Holidays are coming, so be sure to expect more people, food, and presents soon, but because dogs are sensitive to sounds and smells, they can get stressed out by all the new stuff happening around the holidays. Then, even the friendliest dogs might act withdrawn, or like they haven’t been trained at all.
It’s your responsibility as an owner to make sure that your dog’s training is reinforced as the holiday season comes around.
Signs of a Stressed Dog During Holidays
Some dogs seem to exhibit signs when the holiday celebrations that show they are stressed, and when you notice them, then you’ll have to reinforce their training.
- Shy behavior and low activity around visitors and people with unfamiliar smells.
- Inability to follow simple commands or rebellious behavior.
- Aggressive behavior towards new visitors.
- Inability to stay or relax in one place and hyperactivity around new visitors.
- The dog might start to exhibit gluttonous behaviour such as takingfoodo being prepared for the table.
Ways of Reinforcing Your Dog’s Training
You Should Build Their Comfort and Confidence
New smells and sounds can make them uncomfortable and less confident. And it can make your dog come out as aggressive or excessively shy, so it’s why we are advising you to find ways to make your canine friend confident and comfortable on the day of the celebration.
Practice Routine and Familiar Training
With the celebration day in sight, you must go over some routine practices to reinforce their training. Give them familiar commands and reward them for following them. Teach them once again how to behave around strangers.
Create A Resting Space for The Dogs
Another cool thing that seems to keep dogs calm and friendly is to create a space where they can rest after a lot of activity. This ensures that they don’t feel too cornered and helps them develop good regulation of their emotion.
Counter Hyperactivity with Lots of Exercise
If you’re the kind of person with a dog that gets hyperactive during the holiday season, making them run around, scattering decorations, jumping on visitors and knocking over food, then you need a way to reduce that energy.
You can do this by making them exercise daily to burn off any excess energy and, in the process, save your celebrations from a hyperactive dog wreaking havoc.
Inform Your Guest of Simple Rules Regarding Your Dog
Before the start of any celebration, it is good courtesy to inform your guests of the presence of a dog and also to lay some ground rules to protect them and your dog. You can post some rules in a place they are sure to see, telling them, for example, not to pet or feed the dog.
Make Sure to Supervise Every Interaction Between Kids and Dogs
Children and dogs interacting can be the cutest thing, but sometimes such an interaction doesn’t end well.
Choose Canine College for Your Dog’s Training Needs
Even if your dog loves kids, it’s still important to keep them on a leash and never allow unsupervised interactions between children and dogs, as simple precautions help keep everyone safe; make your holidays stress-free by trusting Canine College for all your dog training needs—contact us today at 781-767-3908 to learn more about our programs and schedule a session.
