"This is your dog's way of sending you a distress signal."

Yeah. ;-) They do that when they want to come in or when they are impatient for supper to be served.

"Is his world anchored by a pack leader who projects calm-assertive energy?"

Well....yes and no. That pack leader is clearly my elderly mother, but she does no project calm-assertive energy. To the contrary, she's a real worry wart and she projects nervousness and confusion. The dogs are right in that same groove with her. ;-) They are not really my dogs, you see...they are her dogs.

"Are you walking with him every day, which exercises his body and his mind?"

Hah! No chance whatsoever of that with these junior couch potatoes. If you put a leash on them and suggest a walk they give you a look that says..."You're kidding, right? What a stupid idea. I see no good reason for engaging in such pointless folly and risking the possible hazards that may lie beyond the property line."

"But rather than professing undying love, they are probably trying to tell you that they are lonely and bored; their needs as a dog are not being met."

Too true! ;-) They are definitely bored a great deal of the time, and they hate being alone (the company of the other dog doesn't count for much in that equation...) Their needs are:

1. For my mother to be less than 12 inches away at all times.
2. Food.
3. Water.

These dogs do not wish to be fulfilled as Nature intended them to be fulfilled. ;-) Trust me on this. In Nature they would last a very short time and then end up in something's stomach. They abhor Nature. Their idea of a good life is a soft quilt to lie on, central heathing, a constant supply of food, and the fulltime presence of my mother at arm's length. Nothing else will do.

They are forever lost to Nature and its imperatives, I'm afraid. They have become a new form of domestic life unto themselves, and there's not a danged thing I can do about it.