When most people hear the phrase socialising your puppy, they make the mistake of thinking that this is allowing your dog to run and play with as many other dogs, puppies, children and people as they can.
But what if I told you that this is completely the opposite of what we should be doing to create a well socialised and well-mannered balanced dog. We should, in fact be teaching our dogs to ignore other dogs, people and children until we say it’s okay for them to go say hi… And when they do get to do this, it’s done calmly and controlled.
1. We do this by taking our puppies to places where there will be people, dogs and children passing, as well as just general distractions.
2. We then find a place a little distance away from all of these distractions and we sit calmly, puppy is allowed to watch everything and everyone go past as much as they like but they have to do it calmly. And when they do. We reinforced that calm curious behaviour with a high reward treat and plenty of praise.
3. If our puppies are finding sitting while they are distractions going past more challenging, try walking, as this gives them something else to concentrate on.
4. If they are still finding it challenging, then you may need to put a little more distance between them and the distractions.