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Pupforum presents your training questions answered by professional dog trainers.
Jean is a graduate of Animal Behavior College and teaches basic obedience using positive motivation training techniques. She is a member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers and has been teaching family dog basic obedience for three years. Jean is also a graduate of Northeastern University and is the co-founder of pupforum.com.
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3/7/2005
When dogs meet each other for the first time, they naturally do several things that humans sometimes find upsetting. Humans tend to react to dogs meeting in ways that the dogs find upsetting. This is a real recipe for disaster if you ask me.
When humans meet for the first time, they walk straight up to each other, extend hands, shake, and usually exchange some pleasantries while facing each other. For some odd reason, humans tend to expect dogs to greet each other in a similar fashion.
When dogs meet each other for the first time, they do not approach head on. They circle around each other, and go right for the butt sniff. The sniffing is the doggy equivalent to a hand shake. It is a polite gesture and a way for the dogs to introduce themselves.
Lots of humans get nervous when their dog is about to greet another dog. The human will usualy shorten up the leash and become very tense. That tension travels right down the leash to the dog, making the dog apprehensive about meeting another dog as well. When your dog is meeting another dog, make sure you give him all of his leash. On a tight leash, your dog has no choice but to greet the other dog head on, which is a challenge in dog speak. Even on a loose leash, at the first sign of a snap or growl, you can still just walk away.
If the dogs make it pas
t the tension in the leashes, lots of humans find the butt sniffing offensive, and tell their dogs "No!" for doing so. Humans should be happy to see this behavior. It's very polite.
You should also make sure there is nothing worth guarding around when dogs meet for the first time. Toys and food should be removed from the equation before the dogs even get there.
If you know what to look for, your dog will give plenty of signs to let you know if the introduction is not going well. If it is not going well, don't reprimand your dog. Just take him away. You don't like every person you meet right?
Some signs of a bad interaction are a still tail, a stiff body, raised hackles (the fur between his shoulders), or a growl. Your dog may exhibit only one of these signs, or all of these signs. Never never punish growling. Your dog is telling you that he is upset. Just remove him from the situation.
Touching your dog while he is growling ususaly raises the dog's confidence that he can win the fight. Don't pet your dog while growling, just take hold of his collar or leash and walk away.
I've seen plenty of perfectly good dog meetings be totally ruined by confused humans. It's important to know what to expect when your dog meets another dog so that you encourage polite interactions between the dogs.
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