Can you identify between acceptable and unacceptable behavior among dogs? More importantly, can your dog tell the difference?
Although owners can housebreak, teach commands and communicate with their dogs, only another dog can teach certain canine behaviors. A good place to learn them is at the guided puppy social classes at Lucky Dog Academy in Plainfield.
Puppies 6 months and younger engage in 30 minutes of supervised play followed by another half hour of light training on the academy’s agility equipment. Both activities foster a well-rounded adult dog. Puppies can attend the social just once or multiple times.
“It’s great to introduce new sights and sounds to your puppy,” said trainer Carrie Rzewnicki. “It helps them build confidence so they can interact with strange objects and not be afraid of them. Your puppy will think, ‘I’ve encountered this in the past. I can handle it.’ ”
Play fighting
Learning proper socialization techniques is important for all puppies, even if yours is the only pet in the house. At some point, your dog will meet another dog, perhaps on a walk, at the dog park or while visiting friends and relatives. Unfortunately, the small window of time puppies have to learn those skills closes at 16 weeks.
“The way two dogs play together is different from the way humans play with dogs. We just can’t replicate that,” Rzewnicki said.
The first major difference is that young dogs tend to play with their mouths and bodies. Dogs like to play at fighting, which is perfectly normal, unless their ruff-housing (mouthing, growling and slamming into each other) descends into actual fighting.
“If they’re just opening and closing their mouths, that’s fine,” Rzewnicki said. “It’s also fine if they’re bashing into each other like football players. But if they’re biting down and not letting go, we separate them.”
Dogs also may not clamp down on another’s collar or neck. Other cues dogs pick up from other dogs is the bow that says, “I want to play,” and the unbarked rule that each dog gets a chance “on top.”
“It’s inappropriate for one dog to get on top of another and not let the other one move,” Rzewnicki said.
When to stop
Dogs that have tired of play may start yawning or sneezing, typical calming signals. But inexperienced puppies may not recognize those signals and continue their antics, initiating a doggy fight. Still other puppies may not know how to self-regulate their behavior to communicate “enough’s enough.”
“Just like kids, puppies might get too tired,” Rzewnicki said. “That’s when we step in and say, ‘OK, time for a break.’ ”
A few simple agility lessons follows playtime. Puppies can run through the tunnels and jump over the bars (set very, very low). If they later enroll in agility classes, they will learn how to move their back legs separately from their front legs and become more body aware. This develops both strength and confidence.
Best of all, puppies share these early socialization experiences with their owners, promoting bonding. “Your dog will listen better to you and you’ll enjoy each other more,” Rzewnicki said.