Dog Walking Manners-that Big Old Bone of Contention

When I talk to people about their dogs one of the biggest issues people talk about is whether their dogs or others should be off-lead or not, in both off-lead and on-lead dog environments. It is no surprise that people with very reactive dogs think that all dogs should be on-lead all the time that local signs tell us to be and of course local by-laws should be respected, they are there for a reason.  No one likes an unpleasant dog greeting, even if it is as simple as getting jumped on by someone else's dog because their handler has no control of the dog. Of course I would not be the first owner to claim that my dog has awesome recall and is safe to be around, but not everyone likes my dog as much as I do. What?!!-crazy I know.  So I have compiled some precautions we can all take so that we all get on a lot better when we are out walking. 

One of the biggest problems people face when they are out walking their dog is dog reactivity. Dogs that bark or lunge at other dogs when they are approached by or approaching other dogs. Many dog owners would see this as aggression and hold their dogs tighter and avoid other dogs permanently in case something bad happens. A responsible reaction to some degree. Mostly though, the reactive dogs actions occur from fear and discomfort at the proximity of other dogs. After all, it is not natural for a strange dog to come rushing toward your dog into its personal space, especially when your dog is on lead and cannot escape. Some dogs have better greeting manners than other dogs- they have been socialized more as pups and learnt the natural boundaries of other dogs, both old and young. It is only natural that a dog being bombarded by a strange dog would respond with a bark to tell that dog to move away just as it is only natural for a human to have a personal space range too. A stranger touching another person without invitation in a social situation would most likely be avoided or even yelled at if the situation required it.

Unfortunately though dogs do not have the choice to move away as they would wish when they are on leash. Which is why many people say their dogs behave better off-lead. Their dog knows it has the opportunity to escape if it needs to when it is off-leash. I will talk more about what to do to improve a dogs reactivity another day. Meantime give your dog space and avoid situations that may be potentially fraught.

So here they are-My Big Tips (Bones of Contention) for keeping the peace on your local walks.

Number one Bone-Take doggy bags. There is nothing worse than knowing that others have left their dogs doo doos in your local park. You may step in it, but even worse if your local off-leash park is shared with a sports oval dog owners may loose their off-lead privileges. Don't ruin it for everyone else.

Number Two Bone-Have your lead handy and make sure you practice recall in a variety of settings and have high value treats handy so you can call your dog away from small children and dog owners that are timid and pulling away from you. It is amazing how frightened families can be of a larger dog, despite the fact it may be calm and under control, so make sure that you respect the personal space of people who are not dog lovers or who have young children.

Number Three Bone-Know your dog. What sets your dog off and makes it unreliable on the recall? Is it cyclists? Is it possums in the park, does your dog love running up to kids and jumping on them? Know this in advance and prepare your approach to other people, dogs and traffic based on an assessment of the risks to your dog and those around you.  It is always a good habit to teach your dog to sit at the curb or to be able to "wait" before you say it is okay to cross. It is also helpful to know what a polite dog greeting looks like, dogs usually approach from each other sides and if they get a welcome response go into the nose to bum sniff position. If they're a little nervous they may sniff the grass and give a little more space to each other before approaching.

Number Four Bone-Observe other dogs and their handlers approaching and calmly plan a reaction-Does the handler have control?  What is their body language telling you? Are they nervous and pulling away from you? Have a conversation with them. Ask before you approach, "Is your dog friendly?" Most dog owners will appreciate you asking and let you know if their dog has issues with other dogs. Put your dog on a short lead if necessary if you know your dog may be likely to jump up and run around getting the lead tangled in peoples legs. On a slight side note if you use a variable length lead you are probably asking for difficulties for two reasons. It is often impossible to get the lead short enough to greet other people safely. Not only that though if you constantly use a recoiling lead your dog will never learn to  walk nicely on a loose lead without pulling you all the way down the street.

Not so happy to see you.....get outta my face

Number Five Bone-Respect other peoples space. If you do get a nervous or stay away reaction from another walker make sure you respect their space and do not rush in for  a greeting with your dog regardless. If another handler does not have their dog under control and their dog is reacting to yours you may need to redirect  your dog if necessary. Make the experience part of the walk, a fun detour, try not to react out of stress as your dog will know it and react accordingly. After all, the dog walk is the best time of the day-so enjoy.

What to do about dogs urine marking in the house.

Why do dogs mark?

Urine marking really is a natural part of dog behaviour. It goes back to their wolf ancestors who marked the area around their den to let other packs of wolves know where they are and to know the proximity of other wolves when they are out walking. In everyday suburbia this function is a bit less useful as there are many more dogs who do not belong in packs in very close proximity to each other. However dogs can tell a lot from scenting other dogs urine and faeces, such as gender, whether a bitch is on heat and can recognize individual dogs by their scent. It is a vital part of their communication system.

Which dogs mark? 

However, none of us want marking in our houses do we? I notice marking the most with male dogs that visit my home. I  have a strategy for dealing with that which I will elaborate on later. Female dogs can scent mark in houses too, however this is more rare. An entire female will however mark a lot more when she is going into heat, they can even back themselves up a pole on their front legs to do so-a very funny sight. Entire or de-sexed dogs are more likely to mark, however most of us have de-sexed dogs these days unless we are breeders or have a puppy who has not been de-sexed yet. I know some breeders whose dogs that are used to being outside most of the time have a doggy diaper on while they are inside but I do not think this helps to change behaviour but rather make it more bearable. 

So why do dogs mark?  There can be a few reasons. The main one is when other dogs are present in or have marked the area that the dog considers to be his home, this can include the park or usual walking routes near the home. Another  trigger can be any socially exciting situation, for instance the presence of female dogs (in heat or otherwise), even a big group of noisy people or dogs which may be overstimulating to the dog and some male dogs only mark around other male dogs. The presence of urine scent in a house is often enough to stimulate marking of a visiting dog. 

Another cause of marking can be anxiety or separation anxiety. Sometimes dogs can even mark when there is a strange new object or new person in the house, any conflict within the house or separation anxiety. In case of separation anxiety the dog may only wee when you are about to leave, have left or just returned to the home. However, the marking may be more likely to be a vertical wee rather than on an object. A nervous, anxious dog is also more likely to have submissive body language-ears back, flattening itself to the ground or cowering upon greeting people or other dogs. It is so important not to stress the dog anymore by telling it off for marking. Rather the focus should be on creating a more confident dog, trying to alleviate the anxiety and diverting the urination to outside.

In a very few cases a dog may have a medical issue, such as incontinence which can occur in younger as well as geriatric  dogs or a urinary tract infection which can cause regular voiding of the bladder- unlike the full voiding of the bladder in the case of incontinence. If you suspect that a change in your dogs behaviour may not be due to environmental changes  than a visit to the vet is probably a good idea.

Solutions to prevent marking
If only dogs understood signs...

 life would be a lot simpler. 

However since this seems unlikely to happen anytime soon the first thing I do when I am introducing a visitors dog into my home is to let the dog go straight through the house to mark outside in the garden where my dog has been. This seems to set the pattern for marking outside rather than inside. Verbal praise and a treat can reinforce this good behaviour too. If you are bringing a new dog home for the first time try to make sure that all the members of the home are there and can greet the dog with a treat after it has investigated them in its own time. This sets everybody up as a friendly presence for the dog. If there are any urine marks from yours or another dog it is important to get rid of that scent so your dog or a visiting dog does not re-mark there. However, never use an amonia based cleaner as urine contains amonia and this can encourage the marking cycle.

If you have a dog that marks inside you may also want to limit the dog to being inside only when you are so that you can supervise their behaviour. Firstly try to avoid telling the dog off or punishing the dog as your dog will not understand this. However, if the dog seems to be sniffing objects in readiness to mark, like couch corners you may be able to change your dogs behaviour by interrupting the dog before the behaviour begins. Your timing is important, if you interrupt too late the dog may not relate the interruption with the marking behaviour. A loud clap or a plastic bottle filled with noisy coins thrown near the couch may interrupt the habit cycle. Any similar loud noise or movement of an object near them may work like an aversive stimulus. The best kind of interruption occurs when the dog does not know the noise has come from you which means that hopefully the dog will not mark when you are not around as well as when you are. 

If your dogs marking is caused more by anxiousness it may be important to look at how your dog is getting on with other people or dogs and cats in the home. In some cases dogs may need medications from the vet to assist them in improving their ability to cope or a DAP (Dog Appeasing Pheremone) infuser in the home may help to calm them.

I hope this helps you. May your dogs be calm and your couches smell sweet.