Meeting other dogs

[elizadoalittle]

I have anxiety about my girl coming into contact with other dogs on walks. She's on a long line as I'm still working on her recall, when there's no distractions, I.e other dogs, she's great, when she sees other dogs she gets so excited and loses her hearing and doesn't take any hints if the other dogs isn't friendly which has causes her to be snapped at (not bitten) in the past. If another dog approaches when we're out I put her on the lead but some owners don't understand and just let their dogs wander up to her and it's making me dread walks. Any advice? Anybody had this before and got passed it? I just want her to be in a place where she listens to me and isn't bothered by dogs but it seems impossible.

I have dog neutral dogs and the key is to be soooo much more exciting than the other dog. What does your dog enjoy? How is their level of basic obedience?
Do you do any training classes etc?

With regards to other people. Advocate for your dog. I will stand infront of my dog and say to anyone approaching my dog will bite or words to that effect. There’s no reason for you or your dog to be forced to interact with strangers or their animals unless you want too!

I’d go to gardens only where dogs have to be on a lead or private field. On the odd occasion where I get caught out I usually shout out my dog is infectious and that gets the owner running pretty quick.
Unfortunately there’s a real difference between what owners should do and what they actually do.
You will get passed it, with hard work-unfortunately a lot of owners can’t be bothered.

How old is your dog? Mine is now 15 months old and is happy to have a quick sniff hello and then walk past other dogs. Sometimes he ignores them altogether. If your dog is still young, then I think this will get better with age.

It has been a very gradual process for ToastDog and when he was younger he loved all other dogs; it's only the past month or so that his recall away from dogs has significantly improved.

I still use the long line a lot (although this is now more about safety near sheep/cow fields than recall from dogs and people). No-one else round here seems to take any notice of whether my dog is on a lead or not and they often let their dogs run over. Usually it's not a problem because I drop the long line and ToastDog seems OK with them (if he was reactive it would be a nightmare). However, he does not like bouncy puppies of any size, so if they come over they're likely to get some serious growling from him.

If we're doing an on- lead, pavement walk I try to avoid greeting any unknown dogs. I've learnt through experience that these are the encounters that are most likely to end with one of the dogs feeling uncomfortable and getting growly.

I also work hard to make sure that I'm his main source of fun and games by playing with him on our off lead walks and in the garden. ToastDog is very food focused so it's fairly easy to get him to engage with me. If we're out in the fields and I sense him getting distracted by dogs in the distance then I start playing with him and get his attention back on me, on a toy or on some food.

Be careful that you don’t create anxiety in your dog. They pick up on the vibes you give off. It is important that your dog is allowed to meet other dogs.
As other dogs approach shout to the owner “are they safe to play with my puppy?”

Talk to other dog walkers, I used to literally ask if my dog could say hello to theirs.

Also use treats and games as a distraction for your dog if you really want them to ignore something. Practice this at home.

Imagine keeping a child away from other children until they learned to ignore them, and then expecting them to have good social skills as an adult

It's a process of maturation - at this age they'll always be more interested in other dogs. They won't become more solitary until they're older.

If you take your dog to a park (in some cases - it's a part of a bigger park) which has LOTS of dogs then those are the ones where the sociable ones tend to congregate. The ones with issues go to the quietest spots.

Sometimes one dog will tell another dog off because they're being obnoxious. Heck, most puppies are a bit obnoxious. So long as it is not over the top (snap is one thing - flipping another dog or biting is quite another). They don't learn to interact in a non obnoxious manner without some interactions with other dogs that will occasionally set boundaries.

That's not to say you should let your dog be relentless in the face of a dog that's just not interested - go and retrieve it yours if necessary - just that receiving a few tellings off is a normal part of a dog growing up. Mine received a few, and he's much nicer for it. Indeed, he's now a dog that my dog walker sometimes introduces to dog selective dogs as he's got such good dog social skills.

Plus there's nothing nicer than watching two well matched young dogs race around the park, playing with a sense of joie de vivre.