How Bob Ross Cured My Dog’s Anxiety

Elsa (left), pictured wearing an artistic beret, and Bob Ross (right)

My dog Elsa is quite an unusual dog. Firstly, she is a Shih-poo - a cross between a Shih Tzu and a poodle – and yes, that is literally pronounced shit-poo. Secondly, she has terrible, terrible anxiety. And, perhaps most notably, she is a dedicated fan of 1980s American painter and onscreen personality, Bob Ross.

I know what you’re thinking. This is a prime example of a crazy-dog-lady anthropomorphising her pet. How can I possibly tell that my dog is watching Bob Ross, let alone likes his work? I bet you’re saying: “Anna, you’re suffering from heatstroke and delusions. The isolation has finally got to you.”

Let me explain. Elsa, who is six years old, has always suffered from anxiety. Every time she has to travel in a car, she trembles and pants and whines for the entire journey. If anyone gets out, even for a moment, she starts scrabbling at the windows and yelping her head off. Think full-blown Dwayne-from-Little-Miss-Sunshine-Discovers-He’s-Colour-Blind panic. I genuinely believe she convinces herself that the person who has deserted her is never coming back. We have learnt that she can never be left outside a shop, in a car, or anywhere else solitary. Even if someone else stays with her, the panic still ensues.

Reader, you’re probably thinking the first solution would be Cesar-Millan-style training, and perhaps not The Joy of Painting. Undoubtedly, Cesar Millan would be a great idea, but Elsa isn’t really taken by his methods; maybe you need the real Cesar in the car with you in order for it to work. Our other dog has absolutely no issues of the sort, and genuinely didn’t realise I’d left home to go to university; separation anxiety is not on her radar. Meanwhile, Elsa just kept getting worse.

Enter Bob Ross. I was first introduced to The Joy of Painting, Ross’s art class television show, while at school. Looking back, I think my art teacher realised that playing Bob Ross tapes for an entire term would enable him to kick-back and have a break. After six weeks, my masterpiece depicted a mountain, a lake, and a giant pink penis in the sky (look, it was meant to be a cloud). After that disappointingly phallic experience (there’s a sentence-opener), I moved on to a new topic and forgot all about it. It wasn’t until three years later, aged 16, that I rediscovered Bob Ross on YouTube. I started playing the videos to help me sleep, soothed by Bob’s melodic, dulcet tones, reminiscent of ASMR. Something about the gentle, meandering nature of the programme relaxed me, even if I wasn’t learning to paint.

It was during one of Elsa’s car panic-attacks that I decided to play a Bob Ross video. As soon as the calming strums of the theme tune began, Elsa made a strange whining sound, a bit like a deflating balloon. Her ears pricked up, seemingly in answer to Bob’s voice. Moments later, she was curled up on the car seat next to me.

For a moment, I didn’t move. I felt like this was worthy of David Attenborough’s narration, a rare moment in history. The restless Shitpoo, waiting in the confines of a car, had decided to lie down. Something about the tap-tap-tap of Bob’s white fan brush, gently guided by his Baritone voice, had sent her from a state of distress in to one of total relaxation. What’s more, the entire transformation had occurred in the space of about five minutes. I had spent months, years, trying to get her to calm down and here was the most unlikely solution.

So just what is it that makes Bob Ross so relaxing? Naturally, watching someone paint a landscape can be quite a soporific experience, but Elsa never actually watched the video. Therefore, the magic spell cast over my dog was purely based on auditory response. I mentioned ASMR earlier, and it’s quite possible that Ross was an accidental pioneer. Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response refers to a physical and mental sensation triggered by particular sounds (and sometimes visuals). Common triggers include whisper tones, crinkling paper and tapping fingers. Most ASMR videos are designed to soothe and relax viewers, with many promoting sleep and mindfulness.

This moves us onto what some scientists call ‘The Bob Ross Effect’. Craig Richard is a professor in the Department of Biopharmaceutical Sciences at Shenandoah University, Virginia. Richard’s interest in ASMR stemmed directly from Bob Ross: “I remembered coming home from school as a kid, flipping channels and stopping on Bob Ross because his voice was so magical. I’d set up a big floor pillow and fall asleep halfway through. I don’t think I ever watched him finish a painting.” (2018)

Richard says he feels pleasant tingles (a common response to ASMR) whilst watching The Joy of Painting; “My head gets really fuzzy in an enjoyable way. My entire body feels super-relaxed, and I’ll want to put my head down and take a nap.”

But what actually causes this relaxed state? According to Richard, chemicals in the brain such as endorphins, oxytocin (aka ‘the love hormone’) and serotonin are related to ASMR triggers. So, while Elsa and I listen to the vanilla vocals, underscored by the tip-tapping of a brush and the swoosh of a palette knife gliding through thick oil paint, our serotonin levels start to rise. One sound designer even analysed Bob Ross’s voice in a controlled experiment (2014), concluding that Ross matched the pause : speech ratios of ASMR videos; “On average, ASMR speakers are pausing 48.28 percent of the time.". These results are hardly surprising, considering the frequency of pauses involved with painting a landscape and presenting simultaneously.

There’s something strangely nurturing about the demeanour of Bob Ross. From his famous quotes on the joys of “happy little accidents”, to his affinity with nature, Bob creates an authentic intimacy with his audience. It’s that feeling of comfort and connectedness that we all seem to be craving, especially at the moment, that Bob Ross so effortlessly conjures up. Somehow, simply by listing the names of oil paints and painting ‘happy little trees’, Ross gives his viewers the feeling of being cared for and reassured. While The Joy of Painting is an art class, it is also akin to a therapy session, or conversing around the campfire. Ross has the air of ‘wise old woman on the hill’, but rather a man with a paint-palette as big as his afro, high jeans and a bright-eyed smile.

Interestingly, Bob Ross didn’t always lead such a tranquil and meditative lifestyle. In 1961, aged just 18, Ross joined the Air Force and was assigned the role of medical records technician. It seems the role was a far cry from his painting persona: “[I had to be] the guy who makes you scrub the latrine, the guy who makes you make your bed, the guy who screams at you for being late to work.” (Ross). To occupy his mind between shifts, Bob taught himself to paint, starting with the picturesque landscapes of Fairbanks, Alaska. His technique revolved around capturing beauty as quickly as possible; Ross wanted to complete whole paintings in his 30-minute breaks.

After 20 years of service, Bob swore that once leaving the military he would “never shout again”. Instead, Ross dedicated his life to painting, teaching ‘wet-on-wet’ oil classes, before being scouted to host his own show. It’s possible that Ross’s intense military career gave him a heightened sense of awareness when it came to human interaction. Perhaps learning what over-stimulates and intimidates people, taught Bob how the nurture the opposite effect.

While I have no conclusive evidence that Bob Ross videos help Elsa’s anxiety, they certainly appear to relax her. In situations of extreme stress – say, a car journey or a global pandemic - The Joy of Painting could be the ideal tonic. If Bob Ross videos can calm my dog, maybe they can help all of us to find some inner peace. Take a leaf out of Elsa’s book, and try watching an episode. Of course, I don’t really have proof that it works. It could just be a “happy little accident…”.

References:

Anon. (2018) ASMR Study Data, Available at: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1PuAdm1byfWONK9xGS4RJmmNn_6L7tk62uUHUYEFG_mo/edit#gid=0 (Accessed: 20th May 2020). (Accessed: 20th May 2020). Ross, B. (2020) The Official YouTube Channel of Bob Ross, Available at: https://www.youtube.com/user/BobRossInc (Accessed: 21st May 2020). Shah, A. (2018) Scientists have found out why Bob Ross's voice is so soothing, Available at: https://www.startribune.com/scientists-have-found-out-why-bob-ross-voice-is-so-soothing/472974813/?refresh=true (Accessed: 20th May 2020). Stockton, R. (2020) Bob Ross: The Man Behind The Happy Little Trees, Available at: https://allthatsinteresting.com/bob-ross-biography (Accessed: 20th May 2020). Taylor, J., BBC Radio 4 (2020) Seriously... Happy Little Trees , Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p08d5lcc (Accessed: 20th May 2020). Taylor, T. (2014) Bob Ross: king of the tingles, Available at: https://www.dazeddigital.com/artsandculture/article/18486/1/bob-ross-king-of-the-tingles (Accessed: 21st May 2020). The New York Times (2019) Where Are All the Bob Ross Paintings? We Found Them., Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDs3o1uLEdU (Accessed: 20th May 2020). Whistler, S. (2018) Bob Ross: Only Happy Accidents (Bob Ross Biography), Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsPBcCIvDSg (Accessed: 15th March 2020).

For genuinely proven methods on relieving anxiety in dogs, read these instead:

Blue Cross (2020) Home alone – separation anxiety in dogs, Available at: https://www.bluecross.org.uk/pet-advice/home-alone-separation-anxiety-dogs

RSPCA (2020) Treating separation anxiety, Available at: https://www.rspca.org.uk/adviceandwelfare/pets/dogs/behaviour/separationrelatedbehaviour/treatment (Accessed: 20th May 2020).