Dogs jump.
They lunge, they grab, they chew, they snarl, they chase … we’re not telling you anything you don’t already know.
For most of us, there’s been a dog — or two — who’s made us uncomfortable, if not downright scared.
Sure, jumping, grabbing and chewing can be the friendly behaviors of an excited dog with peaceful intentions. Most of the time, that’s exactly what they are.
But what happens when you’re trapped in a situation with a dog that’s making you uncomfortable? In the moment, it really doesn’t matter if the dog means harm or not. If you feel nervous, you’ve got a situation on your hands.
The answer is so easy, it’s almost laughable. And like most solutions to problems — especially those regarding dogs — it’s all about having the presence of mind to respond properly.
Here’s what you do: Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Don’t look at the dog. Don’t talk to/yell at the dog. Don’t kick or wave your arms. Don’t run.
Don’t engage the dog in any way.
This is exactly what we tell school children, based on the excellent dog-bite prevention program from Doggone Safe: Be a tree.
Pretend your arms are branches and fold them into your body. Pretend your feet are tree roots and stare down at them.
You see, there’s a secret you should know about dogs: They don’t repeat a behavior if there’s no reward in it for them.
If a dog is jumping on you, and you don’t look at him, talk to him, or “play” with him (to an excited dog, kicking and waving your arms is great fun!), we’ll bet you 10-to-1, the dog will turn his back on you and go away. Because you’re nothing but a boring tree.
We’ve demonstrated this to school children with our Pit Bull Ambassador, Timmy. We run toward him and away from him, yelling his name and waving our arms. And every time, Timmy gets super excited and jumps on us. (The kids love this part!)
Then we immediately “be a tree” and Timmy instantly calms down, and finds something else to focus his attention on.
We’d like to take credit for training him to do this but the truth is, he does it on his own.
Because dogs don’t repeat a behavior unless there’s a reward in it for them.
And being ignored is not a reward.
So. “Be a tree” the next time you’re uncomfortable around a dog, or even just want your own dog to stop jumping on you.
We think you’ll be impressed with how quickly it works.
And if you know of a school that would like to have us visit with Timmy and present the “Be a Tree” program, please email us: ContactUs@DogsHomePA.org
How have you handled uncomfortable situations with dogs? Let us know in the comments section below.
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