JOANNE’S WORKSHOP
LACK OF SOCIALIZATION DURING COVID By JoAnne Brettschneider
The following article first appeared in the February 2021 issue of the Doberman Network. Many thanks to Editor Amy Tourand for allowing CRC to reprint it.
Lack of socialization during the Covid pandemic has created puppies that have not been out and about as frequently as puppies that we have had in the past. There have been no shows in many areas, and no training classes. We have new puppies that must get out to meet the world, but now we have issues with our puppies. They are fearful of new surroundings, new people, other dogs, etc. How do we handle this? Some puppies do not need socialization the way others do. They are normally outgoing, happy, fearless people lovers. These puppies will do fine as they start emerging from our home cocoons and get back out in the population. The other group, though, needed that exposure and have become timid and nervous. We bring those puppies into the show environment, and we have puppies that have their tails tucked and do not want to greet anyone. How do we handle these puppies? Let’s talk about puppy socialization overall. People get puppies and bring them out, letting them run to people and other dogs in an effort to get them “socialized.” Then, as the puppies mature into happy social animals, we are upset when our happy-go-lucky puppies run to every dog and every person with excitement. I have seen that many times over. Our socialization skills need to be re-written into “Social Skills.” This means that our puppies are taught as youngsters how to behave in a chaotic environment by looking to the owner for confidence and clarity as to what the puppies can or cannot do.
In other words, my puppy will learn that is is not acceptable to run to every stranger for a cookie, and it is not acceptable for my puppy to jump at every dog he sees. During Covid, when we cannot get our puppies around the show environment, it is really important for us to teach them to focus on skills and anything we can teach our puppies at home. Then, we we are able to take our dogs in public, and they show some fear of people or dogs, we bring out the tricks and tools
“Social Skills” This means that our puppies are taught as youngsters how to behave in a chaotic environment by looking to the owner for confidence and clarity as to what the puppies can or cannot do.
that we used at home to make them comfortable and confident in a strange environment.
scary, and we are not protecting them from their fears. How then, do we get through to our puppies or young adults that the world is ok? One I do is a “touch.” I teach my puppy to touch everything I present. At first, I will have a treat in my right hand. I will put my left hand towards the puppy, who will immediately touch it out of being curious and I say “yes” and reward from my right hand. I do not have the treat in the hand to be touched or it becomes a “find the food” not the trick I am trying to teach. I continue until my puppy is looking for the hand to touch to get the food from the other hand. I then add an object. I use vinyl flat disks that I can place on the floor or toss a distance. I start by holding it in front of the puppy to touch, and I progress to it being on the floor. Then, I find an object to clip to a fence or ring gating object, and send to a touch.
But...how does this help the puppy who is timid and unsocialized with people and dog? When I bring my timid puppy out, I do not allow a What about the dogs that are nervous swarm of people to try to pet or try around new people and other dogs? We give them confidence in us that we to make friends with my puppy. The puppy needs confidence in the owner, will not put them in a scary situation, so the owner needs to make the puppy and they must learn to trust us comfeel confident. Start doing the puppy’s pletely. We start by simply playing tricks that were taught at home. Have with them and doing the tricks they him “touch” the hand of a friend. but already know. We do not force them not have the friend try to pet him, just on strangers. We do not hand treats have the puppy touch that friend’s to strangers to give them. We do not bring them up to strange dogs that they hand. The owner than gives a “yes” and rewards the trick that the puppy is are not comfortable with. Why not? already comfortable with.After a few We are not making the timid dog betrepetitions, the puppy is seeking hands ter, we are telling that timid dog that to touch, and is showing confidence coming out in to the world is very Cont’d
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COLONIAL ROTTWEILER CLUB | 1ST QUARTER | MARCH 2022
