Building Confidence in Dogs
Building confidence in dogs is a key ingredient to a happy dog. Independent of the age when you welcome a dog into your home, building confidence should be a top priority. Confidence building is one of the most important, yet underrated tenants of dog training. We include confidence building into all of our programs at Off Leash K9 Training Blacksburg/Roanoke.
Confidence in dogs is as just as important as confidence in humans. People lacking confidence hesitate when making decisions and tend to be nervous. Dogs lacking confidence display similar behaviors. A dog lacking confidence visibly tenses up, can become more fidgety and start pacing. Their ears can go back, fur on their backs rise and they may whine or growl.
Having your dog around other people and dogs is key to confidence building. Put them in scenarios where they see other life forms, hear noises and are exposed to different settings. Your dog will adjust better to new things and be less sensitive. Dogs who are not socialized around other dogs or humans can become more aggressive or reactive as they get older. They have not learned how to interact properly. As such, they can become fearful due to lack of confidence and socialization.
The video below shows Sophie, one of our previous Board and Train clients. Her owner wanted the best life for her and enrolled her in our two week training. Sophie was reactive to strangers or any new objects due to her lack of confidence. It was stressful for her owner to take her on walks due to her behavior and barking. Sophie lacked confidence and manners. The video shows the before and after of her training. It also shows the difference confidence building and professional training can make.
Sophie’s Before and After Video
Sophie is a great example to show the importance of confidence building at a young age. Our professional trainers show owners how to reinforce training and how to manage real life situations. The more confidence you can instill in your dog will positively impact their demeanor, happiness and overall quality of life. This makes your life happier and calmer as well. Check out our YouTube page below to see how we transform the lives of dogs!