1. "Place" or "Go to your Bed" (the command I chose, because God forbid I stick with one word things, and "Bed" means go upstairs because we're going to bed.) "Go to your Bed" is understood to have an "And stay there" component, and is a good way to start out a visit, and even take breathers during a visit. From Elka's bed, she can see who is where, who has food, and who's coming through the door. Does she stay there without reiteration and leash help? No. But we're working on that.
2. Something to chew. Be it Dentastix or a bully stick (or cow ear), chewing can be focusing and occupying, and something that Elka will concentrate on exclusively for a little while. She doesn't tend to try to share one of these things with us, which is great, because with the application of dog saliva, they tend to smell like dead things.
3. A puzzle toy. Kong, Monster Mouth, or a Nina Ottoson-styled device. It's not a whole lot of food, it's some peanut butter (or cream cheese or tahini, whatever sticky thing you choose in the case of the Kong and Monster styles). These, Elka will sometimes give to you, perhaps with the understood notion of "Well, take the food out of there. Why does it have to be so hard?", and occasionally must be reminded that those toys are for "on the floor or on your bed", but again, it's a good ten minutes or so of Doberman focus. Longer, if I have the foresight to freeze one.
4. A tug toy. This is obviously not a solo activity, but Elka playing tug with me (and working on some obedience and self control things like Sit, Wait, Touch it, and Gentle) is better than her marauding the people on the couch. It's hard to roll dice (and count your successes) when you're dealing with Doberman impact.
5. Give her a place on the couch. If Elka has done all of these other things, and there's a spot on the furniture, Elka can, frequently, just settle down and go to sleep. Sometimes she lulls her seat mate into a false sense of security, and wiggle and lick attacks, but a lot of the time, she's just tuckered her self out and will go to sleep.
Good tips! We used to have a tie down embedded in our living room floor, just for this reason and we still have one by the door. Kolchak is a somewhat enthusiastic greeter and since he's built on a spring, he can jump up *and lick your nose*. Not bad for a dog that is less than knee high. We've also had really good luck with the Kongs. I try to always have a couple in the freezer, for "emergencies", though I'm not always prepared either.
ReplyDeleteI just never think to re-fill and freeze a Kong after it's been used. I think some of these visits would go a lot smoother if I'd remember such a thing! We've never used tiedowns, but mostly because I never thought of it until she was old enough we don't really need one.
DeleteWe bribe with bully sticks, it works every time
ReplyDeleteStop on by for a visit
Kari
http://dogisgodinreverse.com
We use bully sticks, but not all the time. Frequently, even the "odor free" ones reek horribly, and then we have to send her to the kitchen to consume it. And then she comes back and rubs her smelly muzzle on everybody.
DeleteKyuss is very much an enthusiastic greeter too. I employ tip #1 and tell him "on your bed" to which he obliges for the most part. He stands on his rug and tap dances for a good 5 minutes before he calms sown enough to greet people.
ReplyDeleteSometimes they do need that decompression, don't they? ^^
DeleteThose are all good suggestions. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteGreat tips - I especially like the Dentastix one - of course!!
ReplyDeleteThough, Mum has tried that with me and I'm actually more interested in who's coming than the Dentastix, I know, hard to believe - once they're in and I've greeted them I'm fine - I just want to say Hello - Mum just wishes I wasn't quite so eager! Doh!
Have a fun day,
Your pal Snoopy :)
Great ideas. Thunder's breeder does something for new people who enter her house full of Chessies (if you don't know, they can be a protective breed). She touches the new person's arm and tells the dog it is OK. I found this kind of cool. Chessies are not dogs that would generally jump on people but once they know you, they may bug you to throw something to retrieve...lol.
ReplyDeleteChessies sound like pretty smart dogs!
DeleteTelling Elka something is OK is what I do if she thinks something is going down outside. She barks once, I assess, then I say something "Thank you, they're across the street", and we're done.
excellent ideas. we're trying to desensitize desmond to the doorbell/change his association of it with people arriving by having one of us run with him to a back room to play/do tricks for treats whenever the bell rings (while the other opens the door). we're hoping once he starts thinking doorbell = treats, he'll be able to focus more on us and less on the arriving guests.
ReplyDeleteGreat ideas. Sometimes dogs that are excited at the door are also a bit nervous. So, giving them a job to do refocuses them. A word of caution...if your dog is acting aggressively at the door I would be very careful "distracting" with treats and bully sticks. There is a very good chance that a dog as smart as a doberman will misinterpret what the treat was for. "So, you LIKED my barking and growling and that's why I get the treat?" Instead I would recommend rewarding for going to Place instead of just distracting with the treat. Nice site.
ReplyDeleteElka doe not act aggressively, but good point on rewarding barking and growling. The incorrect connections don't need to be made, and if aggression at the doorway is occurring, more advice than what I'm giving hereis necessary!
DeleteThanks for stopping by.