We have now been quarantining and avoiding human contact for FIVE MONTHS! I, like many other trainers, thought the biggest problem I would encounter with my training clients was the onset of behavioral issues due to lack of socialization, especially in young puppies. Or perhaps the development of separation anxiety because we’re constantly home with our dogs now. But that actually hasn’t been the case!
Why isn’t lack of socialization causing problems? Well, maybe we are being creative in finding new ways to socialize our dogs. Walks haven’t stopped because we can still do that safely outside. I haven’t seen a lack of sign-ups in my group puppy classes so training and socialization are still being done that way. And some of us are still visiting close family and friends. Or perhaps, we just haven’t been in quarantine long enough for these effects to be obvious yet.
That, too, may be the reason we haven’t seen much separation anxiety arise. Many of us haven’t left back for work yet! But every single year, thousands of dogs go through this phase of suddenly having more people at home. Families that have a teacher or students that are home for the summer in the household go through the same short-lived constant companionship and mostly fare well through it.
I think these issues are still very true and we should still work to make sure we don’t mess our pups up during our work-from-home stage. However, the biggest question I am getting from my training clients all of a sudden has to do with puppy tantrums via biting outbursts.
How Do I Calm My Dog Down?
“My puppy all of a sudden goes nuts on my shoes and bites the crap out of them while we’re walking.”
“My puppy shows teeth and snaps when I reach to take something from them or get them off the couch.”
“My puppy gets aggressive out of nowhere and starts attacking me with their teeth!”
In the past, I hardly got this complaint. Maybe one out of every 8 puppy clients. Now, it’s about 3 out of 5! And I am also getting these reports about dogs who are now technically teenagers, older than 5 months, when biting has usually decreased!
I can’t, with full certainty, tell you why this is happening, but I have a theory.
Now that we are home much more, we are not giving our dogs as much structure. Maybe we are crating less than ever before because we are home. This allows our dogs more opportunities to do inappropriate things, like jump on the couch or steal our shoes, which leaves us open to needing to correct them all day long. This can be frustrating, not only for the puppies but the humans as well. For our dogs, frustration can manifest through mouthy behaviors like biting.
We are also giving our dogs way more stimulation than ever before. When we were still going into the office, our dogs would have long hours left alone ready to take more naps and learn to self-soothe. Now, even when we are busy working, our pets are constantly stimulated by our noises and movements because we are in the house, sometimes the same room. We are now disturbing their daily naps. And if you’re like me, you get grumpy when sleep-deprived, and so do our dogs. This higher rate of stimulation also doesn’t allow our dog’s nervous system to get as much rest which can cause our dogs to go into overdrive and manifest in escalated behaviors and biting.
Or who knows, maybe the universe has a plan and we will soon be taken over by our canine companions. Because, you know…2020.
So, what do we do to stop this trend?
How to Calm Overstimulated Dogs
- Be sure to proactively reward your pets for naturally giving you good behaviors. Don’t fall into the mistake of only reacting and giving attention when your dog does inappropriate things. That’s a good way for them to learn inappropriate behaviors always lead to them getting attention. And any attention, though you’re mad, is attention!
- Practice hyping your dog up in play so you can practice calming into behaviors like sit and down. When your dog naturally hypes up, they now have had practice calming down and will be able to comply to your request easier.
- Practice a conditioned relaxation exercise. Sit down with some of your pup’s kibble and reward any behavior your dog makes on their own to become slightly calmer than the second before. You won’t ask your dog to do anything specific. Rather, just wait for them to become more relaxed. Maybe they decided to finally sit, or remain still for 5 seconds. If your dog decides to move into a less relaxed state, no biggie, just ignore it and wait for the next calm behavior. We want your dogs to make these decisions on their own.
- Consider crating or rest times in a different room than your work station. Play some soothing music to try to drown out the noise you might be making. Or take walks or run errands for about an hour while your dog stays at home completely alone without you as a distraction.
- Practice “leave it” for everyday household items that might be enticing for your pet. When playing, or out for a walk, practice having your pup sit and calm down BEFORE they have the chance to escalate into overstimulation and bite mode.
These are interesting times we are living in, not just for us, but for our dogs too. What are some other behaviors you are noticing through this pandemic? Or what are some things you do to keep your dog calm at home?
Find more dog training tips here:
Ask a Trainer: How Do I Get My Dog to Stop Barking?
Easy But Cute Dog Tricks to Learn at Home
