natural pet
Misbehaving Dog Walks WAYS HUMANS GET IT WRONG
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by Karen Shaw Becker
O
ne of the primary activities we do with canine family members is to take walks because they love them and benefit from them. But just as some dogs, for a variety of reasons, are difficult to walk, some people are less-thanideal dog walkers. When we’re teaching our canine BFFs how to behave at the end of a leash, most of us aren’t nearly as concerned with our own behavior during these outings. We assume we’re doing everything right, and it’s our furry sidekicks that need correcting. But believe it or not, we’re just as capable of bad behavior during walks as the other way around. Here are a few reasons why. NOT ALLOWING SNIFF TIME. A dog’s most acute sense is that of smell. She 26
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explores and experiences the world through her nose. Smell is a dog’s “first sense”, much as sight is ours. Just as we depend on our eyes to inform us of the world around us, dogs depend on their noses. If we can imagine how it would feel to take walks with our eyes half-closed, then we can empathize with how it feels to our dog to be prevented from stopping to sniff things. It’s unnatural, slightly intimidating and, ultimately, boring. Dogs need lots of outdoor sniffing opportunities to help them learn about the world around them and stimulate their minds. For a change of pace, instead of a normal walk, try taking the dog on a “sniffari”, letting him take the lead. Allow him to sniff whatever he pleases and make all the navigational and investigational decisions. IGNORING THE DOG. Unfortunately, there are pet parents that do everything but pay attention to their dogs during walks. The daily activity becomes so routine that they do it without giving much thought to the furry fellow at the other end of the leash. This is a bad habit primarily for the danger it can pose to the dog that is often busy looking for dead or possibly deadly things to pick up in his mouth or interesting places to lift his leg (like a car door).
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