How to Socialize Your Puppy
Usually, dogs are very social by nature, after all, they are pack animals, and packs are usually made up of a large number of other animals.
Some animals, however, either by accident or by design, were not socialized early on or may now be actually a bit antisocial.
Dog owners often fret over this behavior since it causes their pups to bark loudly and consistently at people, other dogs, and even cars.
If you have ever dealt with a dog that appeared sweet and calm in the home, but turned into an antisocial loner the moment you hit the streets during your walk or exercise time, you will want to read on to learn how to turn your pup into a social butterfly.
Suffice it to say that nothing will work overnight, and as a matter of fact patience is the very key to help your little doggie break out of his or her shell. No amount of yelling at your dog will get him to cooperate, so it is best to stay cool, calm, and collected.
If your dog is barking ferociously while wagging his tail, he is in effect warning other dogs to recognize his dominance. While it is hard to say where the dominance issues are coming from, you will want to make sure that he knows his place in your family structure. To this end, it is important to remember that a dog should never be on the top of the hierarchy.
As a matter of fact, you will want to give your dog several opportunities each day to demonstrate his submissive behavior to you, such as letting you walk through the door first, having him break off eye contact first, and so on.
If this is not happening, then the odds are good that he is a bit unsure of himself with respect to the position in his own pack, much less his position with outsiders – be they canine or human.
If the latter is the case, enrolling your dog in a good obedience class is key to modifying the behavior – obviously, you will want to be the person going to the obedience class with him, so that you, too, can modify your behavior.
If your dog barks ferociously out of fear, which you can tell because the tail is not wagging, and because he may be backing away, then you might want to spend a bit of time taking to an animal trainer who can give you some advice on dealing with these fears.
You will probably want to do this prior to going to obedience training. Some fears are quite silly to humans, such as the fear of people with hats. Yet from the dog’s point of view, these fears need to be dealt with.
