14/08/2022
Attachment! What is it? 🤔
Attachment was first researched in relation to human children/infants, and how they were treated in the first two years of their life affected their emotional bonds later in life. Children whose parents were unresponsive or dismissive to their needs, were irregular with their care, or were outright abusive to the children all developed insecure (avoidant, anxious, disorganised) attachment styles. Whereas children whose parents were responsive and caring to their child developed a secure attachment. This attachment meant the child felt more comfortable exploring and interacting with the world as they saw their caregiver as a secure base who would be there if anything ever were to happen. More recent studies have shown a similar development in dogs, that securely attached dogs will fair better in the environment than insecurely attached dogs.
So what can we do to ensure our dog has a secure attachment to us? Here are some ideas...
🐶 Don't have your dog 'cry it out' as a puppy! This was a large part of the studies with children and ignoring their emotional distress contributed to insecure attachment.
🐶 Make sure you train your dog with positive reinforcement, rather than any kind of punishment. Punishing your dog with certain tools or actions will not make you a safe space for your dog, and can create a confusing hot/cold dynamic for them.
🐶 Be understanding of their needs as a dog. Remember your dog has their own doggie needs and wants, make sure you are attentive to them and give them outlets for these behaviours rather than getting frustrated and simply shutting them down.
🐶 Listen to your dog's body language and react kindly. If your dog is uncomfortable in a situation, get them out of there rather than force them to continue with it. A dog that communicates their needs is not a bad or difficult dog.
It really is vitally important that our dogs feel safe and secure around us, we are their lifeline to the outside world and most things in their life. If they don't feel safe with us, where does that truly leave them?
You can check out the research review mentioned in the graphic for yourself here: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4348122/ -prbm-8-071
