Most dog owners believe that loving their dog and cuddling with him a lot is what will make the dog happy. They do not consider that affection does not equal leadership and without leadership the dog is lost, no matter how much love and affection he gets.
Fulfillment means fulfilling your life in the way nature intended it, whether you are a dog or a horse or a human.
Ffection and love make humans happy, not dogs. Dogs don’t need affection from us to feel balanced and happy. Those are human needs. We NEED to remember this in our relationships with our dogs. After all, the best leadership skill is assertion, not cuddling. You will only connect with your dog and feel in tune with him when you fulfill him on a primal level as nature intended it.