23/06/2025
Let’s talk about what socialisation really means 👣🐾🐾
It’s a term that I find many people struggle to understand.
Quite often, it can be confused with simply introducing our pups or adopted dogs to as many other dogs as possible, usually through play, sometimes to the point of over-arousal. While we understand that as dog owners you want your dogs to be able to play, the learning process of how to meet and interact appropriately with other dogs is a valuable part of socialisation, but by the same token it is only a small piece of the jigsaw to a much bigger picture.
We live in a world where human perception of how our dogs are expected to greet, play, and behave politely with every dog they see but sometimes without the underpinning socilaisation/training. By constantly encouraging these interactions, we can unintentionally create a dog who sees every other dog as a guaranteed source of excitement and stimulation.
This is NOT socialisation
True socialisation is better understood as way to help our dogs navigate their new world so they feel safe, calm and able to build on their confidence in a postive way.
Such as;
🌦 Weather
🪵 Different surfaces underfoot
🐄 Other animals/livestock
🚶 Crowds of people of differing ages, movement styles, clothing, hats, glasses
🔊 Noises
👃 Scents
This is the heart of what true socialisation is
Think of it as accepting, not reacting.
Confident, not overwhelmed.
Building positive associations, not overstimulation.
That’s what real socialisation looks like.
It lays the foundation for a calm, resilient, and well-rounded dog and this is how we help you and your pup develop on your relationship together during our group session.
Feel free to contact us for more information 🐾🐾
