Introducing Yourself to Dogs Managing Rowdy Dogs

1. Animal Handling ~ Part 4

2. Introducing Yourself
To Dogs
Speaking Their Language
Rev. 1-20-16 ~ Kellie Snider

4. As we discuss in the Dog Body language
slideshow, dogs communicate with us all the
time through their body language.

6. But sometimes we communicate with them in
ways we may not even be aware of. We may be
trying to calm them down, sometimes, but what
we’re doing amps them up. Or we might
accidentally try to make them less fearful by
doing things that worry them, like reaching for
them or hugging them.

8. Dogs are masters of reading body language, and
overall they read humans pretty well. They can
tell by how we act whether to snuggle.

9. Frito, in the next slide, is not sure what is going
to happen next, and you can tell this by his body
language. He’s pulling back just a little, his
muscles are tense and he’s clearly worried.

11. If you were to tease a dog by leaning forward
with your hands on your hips and saying, “I love
you!” they’re likely to respond as if you’re
threatening them, or to simply be confused
about what to do. So practice matching your
body language to what you want the dog to
understand.

13. It’s important to speak their language –body
language—and help them understand that we
mean well and want the very best for them during
their time in the shelter.
Approach all kenneled dogs in the way we describe
in the next kennel. Always introduce yourself using
non-threatening behaviors. Remember that this is
their home for a while and we want them to be
comfortable here.

14. Non-threatening behaviors
- Present your side
- Slouch
- Avert your eyes
- Speak gently
- Control your hands
- Offer treats
- Offer your hand or a toy at a little distance to
encourage the animal to approach you.
- Touch him on the shoulders or chest using a
gentle stroke with the back of your hand.

15. When you first approach a dog, turn your body
to the side. This is what friendly dogs do when
they greet other dogs, and it’s something they
understand when we do it. It says, “I respect
your space.” Then, if the dog is a bit insecure,
kneel down so that you’re not hovering over
him.

17. Avert your eyes and avoid staring into the dog’s
face. Speak softly if the dog is fearful like this
one, or be more animated with outgoing dogs.
Offer a treat or a toy to see if it helps the dog
engage with you. Some dogs will not play or eat
when they’re nervous, so if you can, just leave
the treat or toy in the kennel. They may decide
to eat it or play with it later. It’s a good way to
start convincing them that humans are the
bringers of the good things in life.

19. Offer the back of your hand from a distance to
allow them to sniff it. Don’t move quickly or do
anything that might startle them. This is
especially true with fearful dogs, but it can
affect more confident dogs, too. Our hands are
right at some dogs’ face level so we may
inadvertently surprise them.

21. After he’s comfortable enough, pet him on the
chest or shoulders. Avoid patting on the top of
the head-most of them don’t like it, but you can
pet some dogs there as you would stroke a cat.

23. A Few Don’ts

24. Some dogs will be a little overwhelmed by
hugging… that’s really a human thing… so we
ask that you keep it to a minimum in the shelter.
As you saw in the Protect Us, Protect Them
section, there is also the risk of sharing diseases,
or being scratched on the face. We can show a
lot of love without squeezing too tightly.

26. Never straddle or lean over a dog. This can
cause some to buck or even whip around and
bite. It could cause you to fall. It’s tempting to
hold them still like this for adjusting a collar or
giving medicine, but it can also cause problems
for you and for them, for example, if they have
to go to quarantine as a result.

28. Never lean over or toward a dog, and don’t stare
at him. We humans can really be scary
sometimes, even when we have the best
intentions!

30. These few guidelines will help you interact safely
and successfully with shelter animals. We look
forward to working with you!

32. Managing Rowdy Dogs
While waiting for training to happen
Rev. 12-30-15 ~ Kellie Snider

33. We get a lot of dogs in our shelters that could
use a little help with their handling manners.
Many of them are young adults with lots of
energy but they don’t always know just what to
do with it, especially now that they’re spending
much of each day in a shelter kennel.

35. Their challenging behavior can make it difficult
for personnel to take them out to get the
exercise they really need, and there can be a
tendency to avoid working with them. But they
really need to get outside, to smell the world
and exercise and play. It’s an essential part of
their wellbeing and dramatically improves their
quality of life while living in the shelter.

37. One of the challenges we have is getting the
dogs out of the kennel and where we need them
to go. Left to their own devices these guys will
jump on us, tug their leashes or even tug our
clothing. So we have to plan ahead and think
about what we might need to gain their
cooperation.

39. Don’t hesitate to write a BVAL or behavior
evaluation and turn it into the supervisor
pronto. Watch the slideshow to learn how that
works. We need your information as soon as
possible. The job of the behavior specialist is to
create training and behavior modification plans
to help our animals succeed, but they can’t do it
if they don’t hear from you! You are the
behavior scouts that see the behavior first. Let
us know what you saw as soon as you can!

40. BEHAVIOR EVALUATION (BVAL) v3.1
Animal Name: _______________________ Animal Number: ____________________ Date: _________________
Species: Dog Cat Other Breed: ________________ Color: _______________ Age: _________ Sex: M F
Property where behavior occurred:
Rees Jones ACC - Perry ACC - Perry Clinic - Village Fair - Martin Clinic - Private home - Other: ______________________
Area where the animal is currently housed: ______________ Animal’s current Shape: 
Describe what happened:
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Staff/Volunteer: ___________________ Date: ________Time: ___ am/pm ACC Supervisor Approval:______________
ANIMAL BEHAVIOR PROGRAMS DEPARTMENT OBSERVATIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS:
See Socialization Questions in Shelter Buddy.
Entered in Shelter Buddy by: _____________________________ Date: _________________Time: ____:____ am pm

41. As the Behavior Team works on creating a plan
and implementing training, the goal is to
manage the behavior the dog is giving us
without making it worse.

43. Big dogs jumping roughly on people is a
frequent issue in our shelters. Our instinct is to
push the dog down. However, if we shove a dog
that’s jumping on us, he may think we’re asking
him to play. A lot of the strong, muscular breeds
like to play by pushing and shoving so that’s
simply not going to work as a way to make them
stop pushing and shoving.

45. So if he’s jumping on you, one choice may be to
simply leave the area. Step outside the kennel if
you’re indoors, or walk away if you’re with the
dog in the play yards. If you are walking him on
leash, it may be necessary to put him back in the
kennel. If you’re in a play yard and you walk
away, you may find…

47. … he’s happy to walk along side you. Just keep
walking at a quick but steady pace. If you’re in
the play yard you can drop the leash and let him
choose to stay near you or romp around. These
little choices can be really important for our
shelter animals.

50. Of course, when you’re in the kennel leashing him up or
walking him from point A to point B, you can’t drop the leash
and walk away as easily. If he is being completely difficult in
the kennel you should step out of the kennel and wait for a
better behavior. Other times you can offer a toy to keep him
occupied. Some dogs will just carry a toy while you go on
your walk, but others will need your engagement. Sometimes
you have to carry a long toy like a rope toy and continuously
entice the dog to play with it while you tug the opposite end.
The reason many dogs tug is because they want that
interaction with you so just giving those guys a toy isn’t going
to be as satisfying as pulling on the leash you’re pulling on.
So, keep him excited, use your high, silly voice, and keep
moving. This takes practice, but you’ll get the hang of it!

52. Another thing you can do is toss treats on the
ground in front of the dog where you want him
or her to go. Any dog that likes his food will be
looking for the next piece! This can help distract
him from jumping up, tugging the leash and
from doing the freight engine pull on leash.

53. When you’re walking one of these freight train dogs, ask yourself,
“What do I want this dog to do instead?” If the answer is “Walk beside
me with a loose leash”, the key is to stop moving if the leash is tight
and move only when the leash is loose. This means you’ll do a bunch
of stopping and going while a dog is learning the rules.
If a dog doesn’t seem to be getting it with this technique, change
directions slightly to make the dog pay attention to what you’re doing.
Continue the rule of “Tight leash- No Go”, “Loose Leash – Go”, but now
toss in some gentle direction changes. This will help the dog pay
attention to where you’re leading. Do not suddenly and abruptly
change directions… we aren’t trying to trick him. We just want him to
learn that paying attention to you pays off, and the way it pays off is
that he gets to keep moving.
This is one of those things where EVERYONE that walks an animal
needs to do this or the dogs don’t learn how to walk on a loose leash.
We need EVERYONE to walk them this way!

55. Some dogs are so big and so strong that we must have immediate
tools that are more effective than the flat leash. And even some
smaller dogs are crazy hard pullers. We have found a few tools that
help us work with them. The simple leash and harness combo in the
photo is called a Weiss Walkie. The leash clips to the flat collar the dog
is wearing as normal, then it wraps around the dog’s chest and loops
back through a big silver ring.
When the dog pulls in this outfit it will squeeze the rib cage reminding
the dog not to pull. This tool is excellent for use before training can
take place, and for some dogs we’ll continue to use them throughout
their stay in the shelter. The same thing can be accomplished by using
an ordinary long leash, wrapping it around the ribs and pulling it
through itself on the dog’s back. It is not quite as effective as the real
Weiss Walkie but can work if you don’t have one handy.

57. Some dogs are inveterate pullers and pull so hard we choose
to use a front clip harness with them. While big dogs may be
assigned these harnesses, a surprising number of little dogs
are also dreadful pullers. There have been quite a few in the
shelters that will walk on their back legs they pull so hard! We
want to protect their throats from this kind of assault, so we
may opt to use a front clip harness. The leash is clipped to a
loop on the dog’s chest so that if he pulls he’s turned to the
side.
Most dogs learn that pulling isn’t as fun wearing these so they
allow the leash to remain slack. You’ll learn how to apply
them in your hands-on training or you can ask a volunteer
supervisor or behavior specialist to show you how.

59. Remember that while it can be a bit of a pain to
work through some of these challenges, the big
goal is to get them out where the fun happens.
Thank you so much for your cooperation and the
important, vital job you do.

61. These techniques and others will be included in
your Animal Handling Hands On class once
you’ve finished the slides shows you’ve been
assigned to watch. This overview should send
you to class with a good foundation so that
you’re ready to handle the dogs in class. Your
instructor will be there to guide you through it,
and soon you’ll be able to handle our shelter
dogs each time you come in to volunteer!

63. Next & Last Slideshow:
http://www.slideshare.net/s
ecret/1ntCbxb03Og2Ni