I took Riley to the park today and he behaved better than I could ever have imagined. The park was packed with people and dogs. Riley was relaxed calm and well behaved.
— Marcie McFadden, Eugene Oregon
Socialization
Sociable: marked by or conducive to friendliness or pleasant social relations - Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition
Sociable dogs are willing to go up to people and other dogs when invited but they also have enough calmness that everyone in the environment is comfortable with their presence. The should be to have a dog's social behavior be such that it would be welcome anywhere. On one end of the spectrum we have dogs that are aggressive (unfriendly behavior) and on the other end of the spectrum we have dogs that are overly friendly to the point of rudeness. Neither end of the spectrum is sociable. In the middle of the spectrum is a dog that is calm but willing to interact with other people and dogs. It is this middle part of the social spectrum that owners want to shoot for in the socialization of their dog. Many dog's sociability lies on just either side of the middle of the sociable spectrum where they are not really relaxed but can become relaxed with time. These dogs may not be a "problem" but behavior is not stagnant so they are at risk of developing problems.
The critical socialization period of the dog is between 8 and 16 weeks of age but socialization does not end there. The social behavior of the dog does not plateau until 3 years of age. Socialization must continue well into adulthood. Dogs and puppies need to play with dogs that will not hurt them or destroy their confidence and they need safe exposure to a large variety of dogs (dog that are bigger, smaller and noisy). For these reasons trainers are changing how they run socialization classes. Progressive trainers are now offering classes which offer controlled socialization with adults dogs and puppies together but the socialization process is very controlled so all dogs receive a positive, safe experience. We offer this type of socialization in our Impeccable Manners Program. In addition it is important that dogs do have playtime with other dogs but it is important that the dogs all have a similar play style and confidence level. We offer playtime in our Doggie Play Group were each dog is evaluated before it participates in playtime.
Some dogs are really challenged when around new dogs or people. They may bark fearfully and some may bite or display some type of agonistic behavior (growl, snap, lung in a non-playful fashion, bite or fight). These dog's need remedial socialization. This involves having a highly controlled environment and using desensitization, counter conditioning and classical conditioning to change the dog's emotions to relaxation or happiness.
We have 3 Options For Enhancing or Improving Your Dogs Social Behavior
- Impeccable Manners Program (For New Dogs To Our Training)
- Doggie Play Group (For Dog That Have Been Evaluated)
- Changing Emotions Program (Remedial Training For Dogs Already Upset or Scared By Social Stimuli)