Moss loves Tchaikovsky

Even when she was an old lady, and her hearing wasn't so good, Wavey enjoyed a round of Happy Birthday

Moss loves Tchaikovsky, Merle loves the Hallelujah Chorus and Wavey loves Happy Birthday. It's incredible how dogs respond to music, but then again is it?

Of course they respond, they are very sensory beings. I've been reading an extraordinary book called Merle's Door Lessons from a Freethinking Dog. The author, Ted Kerasote, looks carefully into his dog's life, and notices that Merle responds particularly to the Hallelujah Chorus.

He writes:

The first time he heard it he was lying by the Christmas tree.  As its opening bars sounded, he threw himself to his feet, eyes stunned with wonder and disbelief.  Tossing back his head in the most energetic demonstration I had yet to see of his musical passion, he carolled along to the “Hallelujah Chorus” of Handel’s, Messiah, his mouth nearly coming unhinged …

He accompanied every “And he shall reign forever and ever,” every “Hallelujah,” until the monumental final chords when – voice cracking and tail lashing so hard that I feared it might break off – he looked up at me with an angelic and spent expression, as if to say,

“That is the most sublime music I have ever heard.”

I'm not even going to attempt to understand the reason why dogs respond to music.  I’m just noticing and appreciating the beautiful skills that they have.

AJK