Tips for working on social skills?

[biggiy05]

On Sunday I'm taking Roxy to a nearby dog park to get her around other dogs and hopefully work on her social skills. She's not aggressive towards other dogs but wants to bark until they get too close then she turns into a coward and tries to hide behind me.

Any tips for Sunday? I'm taking some treats with me and her muzzle just in case. When she sees it she puts her ears down and calms down. If I show it to her Sunday then she'll more than likely quiet down. I'm just looking for ways to keep her from barking at the other dogs so the owners don't get the impression she's going to attack their dog.

 

[JordanAng420]

Well, I hope YOU are a pretty sociable person because your best bet is to talk to as many people with dogs as possible...and make sure the people all look different, have various types of dogs, etc...Give the treat to the stranger and have them give Roxy a command, such as "sit". Allow Roxy to have the treat ONLY when she is quiet and still. Ever take Psychology & heard of Pavlov's dogs? It's the same concept. Instead of associating unfamiliar dogs and people with negative feelings, Roxy will soon begin to LOVE seeing other people & other dogs.

Taking the muzzle is a great idea just in case you need it...but don't show it to Roxy before she misbehaves & before she even gets to the park. That will only lead to the opposite reaction you are looking to achieve...she's gonna go "Oh s**t, it's that thing again, and we have to go to that place again. Here let me pee on the floor."

The first couple times is no walk in the park, no pun intended lol. It's not going to be easy...keep your patience, and if you start to lose it, just quit for the day and start fresh another time. Sucess with behavior in these guys only happens when both ends give 100%. Good luck!!!

 

[Chewbecca]

If she is hiding behind you when dogs get too close, perhaps you shouldn't overwhelm her by taking her to a dog park just yet?

She's obviously fearful, so I would introduce dogs slowly to her. Maybe you could arrange for a playdate for her with a friend's dog?
That way it could be done in a more controlled environment, and if something goes wrong, you have more of an opportunity to intervene than you would if you had to make your way through 838394 dogs and their owners.

 

[biggiy05]

If she is hiding behind you when dogs get too close, perhaps you shouldn't overwhelm her by taking her to a dog park just yet?

It's not that she's fearful. She just acts like she's tough until they want to come say hi then she tries to hide. Once the dog starts checking her out she wants to sniff the dog and then it goes from there. I'm just trying to break her from the habit of barking at the dogs. I want her to go up to the dogs and interact with them.

 

[Mel&Keith]

I'd say take her to the park when it's not totally packed and act like it's a fun time, not anything to be stressed about. Don't react to her barking and just walk up to the other dog owners, introduce yourself and explain that you're trying to socialize your dog.

Our Chihuahua came from a puppy mill situation and was not socialized at ALL. As soon as we explain to people that he's an insecure dog and we're working on it, it puts them more at ease which in turn puts the dog more at ease.

When other dogs come over to say hi, try greeting the dog yourself. Maybe if Roxy sees that you're being friendly with the dog she'll let her guard down. Just be patient and have a good time. Good luck!

 

[biggiy05]

I'd say take her to the park when it's not totally packed and act like it's a fun time, not anything to be stressed about. Don't react to her barking and just walk up to the other dog owners, introduce yourself and explain that you're trying to socialize your dog.

When other dogs come over to say hi, try greeting the dog yourself. Maybe if Roxy sees that you're being friendly with the dog she'll let her guard down. Just be patient and have a good time. Good luck!

Thanks for the tips Mel! The dog park is nothing too big or fancy. I drove it by it the other day when the weather was nice and saw maybe 5-6 dogs at the most. It's a fenced in area with lots of space.

I'll have Roxy on the leash for a few minutes after we go inside then I'll let her off. She won't leave my side at first but if I move towards other dogs she'll move with me because she doesn't want to be left behind.

Soon as I get the transmission in my truck fixed I'm sure we will be doing this a couple times a week depending on my schedule at the station.

 

[biggiy05]

I went to the park with a plan and the plan fell apart the second she got out of the truck. It actually went a lot better than I thought. I walked her around the fenced in sections a few times before finally going inside.

Once we were inside I kept her leash on and let other dogs come up to her. About five minutes into it I took her leash off and let her wander around. Dogs of all sizes were coming up to her to say hi. At first she ran from them but the more dogs that came up to her the more relaxed she was. After a while she was sniffing the other dogs and just walking around.

I'm going to take her up a couple times a week after I get my truck fixed. The more she's around other dogs the more she'll want to play with them. There was a jack Russell that she tried to play with and he wanted nothing to do with her. All in all it went much better than I thought it would. Next step is getting her in the water. I took to the shore and soon as she saw the tide come in she took off running for the gate.:main_rolleyes:

 

[Mel&Keith]

I don't blame her at all on the water thing! LOL Glad it went well. Every time she has a good experience like that she'll get more confident. I'm sure she'll have tons of doggy play friends in no time!