05/24/2025
Lillie being a great role model for Piper yesterday. Piper is with me for socialization and desensitization training.
As a dog lover I understand the need that others feel to want to pet that dog. To say hi and look at a dog. This need is a human need and dogs don't see our behavior as something safe.
When you Stare at a dog you are being confrontational and some dogs, dogs that are insecure or scared, will see it as you are challenging them.
When you put your hand out for them to sniff you are invading their personal space.
When you are excited and talking to a dog that doesn't know you, they don't want to meet you when you are excited. A balance dog will avoid another dog that is hyper and excited. This tells the dog that I will not acknowledge you until you calm down.
Put all of our human behaviors together when you meet a dog, staring, putting your hand out and talking to them in an excited tone, even talking in a normal tone, you are telling a dog that you are threatening and they need to avoid you.
The best way to 1st interact with a new dog is to avoid direct eye contact, keep your hands at your side and don't talk to them. Let the dog come up to you and sniff.
When an owner let's a stranger pet there dog that is showing signs of being insecure or scared of this new person it does not teach the dog that the person is safe and not going to hurt them. It teaches the dog that the owner is not to be trusted to keep them safe and that they need to make people go away by barking to tell them to go away.
