Have you ever seen this excited dog at the park? Daily encounters with dogs in parks is a dog owners reality. Some of the dogs do actually look as excited as this one! The other day, there were some dogs having a great time running around with each other until someone ( a dog owner ) pulled out a ball from their jacket pocket.
Suddenly the game changed.
The game of friendly chase and be chased within the well suited dog group was distracted. All of a sudden three of the four dogs were barking at the person to do something with the ball. I can only imagine they are '
willing' him to throw it while they barked and jumped all over the keeper of the ball. Well the ball was thrown after 4-6 barks from each dog - that totals about 18-24 barks. The last of the four decided to join in - why not - when in Rome right?
Unsure of why the keeper of the ball took so long to give the unruly bunch what they wanted. Perhaps they were hoping to wake the entire neighbourhood with excited barking dogs on a quiet evening in a quiet neighbourhood such as Mount Pleasant in Vancouver.
Please if you do decide to bring a ball to the park to either:
Suggestion #1 - avoid throwing it to a dog or dogS that are barking for it to be thrown - this simple gesture is rewarding to things in the dog's mind - #1 - I Bark and I Shall receive. and #2 - It is
OK to go crazy for a ball whenever I see one.
Suggestion #2 - hide the ball from where it once came. Then commence to walk around ignoring the dogs who just thought they might of seen something glowing green or orange immerse from a pocket. Out of sight, out of mind.
Suggestion #3 - Ask all of those dogs to sit or lay down and not bark (
yep not even once ) and then pull out 3 more balls to release the dogs from their relaxed calm sitting position or down position and NOW reward them all for a job well done.
Everything here is merely a suggestion - The first two suggestions seem the simplest for the dogs to understand - how come it is hard for the human factor to realize what we are teaching some of our precious family members to behave. If what you are doing works for you - perhaps your neighbours at 9.30 - 10pm at night may have a different opinion.
All the best for building happy and healthy relationships for you and your dog.
Nice post Georgina.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I like #3. It teaches my own dog(s) that they must still follow commands, even though there is a crazed pack around them. It also imparts on other's dogs that THEY need to wait before their demands are met. My dog(s) love the ball and it's part of my 'toolkit', so I use it. I've had this happen at various times and I always make all dogs wait until they're all settled down before anything happens. It's bizarre how many owners watching are amazed at the patience their dog exhibits when I do this. I find it very cool, and empowering when there's half a dozen of them waiting, but It's not special. Patience and self-control is something all dogs need to learn, and using a ball/toy is a great tool to do so. It's a public park, dog or otherwise, so the guy with his dog and a ball has every right to be there. (Unless he's doing it maliciously.) I try to use an appropriate, out-of-the-way spot but it's not always practical and dogs off leash are, well, dogs off leash! That being said, as dog owners we've got a responsibility to teach our pups these manners and maintain the peace at the park until they do, even if it means removing them or moving somewhere less frenetic.
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