Does He Play Well With Others?

Here's a photo of Hercules who thinks he must have done something wrong because I tried to tie a stupid bow around his neck. In actuality Hercules has done a whole lot more right than wrong lately. I'll get to that shortly.

We at the shelter frequently get asked about a particular dog's ability to get along with other dogs. We make it our mission at the shelter to find out how much a dog enjoys the company of other dogs and how they behave with other dogs. Dog run the gamut of the social spectrum just like people do. Some dogs are party animals and some are wallflowers.

Whenever I am searching for a way to word an explanation of a dog's ability to socializae I turn to
Bad Rap. I like that they work to rehabilitate the socialization of a dog, but we do too. They have been doing it longer and they work with dogs from rough backgrounds.

As long as we have been at this though I don't believe there has been a more mystifying dog than Hercules. In the shelter he did not seem to get along with other dogs. In a previous home Hercules grabbed a puppy and shook it for stealing his pig ear treat. But, when we began working on his dog-dog interactions while he's in a foster home we discovered a pleasant shock: Hercules can play with some other dogs!

Hercules has now had three play-dates at the shelter. Two were with playful females and one with a playful male.

We begin in a kennel that is just the right size so that if trouble happens we don't have to run too far to control the situation. The dogs drag leashes. Sometimes a problematic or unfamiliar dog will wear a muzzle till we know how they want to behave. And the first play-mate is always a dog that we feel confident about, a socially skilled dog. We record key behaviors and how it went. We try to make sure the dogs being rehabilitated get out at least once a week for a playdate. Corrections may be administered with a squirt bottle (water) or a shaker can. Fights might break out and we use special equipment. Don't do this unless you have undergone extensive training, as we all have. Knowing canine behavior and the meaning behind the dogs' body language is essential!

This service has been offered to people who have problems with a shelter dog they have adopted. We have been extremely successful in getting dogs to tolerate each other better.

Since most people coming to the shelter want to have multiple dog households this quality of being social is important to adopters.

Stay tuned and you will get more information about Hercules' ability to live successfully with other dogs.