22/07/2026
🐕 Is Your Dog Really "Friendly" ... or Just Over Aroused?
I read a lot of comments from people who were confused about this in some recent posts I have shared.
Many people describe their dog as "super friendly."
But what if that enthusiastic greeting of every dog isn't actually friendliness?
Imagine this ...
The lead comes off and your dog immediately charges towards every dog they see. They're bouncing, barking, ignoring your recall, paying little attention to the other dog's body language, and becoming increasingly excited with every interaction.
To many people, this looks like a dog that simply "loves other dogs."
Behavioural science suggests something different.
🧠 Social competence is not measured by how many dogs your dog wants to greet.
It's measured by how well they can regulate their emotions, read social signals, and make appropriate behavioural choices.
A dog that feels compelled to greet every dog they encounter may not be displaying exceptional sociability. Instead, they may be experiencing excessive arousal, poor impulse control, and a long history of reinforcement for rushing towards other dogs.
Over time, this behaviour becomes a habit because every successful greeting reinforces the excitement.
🐾 Dogs that struggle with emotional regulation often:
✅ Pull frantically towards other dogs.
✅ Find it difficult to disengage once they've noticed another dog.
✅ Ignore subtle signals that another dog would prefer more space.
✅ Become increasingly frustrated when prevented from greeting.
✅ Have difficulty responding to their handler when excitement levels rise.
As arousal increases, the parts of the brain involved in thoughtful decision making become less effective. Learning decreases, impulse control weakens, and behaviour becomes more reactive and less flexible.
This is why an over excited dog may appear to have "forgotten" their training.
They haven't.
Their emotional state is simply making it much harder to access it.
🐶 What does healthy socialisation actually look like?
Contrary to popular belief, socialisation isn't about meeting as many dogs as possible.
It is about helping a puppy develop confidence and appropriate responses to the world around them.
A socially competent dog can:
🐾 Notice another dog without feeling compelled to interact.
🐾 Read and respond appropriately to canine body language.
🐾 Recover quickly from excitement.
🐾 Stay engaged with their handler, even in distracting environments.
🐾 Walk past unfamiliar dogs calmly because they have learned that not every encounter requires an interaction.
This is emotional regulation in action.
🌱 How can you help?
✔ Reward calm observation rather than excitement.
✔ Build engagement with you before asking for interaction with other dogs.
✔ Give your dog enough distance to remain calm and capable of learning.
✔ Avoid repeatedly placing your dog in situations that push them into excessive arousal.
✔ Focus on teaching your dog that the presence of other dogs predicts calm behaviour, not uncontrolled excitement.
For many dogs, less interaction and more quality experiences lead to better social skills.
❤️ The goal isn't to have a dog that wants to greet every dog.
The goal is to have a dog that is emotionally stable, socially competent, and able to make good decisions regardless of whether another dog is nearby.
That's what real socialisation looks like.
🐾
Donna Williams,
Emerald Park Border Collies.
www.emeraldparkbc.com
"My mission is to improve the life of at least one dog today!"
