Safe and unsafe ways to meet a new dog

Hey dog friends!

I know that you are a good dog person. This is true however you have been meeting dogs. You’ve been doing your best with the info you had. You come from a place of caring about dogs and wanting to connect with dogs.

That said, here are safe ways to meet a new dog:

• Give a tiny “hello”.

• Toss a treat away from you and past the dog

• Act as if the dog isn’t there.

• Look away from the dog.

• Give the dog space.

• Give a tiny wave

Next let’s talk about a few ways to meet a new dog that are scary for dogs. Before I began learning about dogs, I had met dogs in all of these unsafe ways. I give myself grace for having good intentions and not knowing better. Here are some ways NOT to meet a new dog.

• Approaching the dog. Way scarier for a dog to be approached than for the dog to choose whether or not to approach the person.

• Putting your hand or face to the dog’s nose. This is scary for dogs, as it would be for me to have a stranger’s hand or face in my face. Dogs have such an amazing sense of smell, they don’t need you close to smell you.

• Asking if you can pet the dog. I say no to this question. It is hard for me to disappoint the person. Especially if the person asking approaches our dog as they ask. Other people may also feel pressure from the question even if pressure is not the intention. ​

• Offering a treat from your hand or near you. This creates a conflict in the dog. The dog may want the treat AND be afraid of getting so close to you. The dog may push themself to come closer than comfort. ​

• Petting a dog without knowing whether the dog’s body language says “I want pets” or “I don’t want pets”. More on how to know what a dog's body language is saying in a future post.

If you try any of the safe ways to meet a dog, I’d love to hear how it goes.

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You're doing an awesome job showing up for the dogs in your life.