Teaching bite inhibition

How to develop and maintain your dog’s “bite inhibition.”

By Pat Miller

My dog bites me. A lot. Scooter, the 10-pound Pomeranian we adopted from the shelter after he failed a behavior assessment (for serious resource-guarding), has bitten me more times than I can count. Most of the time I don’t even feel his teeth. He has never broken skin, and the few times I have felt any pressure, it’s been because I’ve persisted in what I was doing despite his clear request to stop. Scooter has excellent bite inhibition.

In the dog training world, bite inhibition is defined as a dog’s ability to control the pressure of his mouth when biting, to cause little or no damage to the subject of the bite. We know that all dogs have the potential to bite, given the wrong set of circumstances. Some dogs readily bite with little apparent provocation, but even the most saintly dog, in pain, or under great stress, can be induced to bite. When a bite happens, whether frequently or rarely, bite inhibition is what makes the difference between a moment of stunned silence and a trip to the nearest emergency room for the victim (and perhaps the euthanasia room for the dog).

A bite is at the far end of a long line of behaviors a dog uses to communicate displeasure or discomfort. To stop another dog, human, or other animal from doing what he perceives to be an inappropriate or threatening behavior, the dog often starts with body tension, hard eye contact, a freeze, pulling forward of the commissure (corners of the lips). These “please stop!” behaviors may escalate to include a growl, snarl (showing teeth), offensive barking, an air-snap (not making contact), and finally, an actual bite. The dog who does any or all of these things is saying, “Please don’t make me hurt you!”

Some foolish humans punish their dogs for these important canine communications. “Bad dog, how dare you growl at my child!” Punishing your dog for these warning signals can make him suppress them; he’ll learn it’s not safe to let you know he’s not comfortable with what you’re doing -and then bites can happen without warning. (See “The Gift of Growling,” Whole Dog Journal October 2005.)

Others ignore the signals and proceed with whatever was making the dog uncomfortable. This is also foolish, because it can prompt the dog to express his feelings more strongly, with a less inhibited bite that might break skin and do damage.

The wise dog owner recognizes the dog’s early signals, and takes steps to reduce or remove the stimulus that is causing the dog to be tense, to avoid having her dog escalate to a bite. She then manages the environment to prevent the dog from constant exposure to the stressful stimulus, and modifies her dog’s behavior to help him become comfortable with it. Sometimes, however, even the best efforts of the wisest dog owners can’t prevent a bite from happening. If and when it does, one hopes and prays that the dog has good bite inhibition.

Installing bite inhibition
In the best of all worlds, puppies initially learn bite inhibition while still with their mom and littermates, through negative punishment: the pup’s behavior makes a good thing go away. If a pup bites too hard while nursing, the milk bar is likely to get up and leave. Pups learn to use their teeth softly, if at all, if they want the good stuff to keep coming. As pups begin to play with each other, negative punishment also plays a role in bite inhibition. If you bite your playmate too hard, he’ll likely quit the game and leave.

For these reasons, orphan and singleton pups (as well as those who are removed from their litters too early) are more likely to have a “hard bite” (lack of bite inhibition) than pups who have appropriate interactions for at least seven to eight weeks with their mother and siblings. These dogs miss out on important opportunities to learn the consequences of biting too hard; they also fail to develop “tolerance for frustration,” since they don’t have to compete with littermates for resources. They may also be quicker to anger -and to bite without bite inhibition -if their desires are thwarted. Note: Being raised with their litter doesn’t guarantee good bite inhibition; some dogs have a genetic propensity to find hard biting (and its consequences) to be reinforcing; others may have had opportunity to practice and be reinforced for biting hard.

Your dog may never bite you in anger, but if he doesn’t have good bite inhibition you’re still likely to feel a hard bite when he takes treats from your fingers -and removes skin as well as the tasty tidbit.

If you find yourself with a puppy who, for whatever reason, tends to bite down harder than he should with those needle-sharp puppy teeth, you need to start convincing him that self-restraint is a desirable quality. You can’t start this lesson too early when it comes to putting canine teeth on human skin and clothes. Ideally, you want to teach your pup not to exert pressure when mouthing by the time he’s five months old, just as his adult canine teeth are coming in, and before he develops adult-dog jaw strength. Here are the four R’s of how to do it:

• Remove: When your puppy bites hard enough to cause you pain, say “Ouch!” in a calm voice, gently remove your body part from his mouth, and take your attention away from him for two to five seconds. You’re using negative punishment, just like the pup’s mom and littermates. If he continues to grab at you when you remove your attention, put yourself on the other side of a baby gate or exercise pen. When he is calm, re-engage with him.

• Repeat: Puppies (and adult dogs, and humans) learn through repetition. It will take time, and many repetitions of Step #1, for your pup to learn to voluntarily control the pressure of his bite. Puppies do have a very strong need to bite and chew, so at first you’ll “ouch and remove” only if he bites down hard enough to hurt you. Softer bites are acceptable -for now. If you try to stop all puppy biting at once, both of you will become frustrated. This is a “shaping” process (see “The Shape of Things to Come,” March 2006).

At first, look for just a small decrease in the pressure of his teeth. When he voluntarily inhibits his bite a little -enough that it’s not hurting you -start doing the “ouch and remove” procedure for slightly softer bites, until you eventually shape him not to bite at all. By the time he’s eight months old he should have learned not to put his mouth on humans at all, unless you decide to teach him to mouth gently on cue.

• Reinforce: Your pup wants good stuff to stick around. When he discovers that biting hard makes you (good stuff) go away, he’ll decrease the pressure of his bite and eventually stop biting hard. This works especially well if you remember to reinforce him with your attention when he bites gently. It works even better if you use a reward marker when he uses appropriate mouth pressure. Given that your hands are probably full of puppy at that particular moment, use a verbal marker followed by praise to let him know he’s doing well. Say “Yes!” to mark the soft-mouth moment, followed by “Good puppy!” praise to let him know he’s wonderful.

• Redirect: You probably are well aware that there are times when your pup is calmer and softer, and times when he’s more aroused and more likely to bite hard.

It’s always a good idea to have soft toys handy to occupy your pup’s teeth when he’s in a persistent biting mood. If you know even before he makes contact with you that he’s in the mood for high-energy, hard biting, arm yourself with a few soft toys and offer them before he tries to maul your hands. If he’s already made contact, or you’re working on repetitions of Step #1, occasionally reinforce appropriate softer bites with a favorite squeaky toy play moment.

If there are children in the home with a mouthy puppy, it’s imperative that you arm them with soft toys and have toys easily available in every room of the house, so they can protect themselves by redirecting puppy teeth rather than running away and screaming -a game that most bitey pups find highly reinforcing.

It is possible to suppress a puppy’s hard biting by punishing him when he bites too hard. That might even seem like a quicker, easier way to get him to stop sinking his canine needles into your skin. However, by doing so, you haven’t taught him bite inhibition. If and when that moment comes where he really does feel compelled to bite someone, he’s likely to revert to his previous behavior and bite hard, rather than offering the inhibited bite you could have taught him.

Teaching bite inhibition to an adult dog
Teaching an adult dog to inhibit his bite is far more challenging than teaching a puppy. A dog easily reverts to a well-practiced, long-reinforced behavior in moments of high emotion, even if he’s learned to control his mouth pressure in calmer moments.

I know this all too well. Our Cardigan Corgi, now six years old, came to us at the age of six months with a wicked hard mouth. Hand-feeding her treats was a painful experience, and I implemented a variation of the “Ouch” procedure. Because she was biting hard for the treat rather than puppy-biting my flesh, I simply said “Ouch,” closed my hand tightly around the treat, and waited for her mouth to soften, then fed her the treat. Hard mouth made the treat disappear (negative punishment); soft mouth made the treat happen (positive reinforcement). She actually got the concept pretty quickly, and within a couple of weeks could thoughtfully and gently take even high value treats without eliciting an “Ouch.”

She still can take treats gently to this day, except when she’s stressed or excited; then she reverts to her previous hard-bite behavior. When that happens, I close the treat in my fist until she remembers to soften her mouth, at which time I open my hand and feed her the treat. So, while our bite inhibition work was useful for routine training and random daily treat delivery, if Lucy ever bites in a moment of stress, arousal, fear and/or anger, I have no illusions that she’s going to remember to inhibit her bite. Of course, I do my best to make sure that moment doesn’t happen.

Because I have more leeway with Scooter and his excellent bite inhibition, it’s tempting to be a little complacent with him. I try not to. One of Scooter’s “likely to bite” moments is grooming time. The poor guy has a horrible undercoat that mats, literally, in minutes. This is a highly undesirable Pomeranian coat characteristic. I could groom my first Pomeranian, Dusty, once a week without worrying about mats. I have to groom Scooter every night.

Of course he hates it; brushing always causes him some discomfort as I work to ease the tangles out without pulling too hard on his skin. We’ve made progress in the year we’ve had him; I can comb the top half of his body without encountering much resistance, but I can feel him tense up as I approach the more sensitive lower regions. Rather than relying on his good bite inhibition to get us through, I continue to use counter-conditioning and desensitization. I feed him treats (or have my husband Paul feed him) as I groom, or let him lick my hands (an activity he enjoys mightily -and one I can tolerate in place of his biting) while I comb out the tangles.

Whether you’ve taken the time to teach your puppy good bite inhibition or had the good fortune to inherit a dog who has it, don’t take it for granted. Continue to reinforce soft-mouth behavior for the rest of his life, and don’t be tempted to push the envelope of his tolerance just because you can. Even saints have limits.

Pat Miller, CPDT, is Whole Dog Journal’s Training Editor. Miller lives in Fairplay, Maryland, site of her Peaceable Paws training center.

How to help dogs get along

(from Cesar Millan)

It’s an all-too-familiar scenario. Two humans try to blend their existing packs and wind up with their dogs fighting and creating chaos. It can happen with roommates moving in together, people trying to date, or even when bringing a new dog into an existing pack.
It doesn’t have to be this way and, short of having one or more dogs that are red zone cases (which will require a professional trainer’s help), you can take steps to prevent this problem before it happens or solve it if it does.
Before the Dogs Meet
One big mistake people make when introducing dogs from different packs or bringing in new dogs is by just tossing them together in one pack’s territory and hoping that they’ll get along. Maybe they will and maybe they won’t.
By bringing a new dog into another pack’s territory, you are running the risk of the existing pack becoming assertive or aggressive in order to defend what is theirs. Depending on the new dog’s energy, they may become completely submissive and fearful, or they may fight back.
Whether you’re bringing a new dog into the pack or moving in new humans with their existing pack, the procedure is the same, and you can find it in detail in the article A New Member of the Pack. The short version is that all of the dogs should meet in neutral territory and take a long walk together first, before coming into the home. Then, the humans enter first, followed by the dogs that live there, followed by the new dog.
In this way, you are allowing the dogs to first bond as a pack on the walk, then allowing the dogs currently living in the home to bring the new dogs in. Just shoving a new dog in through the door is an invasion; doing it this way turns it into an invitation from the existing dogs.

Too Late — Now What?
One dog fight does not make for a disaster, but your reaction to it can. Even among the seemingly closest of pack mates, sometimes something can happen that will get them going at each other. One of them doesn’t respect the other’s space and a correction turns into a conflict. Maybe a human member of the pack accidentally drops a high value food item on the floor and both dogs go for it. Maybe one of your dogs is experiencing physical pain and another dog nudged her the wrong way.
The first step with the first fight is to break it up quickly and calmly. Focus on the dog with the higher level of intensity, use touch to redirect (this forces them to release if they’re biting), and then pull them up (not back). Never yell or shout excitedly when breaking up a dog fight — this will only elevate the aggression. You can use a loud grunt or shout, but always in a calm manner. You’re not breaking up the dogs with your voice; you’re defusing the aggression with your energy.
The second and most important step with a dog fight is how you handle it after. The right way: forget it happened, because your dogs will. The wrong way: start worrying about the next fight, because that is the quickest way to guarantee that it will happen.

Avoiding Fights
Dogs in the same pack fight for one reason only: because they do not have a strong pack leader. This is why establishing rules, boundaries, and limitations for the entire pack is important. If all of your dogs are looking to you as a leader, they will not be looking at each other as competition.
It’s also very important to walk your dogs together, side-by-side. Not only does the exercise help to lower their energy, and hence the impulse to fight, but by moving your dogs forward together it focuses them on a common goal instead of each other.
Remember: the worst thing you can do if you have dogs that fight is to ignore the problem by isolating them from each other. What this actually does is create a separate territory for each dog, and fighting over territory is the only natural cause of battles between dog packs. Since the dogs will still be able to smell each other, that conflict will become an obsession. If they ever do wind up together in this situation, then they will fight.

The Key to Success Is You
Even the most seemingly balanced dog pack may occasionally have a fight in it. The important thing to remember is that you are in charge and conflict like this is not the end of the world. Break the fight up quickly and calmly, redirect the dog’s attention, take them for a walk together, and don’t worry that it’s going to happen again.
They may or may not fight again, but if worry over it does not become your obsession, you will not be feeding them negative energy that will lead to another fight. Reward them when they are being calm and submissive, and correct them when they are not. Your dogs would prefer to not fight, and you as the pack leader can help them achieve this goal.

Read more: http://www.cesarsway.com/dog-training/dog-socialization/How-to-Help-Dogs-Get-Along?utm_content=How%20to%20Help%20Dogs%20Get%20Along&utm_campaign=CW.com%20Article&utm_source=Facebook&utm_term=Socialization%2Cdog%20training%2Chow%20to%20help%20dogs%20get%20along%2Ccw.com&utm_medium=1413418316#ixzz3GGMty6BL

How to fit the dog walk into your daily schedule

(by Josh Weiss-Roessler)

Walking your dogs is important for a variety of reasons:
It provides them with much-needed exercise that keeps them healthy and relieves excess energy so they don’t cause problems around the house.
It stimulates their brain because there are so many new smells, sights, and sounds to experience.
It gives you a fantastic opportunity to train your dog and make sure that they recognize you as the Pack Leader.
And, of course, it allows them to go to the bathroom.
Despite all of these benefits, many people only walk their dogs intermittently — or not at all — because they don’t feel like they can fit dog walks into a daily schedule that may include work, school, kids, and more. Because of that, we thought we’d offer up some helpful tips that can get you out the door with your pups.
Set Up a Schedule
Ideally, you want to try to walk your dogs at the same time every day, so creating a schedule can be very helpful. If you know you’re going to be walking them every day at 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., you can plan the rest of your life around this, set alarms, and so on. Just remember to protect yourself and your dog with reflective gear or an LED collar if it is dark out. And speaking of setting alarms…

Have a Daily Reminder
While an alarm clock may be necessary to help you get up for an early morning dog walk, it’s not the only way to stay on track. For many, setting up a daily reminder on their phone will be even more valuable — and less intrusive. Dogs also have an innate sense of time, so if you get them on a regular walk schedule, they’ll start reminding you themselves.

Bring the Stroller
Many people find that it becomes more difficult to walk their dogs after they have children, but you can’t let this stop you. Bring your little one with you on the walk by putting them in the stroller and bringing them along. Including the baby on the walk can also give your dog a job “herding” the stroller as you go.

Be Flexible
Can’t walk your dogs at the scheduled time one day? No worries — do it a few hours later. Unable to get a walk in at all? Come up with a backup plan such as tossing a tennis ball around your yard. Weather not walk-friendly? Exercise your dog indoors!

Get Up a Half Hour Earlier
If your problem is that you genuinely don’t have time in your daily schedule to go for a dog walk, one of the best solutions can be to expand that schedule by getting up earlier and devoting this time to the walk. It will be an adjustment at first, but both you and your dogs will benefit.
The underlying message here is that life will always create obstacles — it’s up to you to find your way around them so that your dogs can stay happy and healthy.

Read more: http://www.cesarsway.com/dog-training/dog-walk/How-to-Fit-the-Dog-Walk-into-Your-Daily-Schedule?utm_content=How%20to%20Fit%20the%20Dog%20Walk%20into%20Your%20Daily%20Schedule&utm_campaign=CW.com%20Article&utm_source=Facebook&utm_term=dog%20walk%2Ccw.com%2C%22dog%20training%20channel%22&utm_medium=1412005693#ixzz3EpReQXpF

Doggy DayCare – A how-to guide

https://positively.com/contributors/doggy-daycare-a-how-to-guide/
(Victoria Stilwell – “Positively”)

Doggy Daycare is one of the fastest growing businesses in the pet care industry. As human culture changes, so do the needs of pet owning consumers. Housing in much of America offers less opportunity for our dogs to have enriched lives within the confines of their own backyards than it has in the past. Yards are smaller and often our communities have neighborhood covenants that do not allow humane fencing. Owners have more pressure and expectation put on their time and proper exercise, training, and enrichment of man’s best friend often falls by the wayside of an increasingly demanding lifestyle.

Doggy Daycare can be a valuable solution for many dog owners. Not all dogs, however, are appropriate for daycare. Some dogs, just like some people, are more introverted in personality. These dogs would prefer to have their needs met by a private dog walker rather than a boisterous doggy daycare environment. Just because your faithful companion does not enjoy daycare does not mean there is something “wrong” with him or that anything needs to be fixed. It is just as acceptable for a dog to prefer the companionship of one or two close friends as it is for a dog to love the doggy daycare lifestyle. For a fantastic article on this particular subject, please follow this Link

I have been professionally involved in the pet care industry for 15 years and I’m a big fan of doggy daycare, so much so that when I decided to embark on opening a large dog training facility, I chose to include a daycare option for our clients. There are quite a few dog behavior experts who are not fans of doggy daycare and I completely respect that opinion. However, I contend that their issue is not with doggy daycare, their issue is with how some (maybe even most) doggy daycares are managed. Since doggy daycare is a completely unregulated field, meaning anyone with any background can open a doggy daycare with little or no experience or certification, the consumer must be vigilant to thoroughly interview the facility to determine if it is worthy of caring for your beloved pet. It should be our expectation that these facilities offer excellent, scientifically based, programs for our dogs – not just a place to “burn off energy.” How do we educate ourselves and other dog owners on selecting a doggy daycare? As I began to explore this question, I decided to do a google search of how to select a human daycare center and then do a google search how to select a dog daycare center.

A quick Google search of how to select a human childcare center brought many pages of advice. Here are a few of the most common items listed to consider by child development experts:

1. Adult to Child Ratio

2. Group Size

3. Caregiver Qualifications

4. Accreditation

5. View the facility from a child’s perspective

6. Ask about undesirable behavior management policies (aka discipline)

7. Everyday education and developmental stimulation

8. Caregiver’s ability to communicate with, and act on, child’s communication

9. Consistent schedule of daily activities and development

10. Keeping with your philosophy of child rearing and care

Let’s compare that to the quick Google search of how to select a dog daycare center:

1. Cleanliness

2. Small dogs and large dogs separate

3. Temperament Evaluations

4. Loving Staff

5. Safety

That’s it. With few exceptions, that’s the criteria in article after article. I feel like this is such a disservice to our dogs. They are our companions, our feeling, thinking, and dynamic dogs that do life with us. I fully understand that children and dogs are not the same, but there are similarities in needs for a fulfilled and thriving life. I would like to see our list of childcare and our list for dog daycare look much more similar. I would like to see us, as a society, begin to think about the situations as meeting the same end goals. Dog daycare can no longer just be about “getting out energy.” It should be about so much more!

Let’s go though the list of how to select a childcare center and apply it to dog daycare centers:

1. Adult to dog ratio: According to many canine behavior experts the dog to adult ratio should be no more than 15:1. As with child care, smaller ratios are even better! (information is according to the ASPCA guidelines)

2. Group Size: There should never be more than 10-15 dogs to any individual group. Additionally, each dog should have 75-100 sqft of playspace for each dog in a group. That means that for a 15 dog play group, the facility should have no less than 1500sq ft just for that one group of dogs. Did you know that many dog daycares have so many dogs that each dog only spends fraction of the day outside of a cage? Make sure you ask how long your dog is actually in his play group each day and how long he is in a cage each day. (information is according to the ASPCA guidelines)

3. Caregiver Qualifications: Staff members at a dog daycare should be well educated on dog behavior, body language, Canine CPR, health, play style, and behavior management. They should have received training from a qualified, certified, professional in these areas. Ideally the facility will have a certified animal behavior specialist overseeing the staff and management of the dogs.

4. Accreditation: Unfortunately there is no inspection/qualification driven accreditation organization for non-veterinary dog care facilities. There are several “purchased” accreditations, but these do not require inspections in order to be approved, they simply require membership dues. The best option at this time is to look for a daycare center that has owners, managers, or staff members with individual accreditations and certifications in animal behavior and training.

5. View the facility from the dogs perspective: Is it safe? Is the fencing secure? Do the other dogs seem to be having a good time? Is the staff interactive? Are there plenty of places to rest? How long is the dog actually in their group each day? How long are they in a crate/cage each day?

6. Ask about undesirable behavior management policies: Discipline at many dog daycare facilities is shocking! Ask the facility what their policy is on discipline and then ask exactly how they enforce that policy. The facility should be positive reinforcement and force-free. The facility should NEVER use harsh corrections or the water hose to discipline dogs.

7. Education and developmental stimulation: Does the daycare offer a day-training program? What about dogs not in the training program but just the daycare program? What programs are in place to ensure your dog isn’t just spending the day being exercised physically but also mentally and emotionally?

8. Caregivers ability to communicate and act on the dogs’ communication: You should feel comfortable with the staff at your dog daycare. Staff education in dog behavior and body language is so important! Again, look for a facility with a certified dog behavior specialist overseeing staff education. All staff should be trained in the latest scientific findings in dog behavior and body language and should be well versed in the science of positive reinforcement.

9. Consistent schedule of activities and development: Your dog daycare should be able to give you an exact schedule for the pets in their care. There should be organized play, education, cleaning, feeding, etc. These schedules and policies should be easily and openly communicated by staff members to pet owners.

10. Keeping with your philosophy of dog rearing and care: It is so important to ask good questions. Dog daycare facilities should only employ positive reinforcement and force free tactics. Anything else is antiquated and scientifically proven to be harmful to your dog both physically and emotionally. It is so important to not just ask if it’s a positive reinforcement facility but to ask exactly what that means. How do they praise? For what? How exactly do they discipline and for what behaviors? Do they know why their reinforcement and disciplinary policies work? Can they explain them to you based on the latest scientific studies of animal behavior and cognition?

11. Temperament Evaluations: Every reputable doggy daycare should have a behaviorally sound temperament evaluation system. This is one of the largest weaknesses in many facilities. Ideally, this evaluation will take place over several hours so the dog is not rushed in his interactions or meetings with the existing dogs. A reputable doggy daycare facility should be able to tell you exactly how this evaluation takes place, why the person doing the evaluation is qualified to make an assessment, and what is and is not appropriate behavior throughout the evaluation. It is not enough to simply test a dog for aggression; it should be openly communicated to the dog owner if the dog is simply not having fun, overwhelmed, stressed, or unhappy. A reputable doggy daycare will let an owner know if daycare is not best suited for your dog simply based on the fact that your dog is stressed and not having fun, not simply for aggression.

Dog Daycare is a wonderful thing. I think it is an excellent solution for the cultural changes that are negatively affecting our family pets. However, we must begin to ask good questions and have higher expectations for the humans we are entrusting to care for our dogs. As you’re doing your research ask your local VSPDT for recommendations. If you are unsure whether you dog would enjoy daycare, contact your local VSPDT and ask them for an evaluation to help you decide if daycare would be a fun and enjoyable experience for your individual dog.

Additional Resources:

http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/virtual-pet-behaviorist/dog-behavior/daycare-dogs

The importance of space!

https://positively.com/contributors/the-importance-of-space/
(Victoria Stilwell – “Positively”)

GIVE ME SOME SPACE, PLEASE!!!!!! Who among us hasn’t felt like this at some point in our lives? Well, here is a news flash: sometimes our canine friends could use a little space too. Owners don’t have to look far for examples of their pet wanting a bit more space. Many dogs take their “special” toy or treat and move further away to ensure they are at a “safe” distance before they can enjoy it. In multi dog households where fights have broken out, the fights very often happen in tight quarters (doorways, hallways, under the kitchen table). The tighter the space, the less options dogs have to get their point across. Many resort to snarling, snipping, and biting if they have no other options. Even hugging your dog can encroach on his comfort zone when it comes to his need for space.

The importance of proximity in a dog’s life is something that trainers and behaviorists are continuing to study. What we have determined is that a dog’s freedom to give or take space helps create a sense of safety for them. In almost all aspects of a dog’s life, the use of space is the difference between success and failure, conflict and resolution, stress free situations and stressful situations. The good news is that owners who grasp this concept can use it to their advantage! The appropriate use of space is one of the easiest and most underused tools available.

A prime example of this is when dealing with dog/dog introductions. Most owners are aware that it wise to keep a loose leash when their dog is meeting another dog. Ever wonder why? A tight leash restricts a dog’s options when meeting another dog. If the leashes stay tight, then the choice to give or take space is not there. By keeping leashes loose it lets each dog circle, sniff, play bow, ignore, or walk away from another dog. Without that choice, communication between dogs is limited. Without the ability to communicate properly, stress or frustration builds and that often leads to growling, snapping, or biting. Imagine trying to let someone know that they are standing too close and making you uncomfortable. If they don’t (or can’t) move back and you can’t move back, it can get pretty stressful. I might find myself a bit snappy after awhile!

Nowhere is having a safe sense of space more important than when working with reactive dogs. Finding enough distance is the number one tool used with these dogs. In all of my reactive cases, the first meeting has everything to do with proximity. The first question is “At what distance can the owner’s dog handle seeing the trigger without reacting?” Once we find the correct distance, we have a starting point in which everything else is built.

Providing enough space during any type of training is key in helping your dog succeed. I was observing a basic training class at a local pet store last week. Four out of the five dogs in the class were able to “sit” when requested. The fifth dog was too distracted by the other dogs to focus on anything, much less “sit” when asked. Watching from behind the lines, I saw the inevitable happen as both trainer and owner began to get more and more frustrated. They finally began pushing on the dog’s hind quarters, jerking his collar and hovering over him yelling the cue “Sit!”. This, in turn, stressed and frustrated the dog even more. Needless to say, there was not a lot of success during that exercise. By using available space to their advantage, things may have turned out differently. It would have been a good idea to move this dog further away from the distractions, get him to refocus and start again. Owners must practice at a distance where their dog is successful and build up to closer distractions over time. Being able to provide enough space is the first step to garnering improved focus from your dog in these distracting circumstances. Owners that are in class rooms that are not able to provide enough distance may find themselves a bit frustrated. Often, the difference of moving a dog 2-3 feet further away can lead to success! Teaching owners to creatively utilize space with their dogs can help them defuse many frustrating moments.

Proximity always matters to your dog. Training, meet and greets with people or with other dogs, parties, events, distractions….success with these has everything to do with distance. Using space to your advantage throughout your dog’s daily routine will help you keep your dog’s stress level low, set yourself up for successful training lessons and avoid unnecessary conflicts with other dogs! Now that is a tool we could all use!