A Safe Place
Your shy or fearful dog needs a place to feel safe and secure, especially during stressful occasions where strange people are on their property. This could be:
• A bedroom
• A crate (away from the arrival point of visitors) Crating info and ask us for Denning info too.
• Behind a gate/baby gate
• Tethered (if no other options workable)
Your dog may or may not be able to see your visitors arriving. Generally, we advise for them not to be able to see, but it will depend on the individual dog.
Practice
Our general rule is, if you have someone coming to your house for less than 30 minutes (a courier or delivery driver, or friend dropping something off quickly), it may be best to not even bother with introductions or training. Keep your dog in their safe place.
If you have someone who regularly comes around, and stays for longer than 30 minutes, it’s well worth the time to practice the greetings.
Arrival
Your dog should be in their safe place.
Once the initial greetings are out of the way, have your visitors sit down and relax 🍮
You need to coach your visitors about your plan before you bring your dog in. This usually includes:
- Ignore your dog/s
- Don’t make eye contact
- Don’t pat your dog/s
- Don’t speak to your dog/s
- Don’t make sudden movements or talk loud/shout
If your dog has shown or potentially shown aggression towards visitors, we recommend you have them on a lead, or behind a baby gate/gate for safety under the guidance of a qualified trainer during a training session.