First Dog Park Trip

[Ali]

So Lola is 4 months old, and recently finished her round of puppy shots, so I have been taking Lola on more outings to socialize. For example, I took her to go visit a puppy, my friends dog, to the park with my friends dog (and view few other dogs), and walks. I also live in an apartment complex that has a walking trail that all of the residents use to walk their dogs, she socialize with them as well (they are all medium size dogs).

So I felt pretty confident about taking her to the dog park for her first time today. But... it didn't go as well as I planned. Most of the dogs there were medium to big dogs with a few small dogs, all very friendly and wanting to play with Lola. However, Lola did not seem to enjoy it. Anytime a dog came running up to meet her she would run off yelping and wanting to hide behind me or anyone for protection. The dogs don't even have to touch her, she will just yelp, and it sounds like the dogs were killing her.

Is this normal? What should I do to help her be more confident and just have fun? I want to be able to take her to the dog park again, but it just seems like she is horrified. Help!!!!

[Margo]

Hi Ali, Lily (a few weeks younger than Lola) has been playing with the three golden retrievers that live in the house that backs up to ours. When she first met them she yelped and took refuge between my legs. The next time she let them get closer to her and she didn't whine as much and rolled on her back. Now, a couple of weeks later it has progressed to where she loves her playtime with them every afternoon.It was like they had to work the whole pack order thing out in their own way, on their own clock.If I were to guess, Lola isn't really as horrified as she is just excited and doing what the little guys do when meeting new dogs. I bet you two will be having a blast at the dog park very soon!

[diane silver]

Ali, when I read your post it reminded me so much of Emma's trips to the dog park. She is a week shy of five months old and I've been bringing her to socialize at a local "dog park" almost daily. She is what I would call a "drama queen" and when one or more big dogs approach her she'll often do the same as your Lola - squeal with her tail between her legs and run away. However, eventually she finds a playmate and thoroughly enjoys the interaction. It seems that dogs just know which ones are their size and I would bet that if you continue bringing Lola to the park, she'll begin to really enjoy it. I think it's been a wonderful experience for Emma and she just loves seeing her "friends." Keep doing it and I'll bet you that after a couple more times, she'll really build her confidence and have fun!

[Maryann,Roo and Tigger]

When I first took Roo to the dog park, he sat in the corner or tried to climb my leg. When I did not pick him up he then visited each and every person to see if they would protect him from the big bad dogs. It was hard but I just kept taking him. I tried to time it so that it wasn't as crowded at first, but this did not always work. He will get used to it. Just be careful not to baby him or let him know you are afraid. Good Luck

[Ali]

Thank you all for your encouragement. I took Lola to the dog park today for the second time and she did so much better. She found some friends and even tested out the water with her feet. She played nice with most of the dogs, any dogs I got a bad "vibe" from I walked away and made Lola follow. I feel so much better now... but still worried at the same time. When we were at the dog park a dog fight broke out, it sounded bad from across the park. It was a pit bull that started the fight. That really scares me something like that could happen to my Lola. How do you guys deal with this? Do you guys have insurance for you pups in case of injury? and if so, what kind do suggest? I don't know if I am going to go back to the dog park until I have insurance for her.

[Priscilla]

Hey guys.... just wondering how exactly apporached bringing your pups to the dog park or around other dogs? My puppy is scared of ALL dogs... he even cowers in a corner in puppy class! In fact... my dog just ran to my housewith his tail between his legs away from a tiny corgi!

How do you guys start... do you bring your dog on the leash or off the leash? Do you just watch from outside until he is comfortable (if so how do you know he is comfortable) or bring your pup right in? Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated!

[Lindsey, Lee, Whopper and Simba]

Whopper was initially really intimidated and would definitely be very submissive and hide up against the fence or behind anyone's legs who would protect her. Now, we are always aware of the other dogs in the dogpark before we decide whether or not to venture in. Typically, we keep Whopper on her leash until we get inside the first gate. If a bunch of dogs run to the gate, I keep the gate closed until Whopper sniffs them a bit and they sniff her just to give the dogs a chance to settle a bit. I then let her of the leash when we enter the main area. Whopper has now adjusted and absolutely loves it but she is particularly happy when there are other doodles, golden retrievers, and poodles. I guess she's drawn to those like her. I will say that we are never reluctant to leave even if we've just arrived if things don't feel right. Just yesterday, someone came with a very old dog that appeared to either have injuries or serious arthritis. Anytime a dog came near that dog which was just lying down, it would bark and try and nip at them. Since Whopper is still a puppy and doesn't necessarily know when someone isn't so friendly, we left, took a walk, and came back a little later. Always trust your instincts and take note of how the other dogs are playing.

[fergie11]

This happened to me too. When Fergie was younger, because she was so submissive, she most of the time on her back. So, we stopped for quite a few months actually. Now just last week I took her back - she's now a year old - and she loved it. She played great with the other dogs and we had a great time. (But she was the cutest dog at the park - just have to wait for the snobby people who don't like "designer dogs".)

[Jennifer Goaring]

I see this is an older discussion but hoping if I reply to it, it will pop up closer tot he top of the list and maybe we can get some new replies! (Seems better than starting a whole new thread on the same topic.)

So I have been wondering how one decides when their puppy is ready for the dog park... I have no idea how Sammy would do off leash and whether I can trust her to come when called. She seems to have a good recall at home, but I haven't tested it in an environment with dogs all running around. We do go to puppy classes but that is such a contained area that it doesn't seem like a good test.

I would be very scared about a run in with a bigger, adult dog... not sure I would be able to get him back on a leash and get him out of there if needed. Would like to find a doodle romp so at least I could have some sort of familiar faces (from here!) to turn to if needed, but the timing of the most recent one in my area didn't work with my work schedule.

I like the idea of letting him run, play & get better socialized... but just not sure how to proceed. Any tips would be great! When did you all bring your pups to an off leash dog park for the first time?

Jen G.

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

Hi Jennifer ... First of all, your puppy is beautiful. Just went to see your pics. That being said, I had these same fears when we were going to take our girls to the dog park for the first time. I had never been to one. Turns out I didn't need to worry about their coming when called because they never left our side for a second hardly. To this day, they don't run and play with other dogs when we go to romps, they just sort of hang with us. We have stopped going to dog parks, but do hit the occasional doodle romp.

My suggestion would be that maybe you start at a slow time at the dog park. They always have an area for small dogs, and if there weren't any dogs in there, possibly you could start there and see how the recall is and then if there weren't any really big dogs in the main area you could maybe move on over. Not sure how many parks there are in your area, but I would just pick one that isn't really large to begin with and you can see him the whole time.

Hopefully some others that frequent dog parks more often will jump in with some suggestions as well.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Have you enrolled Lola in a Puppy Kindergarten class? I think that is a great way to start socializing them because it's so much more controlled than the Dog Park. In most of these classes there is a good portion of time devoted to letting them explore each other. I believe they gain confidence and really learn how to "play" with other dogs.

[jose israel lewis]

i took coco today to the dog park... again this would be her second time and today was so much easier she run with me a lil but still has a problem walken behind me she will pull the colar but when i behind her give her a light tap she will go.... lol but she played with all the dogs/// her tail wagged and she enjoyed it so much... best of luck to you

[Terri H and Kramer]

Our first trip to the dog park was scary too! The first few times we stood outside the fence and just watched and sniffed. Then when we ventured inside, a big group of large adult dogs (Kramer was 4 months and intact) cornered and bullied him til we had to leave! We kept going, and it got better every time, but there are still times when we lasted only a few minutes. Sometimes there might be a very old fragile dog, or one that Kramer feels the need to hump, or a group of aggressive-breed (like pitbulls) dogs that tend to bully the others. I didn't worry as much after he was neutered, but the length of time we stay depends on the vibes I get and how he behaves. I always try to walk his energy out before we go to the dog park too. That makes a big difference on his excitement level and his behavior. I LOVE the doodle romps, not only for the familiar faces but doodles tend to hang out together and ignore the other dogs! Knowing how much we all love our doodles and all the stuff I learn from doodle parents always makes for a great doggie-park day! Just remember to trust your gut, if something doesn't feel right then come back another time. This works for our dogs as well as our kids!