My guys do "the paw" too, but somewhat half-heartedly. The real strength of the paw move is when Cessi is in bed for her nighttime cuddle, when she uses the paw to redirect attention to her if one of us stops petting her. She generally reserves her strength for "the nose". She is a master at the berner bump, and has some real force behind her nose when she feels she's been ignored. Tucker is more gentle with his nose, surprisingly, and prefers to run up, spin 180 degrees, plant his butt on your feet and lean lean lean. If people back away from him, he backs up too, still sitting, just scooching his butt backwards until he successfully lands on the feet.
Do any of your dogs lick their nose when you rub/scratch their butt? Cessi has always done this, and we just noticed the other night that Tucker does it too. Vigorous butt scratches seem to trigger a reflex response of nose licking. Also, a move of Cessi's that Tucker is now imitating is the "trust fall". Remember that activity from when you were a kid (or teambuilding seminars for adults) where your friends stand behind you and you "fall" into their arms, trusting them to catch you? Cessi does this - she leans up against you, then throws herself backward, fully confident that you are going to catch her and ease her down for a belly rub. Lastly, do your dogs go through your legs from the front or the back? Cessi approaches from the front, and walks through until her head is behind me to provide best access for a butt scratch. Tucker, conversely, approaches from the rear, and likes to walk through my legs until he can sit between them and lean his head up for chin scratches. He tends to make men nervous with this move, since he is also prone to nibbling at the extra fabric on the "fly" of their pants. Jen Cessi and Tucker - always making me smile at their antics
