Well excitement is ok when our dog is playing with another dog, or a toy, or if our dog is running through a field.
When your dog is with you, however, you may not want them to get excited. The chances are we are not going to want a dog jumping up, racing round, squeaking, pulling, lurching etc.
So it’s really quite simple. Let’s not teach them to do these behaviours around us.
Of course we want our dog to enjoy their life, and sometimes we confuse their excitement for happiness. It’s endearing and fun to see them excited, and we might actually be encouraging reactions to ‘ Walkies!’ Or we might really love the crazy greetings from our dog when we get home - and our dog will get better and better at these games. Playing with our dog is another source of great fun, but it is likely to also teach behaviours we may not want in another context.
The problem is that our dogs will probably repeat these same behaviours when we won't want them; maybe jumping up at people, lurching, barking, running around - whatever it is. Then we’ll be searching online for help or contacting a dog behaviourist.
Really, we could have not gone down these routes with our dog. We didn’t need to teach them this way of being with us. So if our dog is showing behaviours that we don’t want, think about how we might have taught these things to our dog, without realising it.
If we want a calm dog - lets be calm with them, and do calm things.
There is still a lot of scope for a beautiful and satisfying life with our dogs, without engaging them in exciting, high arousal, activity. Being together, walking together, communicating with our dog - usually through learnt commands, feeding, grooming, relaxing, affection, are all great ways to share our time with them.
Let's do things with our dog that practise behaviours that we will like in the future.
Let’s avoid doing things with our dog that practise behaviours that we won’t want later.
Please phone me if you want to chat about your dog: 07967 735067 or email: judy@thedevondoglady.co.uk
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