My puppy is GSD-Dutch cross and very protective. He is very suspicious about other dogs and can be aggressive if he sees any sign that he does not like. He is friendly with most other people and especially with kids. And, there are dogs that he also tolerates in the neighborhood; one of them is a Greyhound which is known to be a very peaceful dog. Many people recommended going to dog parks to socialize him but I refused since I know he will start a big fight; not just barking, he goes for a full-fledged fight. And as you said, there is the risk of getting a germ or parasite. He is now 10 months old and, although I know protection and guarding are his natural instincts, he is going to be calmer with age and training. I see improvement every day as I show him my disapproval for unnecessary drama. And, he cares about my feedback although he struggles with his strong instincts. So yes, I say "No" to dog parks. Thank you!
This was interesting to hear. I have always felt guilty for never taking my dogs to dog parks. I know they are not well behaved enough with recall and voice commands yet so that is why I have never gone. I won't feel guilty anymore. Thanks.
Hi Rachel. I purposely avoided dog parks exactly for the reasons you gave above. The result is that my dog isn't well socialized and she barks at every dog and human she sees. I should add that's she's a beautiful smart 18 month old sheltie. She's well behaved inside our home and it's also a pleasure to drive with her in the back seat in her car safety harnesse. However the moment I'm parked and someone passes by to get to their car she goes ballistic. Not in an evil way I want to add. I think it's in her alerting way since shelties have 9 different sounding barks so I've read and I know her sounds. So I recently bought the Bark Training Collar and the printing was much too small. ➕️ It made no sense to me though I'm good with gadgets. I took it to my daughter's house who noticed a square box the camera on your phone is supposed to see that gives one directions. Who knew? So it wasn't charged ar her house. I now have it fully charged. I can get back to you with the serial number but it's white. Do you have a video about collars like this? Or could you please create one. My dog is to be my 2nd assistance dog for a couple of purposes. I can train her for this. She also pulls and I have a leash where you press a button and it stops them In their tracks. I'm on a fixed income so these added items I've had to buy are things I slowly had to save for. I bought a front harness because she pulls. I read a dog with a front hooking harness is more likely to walk beside you. I've never had these issues before but then the last sheltie I had was when I was a girl but I should add I trained her effectively. One of the first things I taught her after a walk was to sit right on my front door mat and not to move but STAY. I'll explain my logic behind this. On a walk in my apartment complex a man with one of those long leashes had two small dogs on them. They were each maybe 12 pounds. Not being used to dogs my dog backed up. I clearly told this man to back up with his dogs. Instead he released the button and both his dogs lunged towards my little 5 month old puppy. She screamed and somehow got out of hee harness and ran from the situation. Being disabled and a senior I called to her as she ran into and across a small street in my complex. I can't explain the reliefs I felt when I saw her sitting on my front doormat. One of the most important things I wanted to teach her in my small community here was to know to always come home and that she'd be safe on the mat. Of course she was chipped and always has her tags on. Perhaps I should have put more effort into the command "stay" buy I'm just thankful she's an intelligent doc and fairly easy to train except for pulling and barking. My friend her breeder even took her for a month and worked with her. She performed beautifully but what he didn't do was to work with her one on one. Instead she was in a pack setting and I feel dogs in that situation are easier to train. He's highly educated in the breed with lifelong experience and I admire him and he's a loyal friend. Number one though she's more of a lady's dog if there's such a thing. Training dogs for service work takes an entirely different approach at least from my past experience. If you could somehow send me a message or share your email address I certainly would appreciate it. Any assistance you can offer would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. Hee name is Sia which means Helper in a different language. An appropriate name for her. I should add she's already quite naturally helping me with issues I have physically without me teaching her yet. So I have high hopes for my dog. Thank you Rachel.
Our city has around 100 dog parks, large and small. I will find one that isn't busy before using it. The time of day and weather makes a big difference. There's one huge off lease area that's around 9 square kilometers we go there quite a bit. Lots of trails, forested areas, grass lands. We haven't had any problems or seen others with dog related issues. Maybe pass a few dogs in the 1-2 hours there. There are some parks that is like going to the mall, we never go there. Good advice though, heard that a lot.
Dog owners around here are too lacidasical at "leash only" parks. I can't imagine the risks at a busy dog park with owners on cell phones instead of staying attentive. Thanks for the warning. My 10 month old rescue is too friendly, wants to play with every dog in the world. I don't want her bitten because of that.
I was bringing my dog to the dog park for a while to get some socialization (we have a fairly isolated lifestyle otherwise), but she always seemed pretty stressed while we were there and would mostly avoid the other dogs. How do you feel about doggie daycare as an alternative?
Yes, dog parks are very stressful and overwhelming to many dogs! I feel that most doggie daycares are very similar--kind of wild and out of control, and dog's are not always advocated for, so in general I steer people clear of doggie daycare. That being said, I myself offer daycare, so I'm not against daycare! Just do your homework and know how they handle socializing dogs. My daycare is highly structured and only available to dogs who have been through one of my training programs, so I know them really well. When dogs come to me for daycare they practice all of their daily structure, they are held accountable training-wise, they go on structured walks, they get playtime with other dogs, and they practice duration work...tons of structure! But I would definitely avoid the more "generic" type of daycares where dogs are let out into big groups to play and aren't corrected for unwanted behaviors.
I have 2 chihuahuas and if I was to ever take them to a dog park it would only be to stand around the perimeter of the park, but never to go inside the gate. That way they would get to see and hear the other dogs, but wouldn't be put into a position to have to interact with them or maybe catch a disease from them. I'm all about keeping my dogs safe. And as far as I'm concerned, dog parks are just plain nasty.
Yes, working around the outside of a dog park with your dog secured on leash is a great way to expose your dogs to other dog antics and teach them to ignore it all! About the only good use for a dog park in my opinion
I will crawl through glass before I go to a dog park. I cannot risk injury to my pups or training setbacks from going to one of these places. Other dog owners are far too complacent, lack the skillset needed to properly train and also manage arousal and many dogs do not have the necessary training to make these places a safe place. The only things dog parks are good for is proofing your dogs training, and this is done on the outside.
My puppy is GSD-Dutch cross and very protective. He is very suspicious about other dogs and can be aggressive if he sees any sign that he does not like. He is friendly with most other people and especially with kids. And, there are dogs that he also tolerates in the neighborhood; one of them is a Greyhound which is known to be a very peaceful dog. Many people recommended going to dog parks to socialize him but I refused since I know he will start a big fight; not just barking, he goes for a full-fledged fight. And as you said, there is the risk of getting a germ or parasite. He is now 10 months old and, although I know protection and guarding are his natural instincts, he is going to be calmer with age and training. I see improvement every day as I show him my disapproval for unnecessary drama. And, he cares about my feedback although he struggles with his strong instincts. So yes, I say "No" to dog parks. Thank you!
This was interesting to hear. I have always felt guilty for never taking my dogs to dog parks. I know they are not well behaved enough with recall and voice commands yet so that is why I have never gone. I won't feel guilty anymore. Thanks.
Hi Rachel.
I purposely avoided dog parks exactly for the reasons you gave above.
The result is that my dog isn't well socialized and she barks at every dog and human she sees. I should add that's she's a beautiful smart 18 month old sheltie. She's well behaved inside our home and it's also a pleasure to drive with her in the back seat in her car safety harnesse.
However the moment I'm parked and someone passes by to get to their car she goes ballistic. Not in an evil way I want to add. I think it's in her alerting way since shelties have 9 different sounding barks so I've read and I know her sounds.
So I recently bought the Bark Training Collar and the printing was much too small. ➕️ It made no sense to me though I'm good with gadgets. I took it to my daughter's house who noticed a square box the camera on your phone is supposed to see that gives one directions. Who knew?
So it wasn't charged ar her house. I now have it fully charged. I can get back to you with the serial number but it's white.
Do you have a video about collars like this? Or could you please create one.
My dog is to be my 2nd assistance dog for a couple of purposes. I can train her for this.
She also pulls and I have a leash where you press a button and it stops them In their tracks.
I'm on a fixed income so these added items I've had to buy are things I slowly had to save for.
I bought a front harness because she pulls.
I read a dog with a front hooking harness is more likely to walk beside you.
I've never had these issues before but then the last sheltie I had was when I was a girl but I should add I trained her effectively.
One of the first things I taught her after a walk was to sit right on my front door mat and not to move but STAY. I'll explain my logic behind this.
On a walk in my apartment complex a man with one of those long leashes had two small dogs on them. They were each maybe 12 pounds. Not being used to dogs my dog backed up. I clearly told this man to back up with his dogs. Instead he released the button and both his dogs lunged towards my little 5 month old puppy. She screamed and somehow got out of hee harness and ran from the situation. Being disabled and a senior I called to her as she ran into and across a small street in my complex. I can't explain the reliefs I felt when I saw her sitting on my front doormat.
One of the most important things I wanted to teach her in my small community here was to know to always come home and that she'd be safe on the mat.
Of course she was chipped and always has her tags on.
Perhaps I should have put more effort into the command "stay" buy I'm just thankful she's an intelligent doc and fairly easy to train except for pulling and barking. My friend her breeder even took her for a month and worked with her. She performed beautifully but what he didn't do was to work with her one on one. Instead she was in a pack setting and I feel dogs in that situation are easier to train. He's highly educated in the breed with lifelong experience and I admire him and he's a loyal friend. Number one though she's more of a lady's dog if there's such a thing. Training dogs for service work takes an entirely different approach at least from my past experience.
If you could somehow send me a message or share your email address I certainly would appreciate it.
Any assistance you can offer would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you.
Hee name is Sia which means Helper in a different language. An appropriate name for her. I should add she's already quite naturally helping me with issues I have physically without me teaching her yet. So I have high hopes for my dog. Thank you Rachel.
I 100 percent agree with your views on dog parks.
Our city has around 100 dog parks, large and small. I will find one that isn't busy before using it. The time of day and weather makes a big difference. There's one huge off lease area that's around 9 square kilometers we go there quite a bit. Lots of trails, forested areas, grass lands. We haven't had any problems or seen others with dog related issues. Maybe pass a few dogs in the 1-2 hours there. There are some parks that is like going to the mall, we never go there. Good advice though, heard that a lot.
Dog owners around here are too lacidasical at "leash only" parks.
I can't imagine the risks at a busy dog park with owners on cell phones instead of staying attentive.
Thanks for the warning. My 10 month old rescue is too friendly, wants to play with every dog in the world. I don't want her bitten because of that.
agree 100%
I was bringing my dog to the dog park for a while to get some socialization (we have a fairly isolated lifestyle otherwise), but she always seemed pretty stressed while we were there and would mostly avoid the other dogs.
How do you feel about doggie daycare as an alternative?
Yes, dog parks are very stressful and overwhelming to many dogs! I feel that most doggie daycares are very similar--kind of wild and out of control, and dog's are not always advocated for, so in general I steer people clear of doggie daycare. That being said, I myself offer daycare, so I'm not against daycare! Just do your homework and know how they handle socializing dogs. My daycare is highly structured and only available to dogs who have been through one of my training programs, so I know them really well. When dogs come to me for daycare they practice all of their daily structure, they are held accountable training-wise, they go on structured walks, they get playtime with other dogs, and they practice duration work...tons of structure! But I would definitely avoid the more "generic" type of daycares where dogs are let out into big groups to play and aren't corrected for unwanted behaviors.
I have 2 chihuahuas and if I was to ever take them to a dog park it would only be to stand around the perimeter of the park, but never to go inside the gate. That way they would get to see and hear the other dogs, but wouldn't be put into a position to have to interact with them or maybe catch a disease from them. I'm all about keeping my dogs safe. And as far as I'm concerned, dog parks are just plain nasty.
Yes, working around the outside of a dog park with your dog secured on leash is a great way to expose your dogs to other dog antics and teach them to ignore it all! About the only good use for a dog park in my opinion
I will crawl through glass before I go to a dog park. I cannot risk injury to my pups or training setbacks from going to one of these places. Other dog owners are far too complacent, lack the skillset needed to properly train and also manage arousal and many dogs do not have the necessary training to make these places a safe place.
The only things dog parks are good for is proofing your dogs training, and this is done on the outside.