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December 2002 get a printer-friendly
(pdf) version HELP PADZ EARN MONEY Newsletter Submissions Send to newsletter@padz.org. Deadline: 25th of the month for the next month’s issue. Editor will consider all submissions, but does not guarantee inclusion. All About Dog Arguments Earlier this year the PADZ newsletter published a three-part series on the signals dogs use to calm each other and avoid conflict. Last month the PADZ newsletter contained an excerpt from Jean Donaldson’s book Mine! that described ritual aggression. I recommend reading these articles to have a better understanding of the brief descriptions noted here. When dogs socialize and play, sometimes arguments erupt. For the most part dogs resolve these on their own, with no injuries to anyone. After all, a highly social species doesn’t last long if they maim and kill each other. Dogs make use of ritualized aggression in play, and to solve problems without injuring each other. It’s important for owners to know about how dogs communicate with each other so that they know how to appropriately manage these situations. Inappropriate owner interference often makes things worse instead of better. I’m defining an argument as one where there is little or no actual mouth contact (but lots of noise and air snapping). I’m defining a fight as an altercation where one or both dogs have actually grabbed on with teeth. True fights are very rare with normally socialized dogs. Noisy arguments, however, do happen at dog parks, but rarely turn into fights. There are two situations that are the most common in which disagreements will arise, and that offer you the chance to head off an argument. The first is resource guarding. The most common resources a dog guards at a park are toys and it’s owner. The easiest way to avoid arguments in these situations is to remove the resource. Either remove the toy temporarily, or do not bring a toy at all to the park if your dog regularly gets in arguments over it. If an argument erupts in your immediate proximity, the best thing you can do is move away; remove yourself (the resource) so that the reason for the argument is gone. The second situation is the moment of greeting between dogs. This is where observing for calming signals is important. If you have a dog that is overly friendly and ignoring another dog’s signals (stiffness, lip licking, averting eyes, or even showing teeth or growling), then you should call your dog away in a calm manner. Do not be shocked if the other dog yells at your dog for being rude. That’s normal, and usually an effective way to improve your dog’s greeting behavior. If you see two dogs standing next to each other stiffly, averting their eyes, you’re best off letting them resolve it themselves. If you pet one or both dogs in an attempt at calming them your interference will most likely make it worse. If you call your dog and he doesn’t move, it’s because he doesn’t feel safe changing his position right away, so give your dog a few seconds to remove himself from the situation. What to do when an argument erupts: The most important thing you can do is STAY CALM. Don’t worry unless it goes over 3 or 4 seconds in duration, or if one dog is clearly getting terrorized. Keep out of it! That means no grabbing. Not only are you likely to make things worse by making one of the dogs move in a threatening manner (direct eye contact, facing the other dog head on, etc.), you’re in danger of getting injured accidentally by an air-snapping mouth full of teeth. Don’t yell the dog’s name repeatedly, it increases stress
in that dog, making it worse. Definitely don’t scream. Get close and yell “NO!” strongly, calmly, and repeatedly until the dogs stop (don’t continue it as a punishment). Move dogs away laterally, preferably without carrying or lifting, etc. Call the dog calmly away. You will have trouble getting a dog to turn it’s back on the other dog, so move to the side. If you really feel like to have to physically intervene, try to use an object. If you can’t, use your foot rather than your hand as it will keep your face farther away from their teeth. Pull at the rear of the dog on the flank if you must use your hands. Avoid grabbing one dog and not the other, even if it seems to be over. Be careful not to risk further injury by forcibly pulling dogs apart when one or both have a firm grip. I do not recommend physically intervening like this except as a last resort. Further reading: Mine! A Practical Guide to Resource Guarding in Dogs By Jean Donaldson On Talking Terms With Dogs: Calming Signals, by Turid Rugaas Aggression In Dogs: Practical Management, Prevention, and Behavior Modification, by Brenda Aloff “Break It Up” by Pat Miller, Whole Dog Journal Dec. 2002 Dog to Dog Aggression, video by Sue Sternberg |
Encinitas Holiday
Parade We would like everyone to be at our starting location by 5 P.M. PADZ is entry #57, and our starting location is on 2nd St. at the NW corner of G Street. Parking for parade entrants is available at the Silverado Senior Living or Ecke Sports Park on Saxony Drive, or at the Scripps Memorial Hospital parking lot at 351 Santa Fe Drive. A free shuttle will be running from 4:30 p.m. - 9 p.m. We are looking for someone (a spouse or friend?) to be our required volunteer monitor to be in front of our group to maintain spacing and movement of our group. We also need 2 people (spouses, friends, kids) to carry our banner in front of our entry. If you know of someone for these positions please call Lu Meyer at 436-3571. The theme of the parade this year is “A Sparkling Season of Peace”. The information that will be read about our group as we pass by the grandstand will refer to our dogs as angelic pets of peace. Participants are expected to wear something to support the entry's design. The "Thing" and Lu’s dog cart will be decorated with white lights, doves, garlands, and gold ribbons. Some of the participants will be wearing the PADZ sweatshirts. We would recommend that you wear something light in color, and we'd love it if you gussied up more than that. Another idea to consider is decorating your dog: a halo on their head or a bell on a ribbon around their neck. The people along the parade route love to see dogs in jackets with the dog’s name on it. Simplicity has a pattern for dog coats (#9520), or simply use a piece of fabric or felt cut in a rectangle, with velcro or ribbon to fasten it across the front and under the tummy, then letters can be glued to the fabric. You could also cover their collars with fabric, or bells could be attached with small safety pins. Check out Michaels, Target, Pet shops, Walmart etc. for ideas. Any questions, call Lu at 436-3571 or check with Adriana at Orpheus Park. A Message from the Chair We had a very successful annual meeting, attended by approximately 150 people. Special thanks to Mayor Christie Guerin and Councilperson Maggie Houlihan for their inspiring words. Our keynote speaker, Dennis Fetko, not only spoke at the meeting, but was still answering questions in the parking lot when I left at 10 P.M. Thanks Dennis. With the raffle and donations we added 59 cents short of $300. to our coffers. Donations: Laurie Michaels, Deb Polich, and Susan Willhoit paid Dennis Fetko's fee. Dawn Redman donated half of the cost for the community center. Aussie Pet Mobile, Dog and Suds, Puppy Love, Petco Encinitas, Seaside Bazaar, Dr. Dog, Isabella Brested, Joanne & Brian Matsumoto, and Lu Meyer donated items for the raffle. Kathy Norvell, Rhoda Venard, Markarit Esmailian, Laurie Talmo, and all the nice people who added cash to our donation jars. Special thanks to Laurie Michaels and her committee for doing such a great job I want to note the great contributions that our outgoing board members,
Marc Geffen, Harriet Seldin, and Marilyn Ambrose have made to our organization.
Marc will remain "of council" to keep us on the straight and
narrow legally. Harriet will continue doing PR for us, and Marilyn I'm
sure will be consulted for her writing skills and assisting us whenever
she can. Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving, and your holiday season is full of joy. See you in or at the Holiday Parade (you can still join us). Lu Meyer You can help! Write to local newspapers and politicians. Attend municipal meetings when dog parks are being discussed. Help educate fellow park users on dog park etiquette.
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