One of the very basic things I look for is a dog who doesn't shy away from new humans approaching them and petting them on the head. See, here's the thing: I KNOW dogs absolutely don't like being patted/petted on the head, however, I also know that that's the first thing a person will do when meeting a new dog, particularly within the realm of pet assisted therapy. People who don't know dogs always reach for their head, nose, ears, etc. Even people who profess to knowing about dogs will reach for their heads, ears, etc. which is frustrating as well. I know we've talked about dog body language many times here before, but I want to specifically address head pats today.
Dogs do not inherently enjoy being patted on the head. Looming over them, hands coming at their faces, accompanied by direct eye contact are all threatening behaviors in a dog's world. Among dogs, coming over the head or neck of another dog, direct eye contact, etc. are all provocative behaviors that may lead to aggression. For dogs, unfamiliar humans doing these behaviors is anxiety-provoking. You will see dogs widen their eyes, turn their gaze away, lick their lips, dip their heads away from those hands, and physically try to turn away. If their humans force them into the interaction, you may even see them stiffen, yawn, and pull away the first chance they get. While your dog may be fully accepting of you petting them on the head, ruffling their ears, and hugging them, there's no reason to believe that they will accept such invasive behaviors from someone they've just met, and you shouldn't force them into accepting these things either. And, do you REALLY think your dog enjoys it when you do them? Yes, I know there are some dogs who do seem to enjoy this type of attention, but I've certainly encountered enough dogs over the years who don't enjoy it all and are merely tolerating their owners doing it because it makes the people happy when they do.
I'm a firm believer in teaching every dog to accept brief contact with a new human that involves a head pat/stroke and ears being touched, I'm also a firm believer in teaching people the right way to engage a dog they've just met. In pet therapy in particular, I try to train the new volunteers to make the greetings work for their dogs. By bringing your dog toward a new person, telling them to say hi, for example, allowing a brief head pat and then turning them sideways or with their bottom toward that new person, thus diffusing any tension and encouraging the new person to scratch that bottom, stroke that side, etc. If your dog is good with face to to face approaches, then you can instruct those new people to pet your dog under their chin, across their chest, etc. Those are non-confrontational face-to-face greetings that can be done with less looming and direct eye contact, so more acceptable to dogs. And, again, dogs approach each other sideways, and tuck under each other's chins when behaving in a more affiliative manner.
It's also important to remember that people are less trainable than dogs...LOL. You can tell people that your dog likes being petted under his chin, loves bootie scratches, and will shake a hand on command, yet they will, by and large, still reach over your dog's head, ruffle their ears, pet their face, and if they are really over the top, try to kiss or hug your dog! This is particularly true in the realm of pet assisted therapy, making it all that more important that your dog be accepting of poor human behavior if you are going to try to participate in this type of work together. So, how can you prepare your dog?
As with so many behaviors, especially those in cooperative care, it's all about desensitization and counter-conditioning. You have to desensitize your dog to head pats, ear ruffles, eye contact, and looming and counter-condition them using high value rewards to view these human behaviors as desirable, or at a minimum, something they can tolerate without feeling anxious or overwhelmed. You can even shape behaviors in your dog that encourage the people greeting them to do so in a more respectful way. For example, teaching your dog to put their head in someone's hand or on someone's lap or bed, allows you to position your dog in a way that gives them a choice. They can choose to put their head in that position or not; if they choose not to, then you, as their handler, can move them into a position that they prefer, such as sideways, and have the person pet them there. If your dog will put their chin in someone's hand or on their lap, remind the person petting them to "go with the grain," that is, don't push their hair/fur or ears the wrong way. Ruffling a dog's ears or fur often leads to excitement or them becoming over-stimulated, while petting them with the grain is more soothing and less stimulating.
With my client's puppy, we are going to start with the basics. We're going to work on sitting or standing calmly when people approach. We're going to work on not pulling on the leash while walking in buildings and down hallways. We are going to work on moving around in small spaces because this dog, when fully grown, will be about 90 lbs! We will also work on shaping the head in a hand behavior and desensitizing her puppy to head pats, hugs, and kisses as this client really wants to work with children and teens on her pet therapy visits. We will also be working on other cooperative care behaviors as this will ultimately be a big dog and we want trips to the veterinarian and groomer to go successfully as well.
As always, if you have questions about your pet's behavior, you know where to find me.
Here's Henley! He and I have big plans for him to be my next pet assisted therapy dog. He's not even close to ready yet, even though he's a year old now. He's still too bouncy and jumpy, but we're working on it every day. My guess is he'll be ready to work by the time he's 2 years old. I'll keep you posted!
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