Teaching your dog to be nice to others of their ilk

One of the best scenes for a dog parent is to see their baby play with other dogs in the park. It is lovely to see them in all their joy even as they make new friends and stimulate their minds and bodies. This vision, however, gets shattered when your dog starts to play rough.

It is evident in the way that your dog growls, tackles, bites, and chases in a way that the other dogs would never appreciate. It means that your dog is not trying to make new friends – they are trying to dominate their playmates. You can be sure that pretty soon, this would lead to a fight with one of the dogs that your dog is playing with.

Is your dog being rough?

It is not always so easy to tell the difference between good play and one that crosses the line. Dogs play with their paws, mouths, and body. Hence, things like biting and growling are part of the fun time in these processes.

Dog experts and doctors refer to the social play as play fighting. Even people who research animal behavior think the same. In these cases, they would do many things that they would do in a real fight.

Why is your dog being rough?

There could be several reasons why your dog is playing rough. Quite often, younger dogs tend to be rough when playing. It is common as they can’t control their emotions while playing. They are so excited that they become excessively stimulated by the goings-on then. In these cases, they cannot help but lose control. In some cases, you can be sure that your pup would learn how to control their impulses a lot better and thus come out of that phase.

How to teach your dog to behave nicely with other dogs?

The best way to teach your dog how to be nice to others is by letting them socialize from an early age. Puppies teach each other in playing sessions the dos and don’ts of behavior in the dog world. Whenever something hurts, they let out a yelp. If their playmate is doing something that they do not like they would let them know in no uncertain terms.

Such trial and error are crucial for dogs to find the most acceptable way of interacting with other dogs. Is your baby already past this point? Even in that case, there is no need for you to worry as there are ways in which adult dogs could be taught how to be nicer to the other dogs.  

Starting with the basis of obedience 

When you have trained your dog to be obedient, you would not have to run around the park chasing them and asking them to control their exuberance. Instead, merely using your voice would be good enough for them. Obedience is an integral part of the process of bringing up a dog, just as it would be with your child.

It may not directly address the issues at the playground, but it would help you significantly in these cases. Before taking your dog out in the park to play with others, you must be confident that you have trained them well.

You need to ascertain that your dog would remember the recall when they are distracted by the sight of so many playmates. Will they listen to you when they are chomping at the bits to go ahead and tackle every dog that they can see?

If the answers to these questions are no, you should take a break from going to the park. Instead, focus on reinforcing the obedience training. You would find it easier to behave appropriately when at the playground. Communication is of extreme importance in such an instance.

Stopping the fight before it starts 

When you are at the park, you must never take your eyes off them. Instead, observe them as closely as you can. You have to nip any possibility of rough play in the bud itself. For doing so, you have to be an expert in the body language of your furball.

Are they getting too aggressive or excited? If yes, that is your cue to step in and stem the rot from the outset itself. Just calm them down before something goes wrong.

At times, the stiff body movement of your pet could be a cue that they are being aggressive or getting ready to be so. An unwavering intensity and low growls are significant signs in these cases. You need to know what the normal playing behavior of your dog is and stop them as soon as they get extra intense.

Not rehearsing bad behavior 

When you let your dog play rough, you let them assume that it is acceptable to do so. Therefore, you must stop things before they get out of hand. However, you have to be careful about the situations you are exposing your dog to. Do they get over-excited when they see a lot of dogs at once?

If yes, you must not take them to a dog park when it is peak hour over there. Is there any specific breed or individual who gets him excited? Then avoid a meeting with them.

Teach them cues to settle 

There are so many cues to teach your dog. These cues are to come beside you and stay at a place. However, one of the best options you have is to teach them how to settle. Let us say that they are barking the neighbor’s cat to kingdom come. Maybe they are bouncing around expecting food.

Perhaps they are getting ready to show that they are the boss at the park. However, if you teach them a word to calm down, they do so when they hear it from you.