. Studies have also shown that a decrease in cortisol, a primary stress hormone in humans, will increase the quality of interaction between a human and dog. This indicates that the dog is aware of our emotional state. I have noticed with my personal dogs that they are also good at reading the emotional state of other dogs. We regularly have strange dogs coming in and out of the facility. It's fascinating to watch how my dogs approach the new dog. Some new dogs get completely ignored by my dogs when they first arrive, while other dogs are immediately swarmed with attention by my dogs. The difference is inthe emotional state of the dog when it arrives. Through a lot of socialization with new animals, they have learned to read the new arrival.
Check cords, collars, hands, and physical space are all parts of physically communicating with a dog. (Photo courtesy of Tanner Smedley) Using Personal Space with Dogs Just as children learn through social interaction to be aware of people's personal space, well socialized dogs also learn to be aware of other dogs' personal space. It would seem that it would be natural for dogs and humans to also respect eachother's personal space. Generally, I have found this not to be the case. I believe this is because these skills are learned through physical communication, and as Mo stated, “our hands don't get enough credit.” We often overlook the physical communication necessary to teach these lessons of personal space between humans and dogs.
I think we can all benefit by following Mo’s example, setting aside our verbal communication at times, and increasing our ability to communicate with our dogs physically. We just might find that this opens our eyes, and we too will be able to see through to the heart and soul of our animals.
