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Who Are You? Getting to See the Dog Beneath the Stress of the Shelter
At last month’s HoundTable, Jen Walker gave some amazing tips to being able to see the real dog, underneath the behaviors which may initially be expressed in a shelter setting (like stress, fear or “shut-down”).
Watch this video clip and then join the conversation…
What other ideas do you have to get to know the dog in front of you when you are working, volunteering or visiting a shelter?
@jenz @jenwalker @steph @bmacwatt @ktinan @abbie
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3 Replies
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Sometimes it can help to have a well-socialized dog present. By walking by with a calm, non- reactive dog it can sometimes cause a positive response or just a response to get some info. I have seen this work in more of a positive manner but, is can have it’s risks.
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Great tip, @jenz – my Joy worked side-by-side with me when I was working at a busy shelter. She was sooo helpful with the dogs who were shut down. “Pancaked” we called them. Poor things. Joy would come in, quietly sniff them, offer superb arced body language, head dips, lolling tongue and sparkling eyes and they’d always find their feet and follow her, at least a little. A social, space-respecting dog like her is solid gold in a stressfilled environment for those overwhelmed dogs.
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Having that sort of dog ambassador to help us can make all the difference. As much as we diligently study canine body language, no matter how good we get at it, we are never truly fluent!
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