Socialization - What is it really? What is it not?

If you ask the average dog owner what socialization looks like, most would say that it involves allowing your dog to meet as many people and other dogs as possible. This may be because we often like to relate dogs to people, and we get in the habit of humanizing them. For human children, it’s important to socialize them by going on play dates, meeting lots of other people, etc. However, when it comes to our dogs, playtime and direct interactions are actually such a small part of what it means to socialize your dog properly.

First, let’s dive into what proper socialization is NOT: 

Going to the dog park: As dog trainers, we don’t recommend going to the dog park for several reasons. It teaches your dog to be in a constant state of arousal, which could lead to leash reactivity and/or overexcitement in the future. Dog parks are also unstructured and unregulated, which could set your dog up to be bullied or contract an illness. You never know if dogs are going to get along, which is why dog fights are a common occurrence at dog parks. One bad instance can cause severe reactivity, aggression, or terrible injury. Instead of going inside the dog park, you can work with your dog OUTSIDE of the dog park. This will teach your dog to settle around other dogs, and will help them understand that being around other dogs doesn’t always equal playtime. 

Greeting every single person or dog: Similar to the dog park, allowing your dog to greet every single person or dog you come in contact with will only teach your dog to be in a heightened state of mind. This can cause leash pulling, disengagement with you, and other behaviors such as whining, barking, and overexcitement. Instead of allowing your dog to meet everyone you come across, we recommend that you limit direct interactions with only the people and dogs who you will see multiple times in the future such as friends, family members, and their dogs. If you do allow your dog to greet someone, they should be calm before interacting. 

Now, let’s take a look at what proper socialization ACTUALLY is: 

Neutrality in all situations: In order to get your dog to be calm in all situations no matter the distractions, you must reward neutrality and work on settling without directly interacting with people or other dogs. Everything that you do with your dog is either going to increase or decrease their behavior. For example, if your dog is barking and pulling toward another dog and you allow your dog to greet, then you just rewarded the barking and pulling. Instead of greeting everyone, pack walks are a great way to work on proper socialization and teach neutrality. Pack walks involve your dog walking around other people and dogs without directly interacting. 

Confidence building: This is an important part of proper socialization and exposure. It’s important for your dog to be around loud sounds and different textures, and tolerate being groomed and handled, etc. If you find that your dog is fearful of something, you should have them work through it rather than avoid it. Instead of coddling your dog when they are afraid of something, provide them with direction to increase their confidence! 

In summary, proper socialization for our dogs looks like being the leader for them and advocating for their space. Just because your dog is super friendly and wants to greet everyone, does not mean they should. You never know if another dog is sick or aggressive. The risks far outweigh the reward. Proper socialization looks more like exposure to different situations and environments, without having to directly interact with strangers. Socialization should be structured and intentional. We hope that this post gives you a better understanding of what proper socialization actually looks like for your dog!