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Dog Guardian Etiquette Anna Bradley examines ways in which dog guardians can be more aware of their own actions, as well as those of their dogs, to ensure dog walking is a less stressful time for all
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s I write, we in the United Kingdom, like many countries in the world, are in the midst of a lock down due to the coronavirus pandemic. Here in the UK, one of the requirements of lockdown is the pro vision of just one opportunity to get outside and exercise per day. This, of course, means just one dog walk per day. In addition, social gatherings are banned, as are all nonessential journeys as determined by the government. From what I have noticed, these new requirements have highlighted an already present issue – dog guardian etiquette. In other words, how should we behave when we walk our dogs and there are others in close vicinity? I believe the issue of dog guardian etiquette correlates di rectly with the preference demonstrated by some guardians to seek more remote places to walk. Under cur rent conditions, however, we have more of a coming to gether of dogs and people in places closer to home, like woods with narrow pathways, blind spots etc. and these may exacerbate behavior issues both dogs and guardians may already struggle with. My aim with this article is to highlight some of these etiquette issues to help create a greater awareness about some of the simple things we can do to make our dog walks more pleasurable and less stressful, not only for ourselves but for others and their dogs too.
© Can Stock Photo/woodygraphs
Not all dogs and not all dog guardians enjoy being approached by an off leash dog and some may find it intimidating or even frightening
#1. Exuberant Dogs I’ll start with a classic example. Let’s say you have a dog who loves to charge about but is also a complete softie (I do!). He’s in an area where it’s safe and permitted to be off leash and you see a dog in the distance. You shout, “It’s okay, he’s friendly!” But you have absolutely no idea how the other dog will respond to your dog or how that dog’s guardian feels about the advance. Many, many times I have worked with clients with nervous dogs who are on the receiving end of advances such as this and they are absolutely petrified, never mind their dogs. I would al ways advocate teaching your dog calm greetings from day one and, if you see another dog on the leash, understand that there is a reason and put yours on a leash too. Think too about overzealous play. For social dogs, off leash play in the park can be great fun. They can learn so much about interactional skills this way, but here is the caveat: no one likes their dog to be bull dozed. And even a confident dog who enjoys interacting with other dogs isn’t likely to enjoy it either, much less the dog who is fearful of or not well socialized with other dogs. Play should be balanced with each dog taking his turn, mirroring, pausing, etc. Take time to brush up on canine body language. If play is completely onesided and begins to be overly rough, for instance, with one party body slamming and the other contin ually attempting to run away, please calmly and safely step in and stop it. Dogs need to learn appropriate play behavior and can otherwise quickly learn to bully. In preparation, you can teach a cue to stop, pause, redirect to you and go back to play being contingent on that calm pause.
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BARKS from the Guild/July 2020
For instance, ask your dog for a timeout – stop, sit, wait/look for five seconds, and resume only when calm. The same goes at the very initia tion of play. If you always let your dog off leash at the first sight of an other dog, then you may end up with one of those dogs who goes crazy at the sight of another furry friend! Teach impulse control. Cue calm en gagement with you, then reward with, "go play."
#2. Missing Guardians Have you ever seen those dogs with, apparently, no guardians? Me too. While there is always the possibility that your dog goes AWOL for some reason (after all, dogs are dogs!), do your best to keep an eye on where your dog is at all times. The Dangerous Dog Act (2014) states that dogs must be kept under control in public (and in a private domain). This refers to all dog breeds and the dog simply has to look as if (subjective though that may be) he may injure someone, to be in trouble.
#3. Dealing with Distractions We school our kids and, hopefully, they listen and pay attention to what they are being taught. It’s the same with our dogs. Try to instill basics, such as a solid recall. Dogs love to run, explore and sniff, but if they won’t come back in the park when you call them and, instead, interrupt people enjoying a picnic or steal a family football, you won’t be very popular! Similarly, make sure you start the concept of remaining calm around people from an early age. Puppies often get excited by new en
