How to read and greet other dogs
We are lucky enough to live in a city that has plenty of places for our dogs to hike on trails. While taking advantage of this we encounter a lot of dogs. One of the great parts about being out in public, is the chance to meet, play with, and walk away from a lot of dogs. The trails are great because they are more self selecting than a dog park and usually full of dogs that have the level of training in which they can be trusted to be off leash without running away. Hiking also makes it easy to walk away if play is getting too excited or too rough.
Look at these good, calm pups! Listening and obedience off leash is on point.
Out in the wild, you are going to see a lot of different dogs. Unfortunately, many dogs have poor social skills or bad dog manners. Many owners, simply, do not know what they are seeing. Many dogs, simply, have not been taught to develop the self control necessary to hold themselves back and be polite in exciting moments such as approaching another dog.
Do your best to keep your dog calm and in a heel: Say a light ‘eh eh’ or call your dog by name if they are locking on with their gaze or amping up with their energy. It’s important that you show your dog how to handle that exciting moment with manners and obedience. Do your best to be polite on the trails.
The moment you see a dog, check in on your dog as well as the dog approaching. You want to avoid any issues, so when you see a certain posture or behavior, you may turn and go the other way, or pull off the trail to let them pass.
What to look for:
If a dog runs up to you full speed. That isn’t a polite way to introduce themselves and shows a lack of self control.
You want your dog to know that you are on it and managing the situation. Show this by getting out in front of your dog and saying ‘EH-EH’ or ‘Off’ to the other dog waving your arm, and snapping or clapping to say ‘I need your attention’ or ‘you better back off, bud.’
The dog likely isn’t used to this kind of direction or correction during greetings, so that surprise and curiosity will help disrupt their fixation on your pup and calm things down a bit.
They could be okay once they calm down, or they could be a bit pushy, so you want to watch and see.
If a dog has tense body language in their ears, neck and back, a stiff gait, raised hackles on their back, or a still, slow, methodically wagging tail, that also won’t make for the best greeting.
Try to loosen the energy up by saying ‘easy’ in a sing song, then a more stern voice or snap your fingers to break the tension. Then watch what they are going to do next.
Try to keep your body loose and your energy calm so the dogs know you are not worried. You want to project to your dog that you’re on it and they don’t need to be concerned or step in to regulate the situation.
If your dog starts to display this energy, snap, say ‘eh eh’ or their name, tap the leash if they are on one, or swing your foot their way, whatever you need to do to get their attention, break the tension, or disrupt the hard stare.
If you do that repeatedly over time, they will understand that when they behave that way they get corrected, so they should stop doing that.
Pablo is asking Willa to play, but it looks like she is trying to take a breather in the shade. Either he will read her and turn away, or ignore her body language and push her to engage.
When a dog lays down or goes into a play bow upon seeing another dog, a lot of owners find it cute so they stand still and let it happen.
It’s important to keep on moving, no matter what
If your dog does that, keep walking and say ‘let’s go’ or ‘easy,’ or do some snapping to let your dog know that isn’t the best way to have a polite greeting.
A dog who does that isn’t calm, they are expressing excitement!
When you get close, they tend to launch, which has the same end result as the first dog described.
Think of it as a compressed coil waiting to pop. You don’t want to be preemptive, but do get in front of the pack and be ready to correct that dog if they spring.
This is not the best. These siblings are way too amped for my taste. We were probably fussing at them while we snapped this photo.
If a dog is jumping, barking, or lunging, that is also a no no. Imagine if you passed by or were approached by someone on the street who was yelling at you. You would not be in a good place to be receptive toan interaction.
As much as possible you want to keep on moving forward here. If you stop, your dog will focus on the other dog’s behavior and, understandably, start to get on their level.
This is a ‘hustle by’ situation, on leash, or a ‘step between, snapping your fingers, and keep moving’ situation, off leash.
You can say whatever you need to say to owners. Let them know you need them to be stepping in and controlling their dog. Most think these behaviors are normal or don’t know how to correct them so they usually stand by watching.
In a sweet voice, you can say ‘oh, my dog isn’t always friendly’ or ‘he is a little older/coming back from an injury’ or ‘hey, would you mind calling your dog back?’ I Always start sweetly, while asking the owner for help. At the same time work to get your body between the dogs so you can back the other dog off a bit or distract them..
Tune into the owner as soon as you see a dog. Do they tense up? Are they calling their dog back in a nervous or frantic way? Working to get them on leash? Trying to pull over into the woods or loop away to avoid you
If that is the case, try to be polite as well. Maybe they are in training or the owner can’t quite manage them yet. Maybe they aren’t always friendly. Who knows.
If someone looks like they are nervous about the greeting. Keep your dog in a heel. A dog behaving oddly attracts the attention of other dogs and sparks their curiosity. ‘What is going on with that guy? Let me investigate….’
If you don’t feel you have solid control say ‘Let’s go’ or ‘Come Come’ and start running forward, glancing back to be sure your pup is coming.
Also verbally correct them with a ‘Hey’ or ‘Eh Eh’ or ‘Let’s go’ if they aren’t coming, get distracted, or attempt to go check the other dog out.
Running is usually effective because a) it is exciting and b) they think ‘uh oh, there goes my ride!’
You don’t want to teach your dog they should be afraid of other dogs, so keep walking, and try to keep your energy calm. Look forward while keeping tabs on your dog as well as the other dog to know if any action on your part or change of course is required.
It’s your responsibility to help other owners be comfortable as well.
When training your pup to have good dog manners, you first need to be able to walk by other dogs without your dog exploding with excitement, reactive barking or lunging to greet every dog they see. -
Use verbal, energetic, and leash touches or corrections to show them ‘hey, I know other dogs are exciting, but you need to keep it together. When I say walk we are walking. You don’t get to say hi to every dog you see!’
Don’t reward very excited energy with a greeting. Only calm dogs get to say hi.
Think about what is normal for us. If you ran up to someone and got all up in their business, they would likely be defensive and not very excited about meeting you. The rule of thumb is “you can look as long as you keep your energy calm, keep walking with me, and are willing to pass by even though you really, really want to go say hello.”
You also don’t want to get tense, jerk your dog away, cross the street or send signals to the other owner that you are worried or that your dog is uncool.
Try to stay calm, give corrections, make a plan in your mind as you approach, and keep your eyes fixed ahead of you while stealing glances at your pup and the other dog.
Pawblo is looking a bit pumped here, we will probably do a lap and chill out before we try to engage with another dog to set the dogs up for the calmest greeting we can have.
After you can reliably pass other dogs, loop back.
Call out to the owner, ‘hey, is your dog friendly?’ If the dog is, say, ‘I’m doing some training, would you mind standing still so we can walk by you a few times?
Or, if you are pretty sure your dog can keep it together on the approach, say ‘would you mind if we let them say hi?” Usually the answer is yes.
Be shameless about asking other owners for help. What a great opportunity to meet your neighbors and interact with other dog owners! -
Channel your inner Allegra and just ask. The worst that will happen is they say no. It’s not personal.
On the approach, your dog needs to stay calm and collected.
If he is getting too excited, barking, pulling, lunging, holding a dead stare, or scrambling to get to the other dog, NOPE.Turn and move in the other direction.
Make your dog think ‘Gosh, whenever I act like that, we move away from the thing I wantIs a connection there?’
Do whatever you have to do to get your dog’s attention back on you. Let them know that they are on the clock, and that what they just did isn’t going to allow them to greet a dog.
Once your dog is calm and you are giving those leash touches to remind them to stay cool, try the approach again.
Talk to the owner here. ‘Sorry, just a moment, we are trying to work on some manners.’ Because most people simply don’t know, this can be a cool learning moment for them, too! You are helping to make the world a better place for dogs.
Try not to offer any unsolicited advice about their handling or their dog.
If the other dog is looking super excited, then that isn’t the right pup to try this with.
If you didn’t catch it early or the excitement builds, say ‘oh well! I guess my dog just isn’t ready. Thanks anyway! Have a great day!’
You can also throw in a ‘cute pup!’ People love that.
Once you get that calm, thoughtful, controlled approach, switch from your working leash position to keep your dog in a heel to your greeting grip, pinching the tip of the handle of your leash.
Your dog needs room to display the body language dogs use to communicate with each other.
If your dog does a ‘no no’ like putting their paws on another dog, jumping, barking, doing a hard sniff, or getting into a play bow, do a verbal ‘eh eh’ and briefly take up contact on the leash.
If you need to, take up your working grip again and take a step or two backwards to get your dog out of there. Making your dog think, ‘Weird! If I start acting that way, I don’t get to say hello.! I wonder if that is related?’ Your dog learns over time the way to get to say hi is to be calm.
Hard sniff there, Willa! Cora isn’t thrilled.
Porter the GSP doesn’t seem into it, huh?
Remind your dog that even though you are having some pup time, you are still on the clock. Don’t pull on me or drag. Don’t make the other dog uncomfortable. Don’t get too amped up.
-It is polite in dog culture to ‘disengage’ every few seconds. Looking down or away or pausing and giving the other dog a little room gives the dog a chance to exit the interaction if they aren’t into it. Every three seconds, take up a light contact in the leash, increasing the pressure slowly until you achieve your goal of getting them to give the dog a little space, or, ideally, turn away for a second to see what the dog does. Do they want to keep interacting or not?
If the other dog is the one going hard, ‘pulse pulse’ on the leash and guide your dog away and out of the reach of the other dog. If they are off leash, step in between, snap and say ‘easy’ or ‘eh eh’ in a sing-songy voice to get their attention off your dog so they can get away.
This happens a LOT with my sweet little Harley. Other dogs think she is a toy or sniff her intensely and to their hearts content. If I see Harley standing frozen and looking uncomfortable, I’m going to step in to back the other dog off and give her a chance to escape. The reason she needs my help there is that if she were to move while the other dog is fixated on her, they would chase her and the situation would escalate.
If you are sweet, light, calm and sing songy, other owners usually don’t mind. If you were to get frantic and yell, they would get surprised and defensive.This usually isn’t necessary unless the other dog bats at, mounts, humps or pins your dog. Even then, stay calm and try to use your voice or body to break them up. If you are really worried, you can grab the other dog’s collar and pull them off as gently as you can. Usually if a big ‘no no’ is happening, the other owner will understand why you would do that.
Because there are so many accidentally naughty dogs out there, it’s important that you do what you have to do to encourage your dog to have manners as well as keep your dog safe. If your dog has a bad experience or gives another dog a bad experience it can make them fearful or defensive in their future interactions, adding to the problem and not the solution. Other owners may think you are wacky for having all these rules, but just like we need to teach kids what is socially acceptable and how to control their impulses, it is important we teach our dogs this as well.
Keep doing your thing, do it as gently as possible but as firmly as necessary and your dog will become a refined citizen of the dog world.