Puppy Socialisation: Getting the Social Side Right

Socialisation has become a term that is often thrown at first-time puppy owners without much explanation.

Socialisation is an umbrella term that refers to the introduction of all different kinds of

scents, sounds, textures and visuals in a puppy's surroundings, alongside interactions with

other animals and their new human family unit.

As humans and the social species we are we often focus on the social aspect of this term

and prioritise interactions with other dogs and people. Many first-time pet owners will roll

their eyes when they read what I'm about to say next: just introducing your puppy to

everyone you meet is not the best thing for your dog.

Dog training wasn't always this complicated! Yes, you're right, it wasn't, but we now also

live in a world where dogs are afforded far more freedoms than they used to be. And with

that, as with everything in life, there are strings attached. Those strings being: if dogs

are to have access to more of the human world and be with us more often, they need to be

able to handle it well and respond to it appropriately.

In today's post I'll focus solely on the social side of socialisation. There's a lot more to

socialisation than this, and I'll get into the rest at a later date but the social side

seems to be what's at the forefront of everyone's mind when they picture the perfect cruisy

dog they can take to the pub without a fuss. So we'll start here.

Why I Don't Want My Puppy Greeting Every Dog They Meet

The reason why I don't want my puppy approaching every other dog or every person we pass by on the street (even if it is a friendly, confident greeting) is that with every interaction like this that I allow, I lose value in my dog's eyes. If strangers can give my dog praise, attention and cuddles while they pull on the lead, jump up on people and generally act like a bit of a fool, what incentive is there for my dog to listen to me? Especially when I'm trying to train them to do the opposite, the less fun, more thinking-involved alternative.

What Good Socialisation Actually Looks Like

Good socialisation in my world is for my dog to be NEUTRAL towards other dogs and humans they pass by, and then to greet and interact appropriately with others in the right moments.

I can begin creating this mindset by rewarding my dog when they pass by another person on the street and engage with me instead. In moments where I know it will be harder for my dog, I'll use a lure in hand to set them up for success.

When I'm taking my puppy out, I'm present with them the whole time - not on my phone.

Can my puppy train or play with me when other dogs are in sight, at a distance? Can they settle and focus on me while other dogs are running around? It's only when I can answer yes to these questions that I would consider letting them off lead to play.

When I'm present, playing with my dog, and training with my dog in more places than just my home, I'm building engagement and our bond, putting out the idea that 'something fun can happen anywhere, and you don't need to search for fun elsewhere. I can be pretty damn fun right here with you.'

Won't This Create A Clingy Dog?

To put it simply: no.

Just like with a human child, I'm not going to have the same boundaries in place for a 14-year-old that I do a three-year-old. As my puppy grows and matures, they earn the freedoms to engage with other dogs (in situations I've ensured are safe), to explore independently, while also seeing value in checking in with me and being able to listen to me anywhere.

If I gave a three-year-old the level of responsibility I'd give a 14-year-old, would they rise to the challenge or be set up to fail? My guess is the latter.

When I stage the number of freedoms and boundaries my young dog has to a level appropriate for them, I give my dog the best chance to succeed. We often forget that a puppy is still a baby and unmanaged interactions can be scary, can lead to them being attacked by other dogs, or leave them overwhelmed by heavy-handed people.

The duration of interactions is also worth considering. Keeping greetings brief keeps them

positive and makes sure we don't let our puppies become overwhelmed and silly. At this age, puppies struggle to self-regulate when overtired, and their mouthing and biting gets

significantly worse when they're past their threshold.

The Real Reason This Matters. Preventing Reactivity

So while I'm sure we can see the argument for making sure our young dogs don't become overtired while socialising them out and about in the world, and I'm sure we can see why we would want our dogs to place at least SOME level of value in us for the training side of things out in the world, but is that really all I have to say as a counter-argument to just taking our pups to the dog park and "letting dogs be dogs?'

The big reason why the social element of socialisation has to be a blend of engagement and disengagement is for another word you hear thrown around all the time, reactivity.

For dogs, learning is not beginning when we start our training sessions, it begins the moment they wake and begin interacting with everything in the world around them. If we were to begin a puppy's life by encouraging social greetings with everything in their world and suddenly, at some stage or another decide they have finished their socialisation training now, that they are too big and cumbersome to be going over to everyone they meet, and suddenly remove this repeated behaviour that has brought them a lot of excitement, has met their social and drive needs greater than their owner has, what emotion are we now building into our dog? Frustration.

If our dog has been on the shier side of things and our socialisation training was to stick them in front of every person and every dog unmanaged, and our puppy is left to fend for themselves, sometimes while also restricted to a leash or harness making it harder to move away from an interaction that is making them uncomfortable, what emotion are we building into our dog? Fear.

Whether fear or frustration is the root cause of reactive behaviour, neither will go away on their own, and both can be biologically reinforcing for a dog if gone unchecked. Suddenly we arrive at a point that might be a strong enough argument to manage the way our dogs interact with other dogs. No one wants to deal with the adolescent or adult dog that blows up on lead at any given moment, and makes you dread taking them outside.

There is a common misconception that puppies will "grow out" of certain behaviours, and by gum life would be so much simpler if that were the case. Unfortunately for us, puppies are rehearsing and experimenting with behaviours constantly to see what serves them well and what doesn't. And anything that serves them well, they will repeat.

Going unchecked at a dog park does not teach our puppies how to self-regulate like the mature, adult dog we imagine in our heads. Going to a dog park and letting a nervous dog get harassed by other dogs, even if they are well-meaning, doesn't help them grow a pair of cojones. "Winding up the dog" for fun and social play does not mean the dog will understand that this is appropriate with one person and not another.

Checklist: Are You Getting the Social Side Right?

When we get the social side of socialisation right, we're focused on these questions.

• Can my dog settle around other dogs without pulling me over to play with them?

• Can my dog settle, at least for short periods, and watch the world go by when we're out?

• Can my dog ignore strangers on the street as we pass them?

• When my puppy does greet people, do they have loose, relaxed body language?

• Are greetings lasting just long enough to say hello before getting nibbly and silly?

• How does my puppy respond to people in wheelchairs, high-vis, with a limp or walking aid? Are they truly neutral, or might they have a reaction to these visuals?

• How does my puppy respond to dogs bigger or smaller than them? Dogs of different breeds?

• Does my puppy take corrections from other dogs well or do they get grumpy or ignore them?

When we can answer these questions with positive, neutral answers, we're on the right track.

It isn't a straightforward path with every dog and as any trainer will tell you, prevention is always better than the cure.

If you'd like more guidance on socialising your puppy well, we'd love to hear from you.

Our Puppy Preschool classes are designed with exactly this in mind, small groups, real

environments, and a trainer who can give you feedback specific to your puppy, not just

the class average. If you have an existing issue or want one-on-one guidance, a private

in-home consultation is a great place to start.

hello@northsidedogtraining.com.au

Love, Olivia & Bon x