Set Your Dog Up for Success This Holiday Season

Holidays mean getting together with friends and family. If you have a dog and plan on hosting a holiday gathering this year, this article is for you.

Every year during the holiday season, my inbox receives a flurry of frantic messages of people reporting embarrassing, inconvenient, or concerning behavior from their dogs.

From obnoxiously jumping on guests to growling at Grandpa, many of our dogs behave (seemingly) bizarrely in front of company.

Most of the time, these issues could have been avoided with knowledge and preparation. Read on to learn how to avoid common mistakes and set your dog up for success this holiday season.

 1)  Overstimulation = obnoxious behavior

While some of your holiday guests may be more tolerant than others, most people do not enjoy being body slammed by an excited dog as they enter your home.

Jumping up, frantic face licking, pawing, and high-pitched barking are behaviors of an excited and overstimulated dog.

Most people mistake this exuberant behavior as friendly. While your dog may be social, friendly, and enjoy guests, this level of stimulation is not good for your guests or your dog.

Your friends and family may tolerate these wild displays, but these behaviors can escalate into dangerous ones. Excited face licking can turn into excited nipping and jumping can escalate to full on tackling.

Don’t let your dog practice these problematic behaviors and prevent these problems with the following techniques.

• Reduce energy levels by thoroughly exercising your dog before guests arrive.

  
  

  Let them get out their zoomies and then some. Follow up rigorous exercise with quiet rest and recovery. Ensure they get proper sleep after exercise to avoid tipping into overstimulation.

•   Restrict your dog’s access to guests, until they are in a calm state of mind.

  
  

  Instead of letting your dog tackle guests as they enter, keep them at a distance either on leash or behind a barrier to prevent obnoxious behavior.

  
  

  Let your dog work through their excitement on their own and only allow them to interact with guests once they have settled down.

•   Redirect your dog’s excitement by giving them a delicious, long-lasting treat to enjoy alone as guests arrive.

NOTE: If you give your dog a high value treat, make sure they are in a separate room, area, or in a crate to enjoy it. High value treats can trigger resource guarding behavior in ANY dog, so please let them have space to enjoy it alone. Do not let guests, children, or other pets bother your dog when they have a high value goodie.

I’m a big fan of frozen licky mats for this type of situation, as licking promotes self-soothing and releases calming chemicals in your dog’s body.

• Remove stimulation if needed. If your dog is struggling to calm down when guests are present, consider removing an element of stimulation.

  
  

  For example, if your dog is easily stimulated by sounds, consider securing them in a crate or back bedroom with a sound machine/ white noise maker on.

  
  

  If your dog is easily stimulated by movement, consider covering their crate with a blanket.

  
  

  If your dog gets overstimulated by physical touch, ask guests to refrain from petting or giving affection until the dog is in a calmer state of mind.

  
  

  By removing elements of stimulation, we can help our dogs process the excitement without being overwhelmed.

2) Stealing+ begging for food

Food stealing, counter surfing, and begging, are common complaints from many of my clients during the holiday season. Dogs love snacks just as much as we do and sometimes the temptation is too great to resist.

Many of our common human foods are toxic to dogs and could result in a very expensive and untimely trip to the ER vet. The good news is that these behaviors can be easily prevented.

Set your dog up for success by removing their access to areas of the house where food is set out. You will be busy with your guests and likely be unable to monitor your dog the entire time.

Consider using baby gates, doors, or other barriers to contain your dog to a specific part of the house where they cannot have access to the food.

During mealtimes, consider giving your dog a special holiday treat, like a bully stick or enrichment toy in a separate room to enjoy.

Don’t let them circle the table and harass guests for food. Be sure to communicate with your guests that your dog is not allowed to have any human food.

If you choose to give your dog appropriate food scraps, do so privately or after guests have left to avoid confusion and accidents. I’ve had many an upset client whose guests accidentally fed the dog something toxic.

This is a terrible, but common occurrence, as many people are unaware of safe foods for dogs.

Avoid unnecessary stress by clearly communicating with your guests, removing access to areas where food is laid out, and offering your dog their own treat to enjoy privately.

3) Aggression+wariness towards guests

Many dogs who are friendly, warm, and loving towards their own families are wary, uncomfortable or even aggressive towards guests in their home. While this reality clashes with our idealized version of dogs, “no new friends” is the default setting for the canine species.

While some breeds (generally speaking!) and individuals may be warm and open to guests in the home, many wonderful canine companions struggle with new people invading their home environment.

Even if your dog takes a treat from someone, sniffs their hand, or allows a pet, does not mean they are comfortable with the guests.

Many people are unaware their dog is uncomfortable with guests until an incident occurs. Snapping, growling, or even biting a guest can happen when a dog feels scared or threatened.

Most people are not good at reading dog body language and miss obvious signs of stress, so the aggression appears to “come out of nowhere”.

Here are some warning signs to watch for that indicate your dog is uncomfortable:

-whale eye (whites of the eye are visible)

-lip licking, yawning

-turning away

-crouching, getting low to the ground

-frantic face licking (kiss to dismiss- please go away)

-tail tucked

-ears back or pointed in alert

-lip pucker

-stiff, tight body language.

-exposing belly with tail tucked (fawning)

More information on signs of stress or discomfort in canines here.

If you notice any of these behaviors, calmly remove your dog from the guests and let them have quiet time in a back bedroom or quiet room of the house.

While it’s possible to help your dog feel more comfortable with guests in the home, a holiday gathering is not the time or place to do so. This type of training takes time and patience, neither of which are available while you’re busy hosting a party.

If you have children visiting and are unsure how your dog will react, always err on the side of caution and excuse your pup from the party. It’s better for your dog to have a boring day than make a mistake and bite your niece.

Even if your dog is generally comfortable around children, never leave dogs and kids unsupervised. Friendly dogs can make mistakes too.

With a little planning and preparation, you and your pup can easily avoid these stressful situations. Know your dog and set them up for success by creating an environment that encourages the right behaviors and prevents the unwanted ones.