The Unpopular Truth About Socializing Your Dog.. 

I think socialization should be about teaching your dog how to act around other animals and people, not being playmates with every other dog out there.

What I found works pretty well if you do it consistently is don't walk your dog in a park when you 1st get out of your car. Find the closest bench and sit there for 10 to 15 minutes. When other dogs and people walk by, try to restrain your dog from going towards them. Let other dog walkers be aware that your dog is in training, And to please keep walking. Let them sniff the ground sniff the air And get that out of their system. After a while the dog will realize that they're going on a walk and everything else will be a minor distraction.

Yes poor dogs don’t get to claim personal space without a confrontation. My dog just doesn’t like other dogs. He tolerates them fine until they get in his face. Owners just assume because he is out and about with me that their off leash dog can just approach mine without asking me. Irritating.

Oh man, when I tell people they can't touch my dog, they act all offended. Then say something like "but you shouldn't bring your dog out if we can't touch her" My dog is NOT public property. And while I expect her to behave around other people, the truth is that she does NOT like people. And I'm not going to force her to interact with people she doesn't like. I'm going to let her if she's behaving because I want her to learn that she can trust people, but I'm not going to force her.

We have a new 9 week old puppy and have been stressing about socialization, thanks much for this perspective!

I have social anxiety and have felt really bad about not always letting my dog greet other dogs we meet on our walks so this actually made me feel pretty good lol (my dog isn't even that interested in other dogs I've just thought that it's a thing I SHOULD do)

Good advice. I trained Guide Dogs and our own dogs before dog parks existed and they were all perfectly socialized. I find that a lot of people at dog parks are totally clueless about dog body language and dog behavior.

This is such an eye-opening video, thank you for being honest about socialization and making it known that it’s okay to not introduce your dog to every dog that walks past. The biggest struggle is telling other dog owners that I don’t want my dog to meet theirs on leash, and then getting backlash about how I should be socializing her more. This was very helpful!!

Thank you for putting these videos on RU-vid, I am getting a puppy soon and I have been watching a lot of your videos. I feel prepared to welcome my new puppy into our home with confidence, because of the information you have given me. Thank you

This is how I feel about socialization and this is why I don't take my dog to dog parks. But, learning from you on the best ways to meet other dogs. Thanks!

This is one of the most useful videos I have watched!!! I enjoy your training videos as I am in training myself while training a beautiful Chocolate English Lab, who just turned a year old and has so much energy. The statement you made about "why we get our dog", not to play with the neighbors dog or become exhausted at dog park....was so powerful to me and has me feeling really good about where I need to go.

Love the detail! Details are so important and all too often advice that passes from owner to owner of any pet gets oversimplified. It isn't a black and white "interact with everyone/nobody." I love that these are steps, in order, and each has its place.

Oh I love this!!!! This is exactly what we needed before we start socializing our pup. Thanks for the advice!!!

This is truly one of the best videos I’ve watched - well spoken, straight to the point (without any annoying fluff) and very clear instruction. Thank you :)

I socialized my dog by taking him to the horse yard. He saw cows, horses, other dogs, sheep, cats, and small children. This was all supervised but he became a well balanced and happy dog. He still doesn't like that one spaniel and the cockerpoo who lives next door but that's ok. both of us owners know that they don't get on so we just keep them away from each other

This is a very good lecture. I am glad that you brought this up. Hope lots of dog owners watch this.🐕

Are you working with your puppy on socialization? Before you ever allow your dog to greet another dog you need to make sure you've got a reliable response to name. Here's a link to a video where we teach a puppy to have a reliable response to their name: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-TsVz8LbjwEA.html Happy Training! ~Ken

So kind of you to respond to me! I have so much to learn, and you guys are just so helpful. I, too, have had the unfortunate experience of dogs who are just too aggressive, and the dog parents think it's cute, or they are busy yakking with other dog owners. Even my dog walker always brought my dog to the dog park. I love it when you say I didn't buy a dog so the other guy's dog has someone to play with!

Yes yes yes!!! Thank you. I tell my clients this stuff all the time.

So pleased that you are pointing this out to people.

This is spot on ! Great information ! I wish so many more dog owners would take this on board.

This is a dog information channel that is so well thought out and explained. Much appreciated. Rockstars the lot of you!!!

What I really hear when I listen to your words and what I also recognise when I‘m out with my dogs is that the real problem is always the handler! We don‘t have to build dog schools - we have to build schools for the human part of the leash!

You guys make so much sense. Too many people think that they have to let their dog greet every dog they see. Ive experienced it in PetSmart and the Vet’s office. NO I don’t want your damn dog coming up to say hello.

Great advice...good as well to have two of you presenting....gonna watch more of your videos

delighted to discover your videos. you are speaking my language, especially about dog owners being conscious about the fact that dogs differ in how they are in their 'doginalities', in how they are about being approached by another dog etc.. In my experience it can often be the dog owners that are the bane of my life , as well as off-leash dogs whose owners claim that their dog is friendly, and yet may cause difficulty because they are interacting with my on-leash dog. All my efforts to explain that it's not about their dog so much as the potential reaction of my dog on-lead that might be the issue, leaves me in despair. UGH!!!!!! I take evasive action now when I see the potential for such difficulties and have long since stopped going to dog parks; I see them as a hotbed of potential and actual hazards.

This is THE best truth bomb and message for dog Socialization. So happy this video exists 💕

My kids' pediatrician and I were just talking about this!!!! We both have dogs that do not want to be with other dogs and don't want other dogs coming up to them all the time. This is good advice! My dog has had so many hyper dogs run at her when I have walked her, she now hates it. She has been very good about it, lucky for me, but it is a pain that so many just let their dog come straight at yours when yours can't get away.

Finally a good perspective on the dog park. All those videos of the dog fights just unnerve me. I agree 💯 with you

I REALLY wish there were more resources like this. I am a dog walker and live/work in a city. So many owners here think they're doing the right thing by taking their shiny new puppy to the local park and encouraging their pup to meet everyone, play with all the dogs, etc. So now, nearly all of the dogs I walk are absolutely dog-obsessed. On walks, they pull to get to other dogs and have low engagement with the person walking them, because they've been taught that playing with other dogs is the purpose of walks. With my own dog, I plan to teach him to be calm and chill around other dogs - to basically pay very little attention to them. Then to have a small number of carefully chosen doggy playmates to teach him appropriate behaviour.

Thank you! I have my 2nd Akita that I got last November at 33 months old. She is naturally an Alpha and I do not let her meet every dog she sees. Other dogs bark at her but she has the quiet confidence of an Akita. Good to see that I have the common sense to do some of the things you suggest in your excellent video already. SUBSCRIBED

So glad I followed your channel. What sensible advice.

Great info. You put it forward very well, making a point. I will definitely take this into consideration when I get my VEO next year. Keep up the good work 🙏

We just signed our pup up for a leash manners & polite greetings class with a local dog training place! I LOVE their setup on training and boarding. They very much believe in good socializing like you were talking about (small group play. Matched up with another dog of the same personality). We had a trainer come to our house to help but he didn’t unfortunately. And I think classes are the way to go for my pup! I love watching you videos. They always make such amazing points!

Excellent advice. I’m loving your videos. I have a new border collie puppy....we’ve had dogs our whole lives, but never a BC. Your videos are helping me train her well, but also we are having lots of fun. Thanks for making so much excellent advice free to dog owners who don’t live close enough to have your in-person training classes.

Lots of really good tips in a short video. Thanks. All your videos are of high quality. I always learn something.

This is a good thing to think about. We started taking our dog to doggy daycare and then our dog who had always behaved so well with other dogs now showed signs of aggression/over excitement when meeting new dogs.

This makes so much sense as to why I’ve seen dogs get aggressive with a dog I know who pulls on his leash all the time. I had no idea that it can look like aggression to other dogs

Thank you so much for re enforcing my behavior is NOT rude, greedy, selfish if I don’t take my dog to spend time with other dogs. I don’t have to feel like people think I’m a snob when out and about and steer clear of greeting by stopping. Or if I move further away of path from their “friendly” excited dog.

So very true!! Thank you!

You make excellent points here. Dog Parks is not a time to just let your dog go and not pay any attention whatsoever. Great video

Thanks for this, as well as your whole video series. Getting our 8 week old border collie next week and have been studying them like college finals...

less than 2 minutes into this video and you are spot on. my other annoyance is every person who comes over wants to pat my dog. not all dogs appreciate others on their territory.

Great advice thank-you soooooo much! Makes a whole lot of sense.

Awesome to See a video like this where people who work with dogs know what they are talking about.

This video couldn’t have come at a better time! Thanks!

I really like the point you made that we get our dogs for us and for them to put a lot of value on us. I always thought that I wish I had socialized my dog more with other dogs. However she is on the shy/timid side and is very selective on the dogs that she likes and does not really like going to the dog parks. But she loves spending time with us and going for hikes and doing agility.

Oh I needed this. Thank you so much

Thank you for this video. It's an important message to get out to everyone, but especially to first time dog owners. My dog was his previous owner's first dog and he did the very mistakes you mention. He had the puppy greet everyone on the street and took him to the dog park for hours daily, apparently thinking that it was good for a shy, uncertain dog to learn some rough play. All with the good intention of socializing, but not realizing that quantity doesn't mean quality. When the dog came to me at 18 months for problem behavior, he had learned to attack so that other dogs and people would leave him alone. I had to teach him that I'm not going to force him into social situations, so he doesn't have to drive everyone away. I've gotten my fair share of panic bites getting this message through and finally, after 3 years, we are starting to be neutral passing strange dogs on the streets. Dog parks are still too much for him - and might be for the rest of his life, but fortunately he's been able to have some dog friends after several hours of patient introductions to have the rules clear for both dogs. Oh, this puppy was also rescued from streets at 3 months old, so he had already had a bad start for socializing, and unfortunately the previous owners good intentions just multiplied the issues that the dog had.

So far, I love your training and informational videos. Inline with how I believe also. My Marley Girl started to develop severe anxiety and regular panic attacks around 1.5 years old. I stopped taking her to the dog park because as you know, as soon as you walk in, mobs of dogs rush up and surround your dog and it is quite frightening and for a pup with anxiety and she feels like she can't escape, fights break out. For the longest time I felt like I was denying her dog to dog interactions until I had to hire a behaviorist to work with marley and I. She said that most dogs are not dog park dogs. Most dogs don't desire to spend time with other dogs and really get joy and satisfaction from interacting and playing with their human. Marley and I are always doing things together just her and I, and truth be told, she is happier to play and interact with me than she ever was at the dog park. She is my world and I am hers. By the way, she loves to play with other people when they come to my house. She was well socialized growing up. Just like humans are different from each other, so are doggies.

Thank you for this video!

The thing abt breaking a dog confidence by taking the to the park and letting them get steam rolled by other dogs really hits home for me right now. I'm a dog sitter, and the owner invited me to join her and her 4 month old pup at the dog park. We get there and she just let's her pup loose and ignores it, it got scared being surrounded by tons big dogs it tried to run and she was just ignoring it all these big dogs were just trying to play but her pup was terrified and it ended up biting one of them. It was so frustrating seeing her lack of concern for her dogs comfort.

This is like a master-class; awesome! Thanks!

My dog has no desire to interact with other dogs. He isn't aggressive at all. He just wants to pretend other dogs don't exist. He just want's them to stay away. He is 12 now. He was fine with his older brother, but that's it.

Great message and fantastic advice. I’ve been unable to walk my newly adopted dog in my neighbourhood because first, he’s not ready yet, but even when he is, there is this weird propensity for nearly every person walking a dog to think the dogs should meet - this happens with my other dog I’ve had for many years. Do they not realize that on leash is the absolute WORST way to introduce dogs? I’ve given up caring if other humans think I’m a rude cow, I have to advocate for my dogs. I avoid dog parks since I can’t tell if they are filled with clueless owners - it was heartening to hear that my dogs’ relationship with me is not only enough, but is paramount.

I'm taking my 3 dogs to the beach when there's no other dogs around. My older dog is 12 and I never had any problems with her coming back or socializing. The male dog is 5 and he can be more territorial but only on the leash as you mentioned but he's even quicker to come when I call. My newst puppie she's a 3 months old and she's coming when I call at the beach. Everytime I see other dogs coming unless I know the dogs I call mine back for now to train the puppie to come. This video was super helpful because I now know I'm doing the right thing. Thank you so much. My older dogs are also showing the puppie how to act and she's quick to follow them.

As someone who frequented dog parks, I really appreciated how my little girl listened. Yes, she played and explored, but I always had complete control of her with vocal commands that a lot of pet parents I've known are severely lacking

Such a good video! I have a 1 year old English mastiff. When he was 9 months someone I saw while walking him had a neopolitan mastiff a month younger and asked if they could meet. I said sure (thinking nothing of it) they were both on leashes but this other dog was soooo hyper my dog became instantly uneasy and wanted nothing to do with him so I had to let the guy know it wasn't a good idea. He kept saying oh they're both puppies its okay. I just apologized and walked away. Never want my dog to get agressive because he's uncomfortable. This guy had no control over his dog whatsoever

Thank you so much!

I LOVE THIS VIDEO. I have a dog that has a huge fear of dogs, he has been attacked before and can be reactive. We take the correct precautions, muzzle, he wears a coat that says space needed and I wear one as well and he is leashes. But people let there dogs off lead with zero recall and it puts everyone at risk. And once my dog has stacked all that anxiety I then can't walk him for the remainder of the day because even just a person could set him off. The annoying thing is, my dog can meet and be fine with dogs, once there is a slow and careful introduction, but you can never get to that point. I live that the pandemic has got more people loving dogs, but it feels like no one has taken to time to learn dog walking manners.

Great conversation! My year old border collie has lots of playdates and walks with known doggies. I will make it a point to use the distraction of the dogs to work on her recall and obedience skills tomorrow. Side note: My pup looks and acts so much like your smooth coat. Hugs from Pennsylvania!

I am glad to have come across this video.

The most difficult but best command my dog was ever trained with was “watch me” which is a command for my dog to ignore other pedestrians or dogs and pay attention to me. It meant having to stop our walk any time she got distracted and rewarding keeping her eyes on us. It involved a lot of stop and go for a looong time but it has helped lower on leash aggression incredibly

This is great. We just got a puppy but have fostered dogs for years. We live in a city and we always tell me people that our dogs don't meet dogs on leash. I always thought I was being paranoid but it never felt right to have to restricted/restrained stranger dogs meet one another on the street. Thanks for this. We also need work more on recall!!! Will start that tomorrow.

Love how you have BCs. You are describing my puppies to a T.

Thank you!!

Thank you so much for this guidance....all of these so relevant and given me a lot to reconsider. The point about creating the value between one’s dog and oneself the most nb...Invaluable to my young border collie.👌🏽🌈🐶🇿🇦!

knowing your dog's personality is KEY. and thank you about not all interactions have to happen it can be just letting your dog be calm as other dogs pass. dogs are different just like ppl. some ppl liek to be downtown in the city at night during NYE. some don't. some dogs like daycare with lots of dogs some despise it. my dog does better 1 0n 1 on a trail meeting dogs vs a daycare where it's all out choas. i use to work at a daycare and there are pooches who "tolerate" being there but i think that's wrong for the owner do drop them there if they really don't want to be there. also lots of owners should take all this info in seriously then just letting there dog run lose or not know there dogs personlaity. thanks

excellent video with some amazing tips that i haven't herd elsewhere!

Thank you so much for this enlightening video, as well as comments from other people. I just got my first dog 3 days ago and although he's well behaved; I'm not sure how well he is socially with other dogs, he seems like he doesn't mind smaller dogs but whenever he sees a bigger dog, or especially pittbulls, he creates a lot of tension on the leash. I can't tell if he wants to play or if it's an aggressive stance. I've been thinking about sending him to a dog park but I'm also nervous that I'm still too new to know what I'm doing with my dog and don't want to put my, or other people's dogs in danger. Thanks again for the pointers! :)

I didn't have the chance to socialize my dog with other dogs when he was younger, he's almost 3 years old now. I'm trying to slowly and calmly introduce him to other neighbor dogs and especially my family's new puppies. Your video really helps me confirm that the things I've already been doing, the calm obedience training and the emphasis on listening to me over playing is the right way to go. But I have been having him on a leash and harness for most of the interactions because I'm concerned that he'd be too rough on the pups. I'll try to find a different method of safe interactions for both dogs without a leash.

Thank you!

This is such great advice! One thing maybe overlooked, small but can be important as it relates to leashed dogs is a leashed dog is more likely to be aggressive due in many cases to the owners insecurity and their pulling back on or tightening the leash when approaching another dog or a person, this sends a signal down the leash that something is not right and the dog needs to be on guard for their own safety or that of their owner. As an owner of "serious" dogs Bouviers 100lbs and Black Russian Terriers 140 lbs all guard and show dogs (all alpha personalities) not either or but both I have a lot of experience in training and socializing these dogs and can say from experience pay attention to what these people are saying they 100% correct. Ideally you will start with your dog as a puppy one of the best places is puppy obedience classes, continuing obedience classes and careful socialization as outlined here by these good trainers. As your dog gets older and you get more experience with your dog you will get much better at when and where to allow meetings with new dogs. One last thing always introduce your dog in as neutral an area as possible that way neither has little to defend other than the owner at least at first sight and if the owner acts calm and confident the dog will pick up on this and in almost all cases react appropriately. That's not to say there are not some dogs to be concerned about but if you follow what these people have to say you and your dog will be much better off.

So much good information, thankssss!!

As always..fair..sensible advice

Well said! Great video

Thank you for this, it is nice to have some advice from a disciplined perspective with some respect. Humans, kids, dogs should have some sense of respect and discipline and not a free for all and really appreciate your approach.

Socialization should not happen at the dog park. I basically did little training drills with my puppy in as many different places as possible. By the playground, at the boardwalk, by construction work, at the park where he CNA see the dogs at the dog park and get positive reinforcement for it. My dog first went to the dog park at 5 months old. He knew his recall 100% even in distractions. I knew how to read him and other dogs. And my favorite line? Keep it short but sweet. I always go to the the park for 10-15 min. And then I leave. I go in the morning without too many and leave while it's still positive. Now at 3 years old we still go to the same park at the same time. And stay for 1 hour. He plays with the dogs he's friends with and is very well balanced and all around amazing dog.

Very informative. Thank you for this!

Our 4 month old rescue dog has never struggled with socialization. Always interacted fine with pretty much any other dog from the first try, probably because we're lucky to leave by a park with lots of other puppies. We do however make sure she doesn't run towards the other dogs and dont force her way into interacting with dogs that dont want to or can't. I did worry about her getting "oversocial" at a point, but by making sure she doesn't get to play with every dog, she did restrain herself a little more.

I have a American Pitbull Terrier who is 63 lb and has always been good with other dogs until I move to a new area. We were at a unofficial designated dog park with a playground my son could play it. There were lots of people walking their dogs on a leash. There is a leash law in New York state. Unless you are in a designated and official and a member of a particular dog park and are allowed to let your dog off the leash. However there were many people that were showing up to the dog park with their dogs off the leash. My dog seem to have no problem whenever a dog was on a leash but three dogs, all different types ran up to me and my dog while my kid was on the playground luckily. They ran over without a leash and there was no owner in sight. It wasn't until they got right in my dog's face that my dog got insanely nervous and begin shaking and started snapping at the three dogs. I believe she was not only acting and protective behavior of herself but also myself. It was truly tragic to see my dog in that Shakin state. She is such a good dog and is so wonderful with people and especially children. She has always been good with other dogs and usually ends up being the more submissive one. However, after this episode at the park, there was another dog before we even left the park that ran over to her and she began being aggressive again. Since then, she is now aggressive anytime she sees another dog she becomes very hard to handle physically for me. It breaks my heart because people are now looking at me like my dog has issues and I should be ashamed of myself for having her anywhere out in public. This idea that people should just let their dogs off the leash is now making it dangerous not only for myself and my dog but also for my six year old. What are the dogs are okay with other dogs but they go after children? I agree with everything you're saying in your video. And we need to remind the dogs that they are to remain domestic if they are to remain our pets and be trusted. Because people have allowed their dogs to run free, they are not teaching them proper behavior. The owner of eventually showed up after it was clear it these dogs upset my dog.... however she was not aggressive to intervene and casually walked behind me towards the woods and casually and very quietly called her dogs as if it was unimportant. Unfortunately, it would be my pitbull who would get blamed for eating other dogs in the situation even though we are following all the laws possible to keep ourselves, the dog, and other people safe.

I don't go to dog parks never will, what I do instead is set up doggie play dates with people that I know really well and know their dogs really well. We do it at least once a week, other than that my dog is training with me or going on adventures with me. Great video because dog parks these days are out of control, most people do not have control their dogs.

I have to say I thought you guys are just another clicker trainer. But with this video you prove you are a quality dog trainer .

I have a 1 1/2 year old husky and I always keep her on a leash when we walk. I am so over with these owners who need to let their dogs approach her whether on leash or off. I'm still training her and more than once has an owner insist their dogs are "friendly" only to have their dogs snap at her. Now she is beginning to snarl and growl back at them when they get aggressive. We were actually hunted down one morning by a neighborhood dog who had gotten away from her owner. She came up from behind and immediately jumped my dog and we were several blocks away from her home. Now I just make a point to avoid them on our walks. We have a lot of winter visitors this time of year and we do not know their dogs and they do not keep their dogs leashed because they are "on vacation". Thank you for this video. I wish I could print it and hand out copies😄

Fantastic and easy to understand. Thanks

Excellent video with some really interesting discussion points.

We only use dog daycare / boarding that do behavior testing before allowing dogs into the system. We also always ask people if their dog is ok to greet our dog, etc.

wonderful video on socialization!

My boyfriend and I are getting a Staffordshire Bull terrier next year. Watching these to learn more about training before we get him :) We have a problem though, since we don't really know that many people with dogs here. I guess we will have to try to find some people with dogs that we think could be good fits for our puppy, when he arrives.

Finally, COMMON SENSE! Yes, we get our dog to be a part of OUR family, not a member of an unruly wolf pack.

Omg! I couldn't agree more!

Binge watching your videos on my laptop while reading the comments on my phone 😂 one of my issues right now is knowing (or not knowing) how to get Isla to focus on me outside, months and months of focus training in different situations indoor and outdoor and she still takes huge steps backwards 😖 I know it’s something I’m not doing or doing incorrectly but I can’t seem to understand what it is!

Thanks - very helpful guys! - Dane

great information. thx for helping us out...

As long as my dogs are ok with each other im happy.. Some dogs have no interest in making friends with the other dogs in the neighborhood and as u said, they are OUR dog's, not other people's puppy play date..

Thank you, you've confirmed my instincts with things that I've done and been judged by

Wow, I’m glad I listened to this. If a leash was put on me by someone I trust but then they let all these ppl I don’t know come up to me and I don’t have much of a choice and being dragged by me leash to associate with strangers with no option other that to hide behind my parent, I wouldn’t be to happy neither. It’s uncomfortable as a human when your friend or partner interacts with strangers and they insist you come and say hi and shake hands and stay and talk when you clearly are shy or not getting the same vibe, u wanna leave but can’t go far until your grind or partner is done but you can at least keep a distance, now imagine being on a leash being forced to socialize with strangers. So yeah I can why this could and would be a problem and why dogs act so differently while on a leash.

perfect explanation. Thank You for this video, now I hope everyone watches this

Thanks!

this confirms what ive been saying..... thanks!