Setting Your Dog Up for Success in New Experiences
@sunshinedogcare and I recently took the dogs to Monhegan Island in Maine. It’s absolutely beautiful and dog friendly, but requires a ferry ride to access.
Two out of three dogs had been on a boat before. I knew Ares, who hadn’t been on a boat before, would be nervous without the right support. Even though I didn’t have a boat to practice with before the trip, there were other skills we could practice beforehand that would help regulate him through the process.
The following are the well practiced skills I used to help support him during his first boat experience.
🎾 I played with him right before we got on. We regularly go to new/stimulating places and play. This is a normal thing for him and an activity that has been used to help him regulate around a variety of distractions and stressors.
🧠 I used words and sequences he knew well to get him across the ramp, on the boat, up the stairs, past the other passengers, and to lay at my feet.
🐕 Once we settled in our seats I massaged him in a way that I do on a regular basis after we play.
🍗 When he is nervous he is less likely to take food, but I did offer high value food rewards multiple time throughout the trip. Initially he declined, but over time he became much more eager to take the food rewards. Anytime there were changes in the environment I would give him a food reward.. This helped him regulate himself and build positive associations with this new experience.
By the end of the ride there he was able to lay with his head down and relax. On the way back he just slept the whole time.
If I had a different lifestyle with him he could not have done this trip. He would have gotten nervous and had no way to recover. Since we regularly play and train in new and stimulating places he knows how to overcome stress with me. The skills used to help him regulate his emotions were familiar and comforting to him because we practice them every week.
Having two calm dogs with us that he knows and loves was a huge help too!