8 minute read
Article: “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
that we used at home to make them comfortable and confident in a strange environment.
What about the dogs that are nervous around new people and other dogs? We give them confidence in us that we will not put them in a scary situation, and they must learn to trust us completely. We start by simply playing with them and doing the tricks they already know. We do not force them on strangers. We do not hand treats to strangers to give them. We do not bring them up to strange dogs that they are not comfortable with. Why not? We are not making the timid dog better, we are telling that timid dog that coming out in to the world is very 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 swarm of people to try to pet or try to make friends with my puppy. The puppy needs confidence in the owner, so the owner needs to make the puppy feel confident. Start doing the puppy’s tricks that were taught at home. Have him “touch” the hand of a friend. but not have the friend try to pet him, just have the puppy touch that friend’s hand. The owner than gives a “yes” and rewards the trick that the puppy is already comfortable with.After a few repetitions, the puppy is seeking hands to touch, and is showing confidence
and pride in a trick he knows how to do! The puppy’s confidence increases as he is doing something familiar in an unfamiliar place.
Your dog may never like strangers, but your dog must learn to accept strangers when asked. You do not want a fearful dog having to face the vet, or the groomer, or the kennel assistant when your dog must go with someone else. You also don’t want your dog to live in fear of your friends. You want your dog to not stress at shows and in a people-filled environment.
Something for you to think about... Why does everyone feel that they have to befriend the dog that is fearful? Everyone seems to think that they are the one that will have that magical touch and befriend the dog, when the only one that has that magical touch is the owner. It is the owner’s responsibility to teach the dog confidence.
Soon you will see your dog running to touch people, as it is the game with you that the dog enjoys, and in doing so, gets excited to see these strangers, as the tricks the puppies do with the strangers mean fun time with you. You are teaching your dog to accept these people.
When does the dog get used to being petted by strangers? Our next step is to have the stranger have a treat, but the command comes from us. Never put strangers in charge of your dog. While the stranger holds the treat, YOU tell the dog to “get it” and then when the dog does, praise and you can treat also. Soon, as the stranger is handing your dog a treat, have the person with the same hand, touch gently under the chin, do not have them reach over the dog’s head. Soon the dog will allow the touch to get the treat from the stranger. but you are in control of all of this - NOT the stranger. Fear in our puppies comes from that which is unknown. When we have them perform familiar tricks in an unfamiliar setting, they soon become confident. When we try to force them to like people, they can easily become more fearful. Do not force puppies to be touched by people or sniffed all over by a strange dog. It is not helping our puppies, but making them less confident in the world around them. Instead, teach them confidence in us,
as their owners, so that they look to us and have confidence when we tell them it is ok.
I am stressing this issue in our puppies this month, as in the past few months I have seen countless people with dogs that did not get out enough. I have watched them walking around telling people to pet their scared puppies, and shoving the puppies forward into the hands of a stranger.
I hope this will help everyone with new puppies, or even older dogs that need to become comfortable in strange environments. If you are in an area where there is a Lowe’s available, or other stores that allow dogs, use that to your advantage, and get your dogs to as many places as possible.
TUMMY DIET
Years ago, I had a senior male who just stopped eating. I tried everything, including cooking up chicken and broth - but he would not touch it.
I decided to stop by a local pet supply store who has all kinds of special food. When the owner heard my issue, she immediately said “wait a minute - I got something for you.” She went to the back office and came back with a copied sheet labeled “Tummy Diet.”
It was a short recipe, but she said she has used it with her dogs when they wouldn’t eat and it works.
I thought, why not give a try -- I have to get this dog eating. So I purchased all the ingredients and cooked it up per the recipe. I dished out a small bowl of it and put it in front Zonan. I couldn’t believe my eyes ... he smelled it and started eating it! Happily, I went to get a little more for him and he ate that too!
Now, some of you may cringe at using raw turkey or buffalo, but this recipe works and Zonan had no ill effects from eating semi-raw meat. I do not endorse this recipe, nor does the club, but I do know it worked for my dog.
- 3 white potatoes (quartered)* - 3 sweet potatoes (quartered)*
- 1 slice of leek - 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt - 1 pound of ground turkey or
buffalo (raw) - filtered water (enough to cover the potatoes) *with or without peels
NEW MEMBERSHIP APPLICANT
Carole Krivaniclt 22599 Huff Road Milton, DE 19968 302-856-9522 onecatthreedogs@comcast.net
Endorsed by Tammy Murray and Susan Schmidhauser
Bring all ingredients (except meat) to boil, then simmer 45 minutes. Add uncooked meat and mash all together. Let sit on stovetop, unheated until cool. Serve small amounts every 2-3 hours.
