Squatting down is simply showing a bit of respect, I’m not giving the dog a reason to attack.. The world is a big place to a Chihuahua, I like to make it a little smaller. I’ve never been attacked while squat down in front of a dog and being calm – and if the dog chose to attack, I wouldn’t stand a chance.
I’m seeing more scared and anxious dogs at dog parks and in public in general over the years. This is the outcome of dog training – people are trying to train a dog that they don’t have a relationship with – it’s backward. I’ve crossed the street to go meet a pitbull. And owners are so appreciative that I squat down and let the dog choose to come to me. Some dogs don’t want your affection, they just want to have a good hard sniff and I let them then they are on their way. I love it. One scared pitbull at a park, I laid flat out on the ground and let her sniff me from head to foot. She came to me for affection when I sat up. And every time I see her, she comes to me for affection. When she sees me, I squat down. She gives a lick to the face once in a while. Better yet, that one instance with me got her to open up and she’s much more apt to approach people now. Dog parks are the best therapy there is, nothing like being surrounded by a pack of dogs to screw a smile on ones face. And owners are so shocked that their scared dog comes to me.
If people watched the Josie video, you would notice something. The first time she came to me, I was squat down. It was her choice to come to me, I’m not performing magic, just giving her time to make a choice. I called her over again while bent over at the waist, not squat down and she didn’t like that at all. But squat down and she’s coming in. Squatting down is giving the dog a bit of respect. I’m not scared, I’m not a threat, some dogs need a minute or two. Some need hours. Entering a back yard is a worst case scenario for many of these dogs, I’m going to see them at their worst, I need to in order to make things better. What’s causing all this? Some at their worst are impressive to witness, many others are diagnosed “aggressive” and I can’t find a reason why. She wasn’t great in a dog park – but I’m doing what the owner wanted. Josie is going to get what she needs – a good change up in exercise. I’m there to find out if Josie has any intent to harm while under stress – and the answer is no. The owners are happy now that they understand that they don’t need to fear her. She gets the right exercise that a growing Dobie needs, and she loves the flirt pole to boot.
Trainers laugh cause Josie is pulling me down the street. Frankly, I don’t care – it’s all assessment – I need to understand why all this is happening? What you’re seeing is a combination of fear and lack of mental exercise. I don’t care about behaviours, all animals have those. I don’t care that a dog is showing aggression, I’ve had girlfriends that showed aggression. I care why – and why is a question that isn’t answered anymore.
I love watching Monty in a dog park, he’s got freedom of choice. It’s his time, not mine, get out and be a dog. If he wants to sniff around, go for it. If he wants to meet dogs, he can feel free to do so. With people he’s interesting, no fear at all. But he will always go to people for affection that are squat down. People that stand up, he usually doesn’t bother. Is that the way I made him? No idea, but I have no problem with that attitude. Same for kids, I always ask children to squat down and call him over. He will never deny a child, especially if they have a piece of food. Parents have offered me good money for Monty, they couldn’t believe how he was with their kids, even babies. Nothing bothers him. And I trust him in every new environment.
When these “aggressive” dogs get in my face and i’m squat down, I’m reading the dog, if the dog had any intent to harm at all, I wouldn’t have made it into the back yard at all. I don’t need to fear the dog – it doesn’t mean they can’t scare me in the moment – and some have. When I was squat down and Cody got up close and personal, I wasn’t sure what was going to happen. He’s a bit hard to read at times. But he became great with me, he learned to respect me. One episode of fear on the walk and that was it. And I would squat down during the walk, especially if the dog is having a moment. Dogs barking behind a fence, no big deal. Everything became not a big deal. People walking by, not a big deal. Why?
With Minnie, she was scared. I knew she had no intent to harm at all, it was all show and I knew bringing her owner out wouldn’t be an issue. He vouched for me, and she accepted. I’m always amazed at how much can be walked out of a dog. During the early walk, I would squat down and she would come to me. I want dogs to understand that they can come to me, look to me when they are scared. At some point, she didn’t need to come to me anymore, she would only look to me. At some point she said “I got this” and didn’t need to look to me. Took her for 24 hours to get her socialised and develop some social skills. Didn’t take her long to be barging in everywhere like she owned the place. Starting out, I would go squat down next to people, she made the choice to join me cause she trusts me.
If you want a nervous dog to come to you, and to trust you, try squatting down and being calm and quiet. Give the dog the choice, that’s what’s missing today. If more people did that, it greatly helps the dog. The dog never gets a choice because they aren’t trusted – and that’s not their fault.