Austin Dog Boarding

Play Styles and Making the Right Match for Your Current Dog

Below is a video of Nadine.  It was initially thought she did not get along with other dogs but we shortly found out she is simply a young and inexperienced dog with great people skills but needs to learn skills with other dogs.  With proper introductions to new dogs and initial supervision she did great with other dogs.

Somewhere in her past she learned that if you bark and lunge dogs move away. We worked on slow introductions keeping her at a distance where she was relaxed and and showing no reaction (critial distance).  We rewarded her for remaining calm and focused on the handler by using a clicker and treats to reinforce the desired behavior.

She did not show any resource (food/toys) guarding towards other dogs but did have slight barrier aggression.  She responded beautifully to verbal corrections, even while playing with other dogs.  She used her paws a lot in play and for  many dogs it shows lack of respect and could be taken the wrong  by some dogs.

You can see she plays more rough with the 5 month old puppy than she does a dog that is closer to her size.  One interesting thing to note about Nadine while playing with the puppy is that she's not nipping or biting the puppy but nuzzling and rubbing on her.

Nitro outweighs Nadine by about 50 pounds.  Just as she did with Maggie the puppy, she's still trying to be "on top" but is not a successful with Nitro as she was the smaller puppy.  Nitro is a playful,but very calm and has excellent human and dog interaction skills.  Nitro is my "teflon" dog.  Look for the calming signals Nitro gives off during their play time and see if you know what they are.  Nadine is respectful of him and also takes corrections from him more readily than she might a younger, higher energy dog.

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