TIP FOR TUESDAY 6/5/12

STAY CALM!

It can be embarrassing when your dog acts a certain way in public, but you should recognize that it won’t help if you’re equally reactive. For instance, if your dog is barking and lunging at another dog across the street, pull it back and say nothing. Just remove it from the stimulus that triggered the reaction. Yelling at your dog for reacting simply adds stress.

It’s important to remember that you need to set an example, because dogs watch us and learn from our body language. If you are stressed, they might not understand why, but they might see a reason for themselves to be on high alert. So be aware of yourself and note whether you are cuing your dog’s reactions with your own stress.