Introducing a new dog to your pack
If you want to introduce a new dog to your pack you need to proceed with caution. Below I share my lessons based on years of experience with all kinds of dogs and bosses. I'll write another piece on getting acquainted later if you, as a sitter, don't have a dog of your own.
Getting acquainted is best done in the afternoon
Plan an introductory walk in an area where the dogs can run loose, where you have an overview and where you know most of the other dogs you will meet. If you have a pack plan the trial walk later in the afternoon when you have already had the morning walk with your pack. The dogs present then will already be used to each other during the morning walk and after resting together. It is also my experience that the afternoon walk always goes more smoothly than the morning walk.
Mirror behavior
Balanced dogs mirror each other's behavior in a positive sense. If a balanced dog encounters a dog that is not balanced, the balanced dog will show from a distance what behavior the other dog is exhibiting.
Do the dogs wave their tails at each other in a relaxed manner? Do they briefly sniff each other's butts? Do they make a play bow to each other? A dog friendship is in the making.
Are the neck hairs up, tail taut, nose forward and lip raised? Get the dogs away from each other immediately. Stand in front of your own dog, offering it protection.
Have the pack leader, a dog you can absolutely trust on the loose do the first introduction. The mirror behavior shows you a lot about the future babysitting dog. You wait at a distance with the other dogs leashed and observe the pack leader.
If the new dog is not leashed then I ask an owner to do that and I introduce myself and the other dogs before we go for a walk. Sniffing each other is usually not an issue then.
Dogs that pull I unfortunately have to watch out for
I don't accept dogs that pull on the leash. All it takes is one cat to pass by and a pulling dog will slip right by you. Let alone if you have multiple dogs on a leash. A relaxed leash prevents many problems and gives you time to anticipate. I usually start with the question, can you walk "Bello" nicely beside you too? Don't worry, your pack sets a good example themselves and you can show the boss how it can be done.
A good training leash can be used as a regular leash and as a halti. The adjustment is simple to make. This allows you to anticipate the dog's resistance that you will initially encounter. While doing so, don't forget the resistance of the boss 😊!
I regularly walk a pack of seven dogs on leash, relaxed side by side or behind each other thanks to the use of a good training leash. The fact that this leash can be converted to a halti model with a simple movement, plus barely weighs anything, makes this leash an absolute winner for me and the outcome of the century to walk former draft dogs in a relaxed manner. If a cat passes by in the street and I have the dogs leashed this way I can still guarantee a complete stop, without being undercut or having to release a dog.
Many of my clients buy such a training line themselves, and during the trial walk I always take an extra line with me. Just in case. Unfortunately at least in half of the trial walks.
Prior to changing the leash on a pulling dog, I show you how it sits around the muzzle of Rosa, my labrador, and why in my opinion it is the best way to correct a pulling dog. Rosa walks fine on the halti and she sets a good example. If the owner has seen how this goes then you have already won half the battle. Bosses also prefer not to have a pulling dog.
There have been several bosses who have thanked me with tears in their eyes after the walk because in one walk I cure the dog of pulling. Depending on how smoothly it goes, I may or may not agree on a trial day and certainly further homework with the owner. Sometimes I ask if I can take over the leash to see how the dog walks with me, along with the rest. I only do this at the end of a successful walk.
What are your experiences and/or do you have any questions?
Jolanda Gerbecks
Sitter on Petbnb since 2015
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