Robin and I were at a new Home Dog Training client in Braselton helping him with his three year old Doberman named Andy. He was a pretty good dog and his biggest problem was not paying attention and pulling on the leash. We worked on some door manner exercises so that he was calm at the beginning of the walk and integrated an Easy Walk Harness into the training to help eliminate the pulling. After a few hours, Andy was walking pretty well. I wouldn’t say that he was walking perfectly, but he wasn’t pulling and paying attention to his owner. That is what our client wanted and he was really excited about being to finally have a nice walk with Andy around the neighborhood. As we were finishing up, a neighbor who was watching our training from across the street came over. He was also impressed with the results and had a question for me. His job required that he go to client homes where there would often be dogs. Sometimes those dogs were not very friendly and he was always worried about getting bitten. Did I have any tips on not getting bitten by those dogs?
I first told the neighbor that we can never be 100% sure that a dog won’t bite us. As a dog trainer, I face that dilemma every day. But there are simple techniques we can employ to really minimize the chance. Here are a few tips that have allowed me to keep my fingers and toes in more than one sticky situation:
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Never turn and run from the dog—they naturally love to chase and catch things.
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Stand still with your hands at your sides. Think of standing at attention. As you are doing this, don’t stare directly at the dog. This shows that you are assertive, yet non threatening. The dog will often go away when he determines you are not a threat.
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Do not stick your hand out—if he approaches, stoically allow the dog to approach you to sniff you.
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Do not scream. It adds unneeded adrenaline to the entire situation. If you say anything, speak calmly and firmly.
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Face the dog at all times, but don’t stare. Avoid eye contact.
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When it is possible, back away slowly, watching the dog from the corner of your eye, until the dog is out of sight.
I clearly understand that some of these actions might be counter intuitive to “us humans”, but remember that we are dealing with a dog who may or may not bite us.
We encourage you to call us at (770) 718-7704 if you need any type of dog training advice. We have a lot of great dog training articles at Best Dog Trainers Braselton Georgia. Find all our phone numbers, text addresses and email contacts at Dog Training Help Center Braselton Georgia.
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