A Howl’oween good time
Halloween is a fun human activity but what do our dogs think of all of the festivities?
Dogs like to know what to do in situations and this causes them to predict what will happen, often getting themselves into trouble if they struggle with any interactions outdoor like seeing dogs, bikes, kids running ect.
This can cause them to find the novel, scary and strange events of halloween challenging. There is so much going on during the trick or treating time that our dogs are often left to “fend for themselves” when faced with scary situations.
Even walking before the busy trick or treat time can be eventful with all the scary motion sensor figures, big spiders, pumpkins and other spooky decorations, your dog may be stressed even before the “big event”. It is no wonder that once the door starts knockin’ or the fireworks start poppin’ that your dog is Howlin’.
So how can we support our dog in this stressful time?
There are many things that we can do to help our dogs to navigate this spooky season.
Teaching our dogs to be calm and settled.
What does your dog do throughout the day? If you strive to grow calmness in your dog that is going to be their “go to” choice for behaviours. What this means is when your dog is not playing, training or interacting with you what are they doing? This time is best spent growing calmness in 3 different ways
Active rest- that recovery sleep that is so important, especially with a dog that is constantly “doing”
Passive rest- I call this the in between time, when your dog needs a bit of help going from “track star to nap star”, try scatter feeding, snuffle mats, filled toppl and bones, tracheas, lick mats, dehydrated treats, scent work, puzzle toys and long-lasting chews.
Down Time- this is when I like to train calmness with a boundary or while I work. I reward my dog for their calmness using their food. Capturing these times of calm and rewarding it (without saying anything) helps the dog understand that good things come when they are calm. Then that predicting kicks in and they try to predict when you will reward them again, watch for the “fake” calm LOL.
2. Growing skills like optimism, confidence and disengagement
This can set our dogs up for success in any new, scary or stressful situation and it is so much fun to be able to train different concepts to reshape their brain. A dog’s level of optimism can determine how they react to:
• A new or unusual object (an umbrella, a jack-o-lantern, a new object in the house, an existing object moved to a different location in the house)
• A particular person (size, shape, beard, hat, coat or anything new)
• A knock at the door or the ring of a doorbell
The more optimistic your dog is the better they think every situation is going to be!
How awesome would that be to have a dog that is happy and able to roll through many different situations with ease.
3. Be Prepared!
Even if you have all the skills, calmness and an easy going dog it is best to prepare your dog for the excitement.
Make sure that you give them a toilet break before dark and before all the activities start (especially fireworks if those are a struggle)
ALWAYS have your dog on lead in these unpredictable situations (even if recall is excellent)
Skip dinner in a bowl ( forever LOL) and find ways to use your dogs food for enrichment when there is stuff going on and provide them a calm, quiet place with background music if they like that. Some ides for enrichment would be stuffing bones, tracheas, toppls, scatter feeding or a snuffle mat, lick mats, puzzle toys, long lasting chews or playing some hide n seek with their food really gets their brain working and will tire them out even if you can’t walk on halloween night.
4. Practice with a spooky surprise party (this does not mean scare your dog)
If your dog finds new items or halloween decorations scary help them out by growing their confidence in a safe space (like your home) before you put your decorations out lay them out and scatter food through out them so your dog can wander through the items happily eating their food. If they find this too hard scatter it on the outside of the pile of items and let them grow their comfort before tossing food into the items.
If you have your items out already then have dinner out front with your dog eating their food around the decorations (if you have motion items turn them off ) once they are comfortable I would turn on motion items and have someone activate it while you are farther away and reward your dog. If they are scared I would move away till they can look in the direction and take rewards, this may be a big distance and if that is the case then I would look to alternate options for this halloween like leaving your dog home while you go out maybe with a yummy meaty bone in a safe area.
If you want to learn how to grow skills and reshape your dogs brain then book a call to find out if we are a good fit and which program would be best for you and your dog.
Training is a lifestyle not a season, there is always something to learn .
Gameify your life!
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If you want a Howl’oween recipe ebook for some great ideas to make for your dog enter your info below.
