Before you begin socializing a dog that has been neglected or abused, you should have a good understanding of pack leadership and have completed at least a month of basic training lessons. When he feels that he has good control over his dog and that he respects his position as pack leader, he will be ready to reintroduce the dog to society.
Reintroduce a little socialized dog in society
Dogs love to play, but what we sometimes don’t understand is that they NEED to play. Any dog that is kept isolated from canine or human company, that never enjoys a game of tug-of-war or tug-of-the-bone, or experiences the joy of a playful relationship with its owners, will be an unhappy dog.
This unhappiness will manifest in behavioral problems. For example, excessive barking or aggression is a sign of boredom and discontent. Therefore, interaction with others is crucial.
So, without even realizing it, you’re part of a centuries-old wolf pack social structure. In these deceptively ordinary moments, when, for example, you play hide-and-seek with your dog, you accommodate your dog’s innate drive to socialize. It is through these games that you and your dog really bond.
If you never intended to introduce your dog to another person or dog, simply making sure to give your dog plenty of one-on-one play time every day would be enough to keep him healthy and happy for the rest of his life.
Most people, however, want a companion animal that they can introduce to family and friends, as well as go for a run, to the park, or other social settings. However, if the dog is not properly socialized, these types of interactions with the rest of the world may not be as easy as the dog owner thought they should be.
Bringing a poorly socialized or aggressive dog into society can quickly turn into a nightmare of barking, lunging, growling, and general misbehavior. It can be directed at other dogs or it can be directed at strangers, either way it will eventually become such a nightmare that the dog owner won’t want to try it anymore.
Start socializing and training your dog early and you can avoid the difficult challenge of retraining an aggressive dog later!
Before you start training your dog in a social setting, you need to make sure that you are in control of your dog in your own home. Start working on your Basic Training lessons and be very consistent with it. When you feel that your dog is no longer challenging your leadership, then you may be ready to start working outside the home.
Using your training collar and a good leash, load your dog into the car and head to a park or other place where you know for a fact that you are very unlikely to encounter dogs off leashes. You absolutely must be in control of the situation, and you can’t control it if the other dog isn’t on a leash.
Just as you did in basic training, place your dog in the ‘alongside’ position and begin walking within sight of the other dogs.
Make sure you are in a calm and controlled state of mind. You want to feel safe and yet relaxed, in complete control of the situation and radiating your calm confidence to your dog.
Don’t let your dog get distracted by other dogs or people, just like if you were walking down the street by your house.
If his head and tail jerk toward another dog or other distraction, correct him immediately and return him to his position. He should be paying attention to you and watching you for signs, not watching other dogs.
If someone tries to walk their dog towards you or tries to pet you, ask them to stay away from you as they are training. Most people will understand and respect his wishes.
Walk around the park or area once you are out for the first time, or until the dog walks past other dogs and distractions without looking again. You want to try to end the training session on a positive note.
Reward him when he loads back into the car with a special treat you brought from home, perhaps a favorite snack or toy.
Practice walking in a public place at least ten or twelve more times before moving on to the next level. When you can easily walk around the public area and your dog never pulls on the leash, tries to follow another dog or person, and seems relaxed and comfortable following you, then you’re probably ready to move on to the next step.
If you are working towards human socialization, start meeting your family in the park. If it’s dog socialization, ask them to bring their dog.
You are the pack leader, so you should be the one to decide if the pack will accept a strange human or dog. This means that your dog cannot growl, bark or act aggressively towards anyone or any other dog.
When you’re ready, leash both dogs and start walking through the park. Start with some distance between the dogs by walking together in the same direction and keeping one of the humans between them at all times.
At first both will continue to look at each other and try to cross around the humans to reach the other dog. Simply continue to walk steadily forward and back into position until he remembers his training and begins to pay more attention to you than to the other dog.
The reason it helps to have the person as a friend is because the dialogue between the two humans helps the dogs understand that they are both pack leaders with a higher status level than their own, so they need to relax and just be. good companions while instructing them. a.
Walk your dogs this way for half a dozen times, talking, laughing and making a lot of noise communicating with each other while maintaining relaxed control over the dogs. They should remain calm and obedient even if you are laughing, crying, or in a loud debate.
Try to end each walk on a good note with both dogs feeling relaxed and happy.
It really helps if you know several friends who can rotate walking different dogs with your dog. You don’t want your dog to get used to just one dog, you want him to be relaxed around all the dogs.
After you’ve practiced walking together half a dozen times, meet up at the park again, but this time after you’ve walked for a minute or two and the dogs are walking without distraction, stop abruptly and walk close enough that the dogs can walk. sniff nose.
A well-socialized dog will sniff another dog’s nose and then turn to look at his master as if asking why the walk ended so soon. A dog with less social skills will be more focused, trying to sniff out the other dog as if he is trying to determine by scent and height who is going to be boss. A dog with very poor skills will raise its tail, stiffen its legs, and may growl or even snap at the other dog.
If the aggressive dog’s tail protrudes above the level of your spine, yank him back sharply with a firm “BAH” and continue your walk without re-introducing the dogs that day. If both dogs seem to maintain their calm and relaxed demeanor, it’s okay for them to stand and talk while interacting for a few minutes, then continue walking on that good note.
Keep practicing the introductions once or twice a day until the aggressive dog learns that he is not in control of the situation, but you are. You don’t want to overwhelm the dog, especially if it’s a larger rescue that has potentially had bad experiences with other dogs. You have to take it easy so he doesn’t feel pressured.
When you’ve introduced your dog to half a dozen other dogs and have responded well to all of them, then you can move on to meeting multiple dogs at once and eventually off-leash parks.
Puppies will obviously follow these steps very easily, but it is very important that older dogs who have not been properly socialized take these steps at a pace that benefits them. Particularly rescue dogs that have spent years chained up or in kennels without good human or canine interaction.
The important thing is to always stay in control of the situation and be a good pack leader for your dog.