The Risks Of On Leash Greetings

The modern dog owner spends a lot of time thinking about their dog’s social skills. While exercising doggie social skills can be important, it is more important that instead your dog practices maintaining composure when near other dogs. This is especially crucial during the walk, as allowing your dog to meet other dogs during this time will interfere with achieving good leash skills; something that most dog owners want! This is just one reason why the walk shouldn’t be a social hour.

Have you seen dogs that bark and lunge out in public? This type of behavior can occur seemingly out of nowhere. What we do know is that dogs have a natural resistance to physical pressure, which is called an opposition reflex. The tension that pulling on a leash creates can cause frustration, as the leash limits your dog and hinders natural exploration. This is why poor leash manners and leash reactive behaviors are so common! Because of the barrier frustration that builds on leash, it would never be an ideal scenario to have your dog meet another dog during a walk. Each time a dog meets another stranger dog, the first thing that is assessed is whether or not this other dog is a threat, which can sometimes make an initial greeting tense in the first few seconds. When it comes to meeting others, you always want to set your dog up for a proper and appropriate interaction, so it is best to accomplish this off leash in a secure area. Also, not all dogs enjoy being approached by other dogs on a leash. Even if both dogs are otherwise sociable, this doesn’t always translate to instances where there is a barrier involved. Oftentimes, leash reactivity or barrier frustration is not an indication of whether or not a dog would be friendly off leash. Again, these spontaneous behaviors can manifest as this is simply just a reaction to some form of restraint or obstacle.

Your dog is better off engaging with other dogs without a leash obstructing the experience because this will allow space for the dogs to move freely and investigate one another. Without a leash, a greeting is more natural and loose, and considered more polite than what would be a much too direct greeting on leash. Good social skills and leash skills can be compatible if you teach your dog that the walk is the time to be neutral towards others. If you can establish this expectation, you will have a much more pleasant walk because your dog will be more focused on you instead of anticipating saying hello to other pedestrian companions! When it comes to the walk, always work towards keeping your dog more indifferent than excited or frustrated by distancing yourself from others and limiting other dog encounters!

By: Hayley Kenner

Revival Dog Training

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