Part 1: Acclimation, Relaxation, and Learning to Just Be

Not only is this approach great for socialization in general, but it also teaches the dog how to relax in a variety of situations, and you get to learn a lot about how your dog responds to things in the environment. 

Take the dog to places, allow them to observe, then leave. There is no work involved in these outings. Your dog should be able to engage in free work, sniffing, chewing, or watching in a relaxed way. I like to choose a spot where we can both be on the ground (bring a blanket) and chill together. 

I restrict the space they can investigate with a leash, and I encourage them to relax with me rather than keep moving around. 

 If your dog takes longer than 5-10 minutes to choose your relaxing activity, the environment is likely too overwhelming/distracting. You can choose to create more distance from the activity, or pick a different environment altogether. 

Example 1: 

After a nice walk, this puppy is happy to settle in and observe her surroundings during a quiet time in the city. 

Notes: her exercise needs had been met, making this much easier overall. 

Example 2: 

This is a busy park, so we are settled in at a good distance under the shade of a tree. She's free to watch what's going on around her, snuffle for treats in the grass, or ask me questions about what's going on. 

Notes: as long as she's watching calmly, she can watch as much as she wants. 

Part 2: Showing them the Point

To build dogs that regularly opt-in to training, they need to know what they are opting in to! We cannot expect them to choose our great things over the delicious environment unless they know we have great things to offer. So, part 2 of this plan is to take your dog places, show them you have great things, and leave. 

To do this, you need a handful of environments where you know your dog is comfortable and fairly relaxed. We don’t want to compete with the environment in these first interactions. 

These sessions are super short, like 15-30 seconds, kind of short. I like to take my dog with me when I run errands and choose location(s) en route to stop for a quick session. When you arrive, get your treats and toys ready before you get the dog out of the car. Once you do bring the dog out of the car, immediately offer them rewards, rapid-fire style. I personally like to use their favorite treats/food for this because I can deliver 3-5 cookies quickly and then return the dog to the car without them getting distracted. 

If you have time, you can give your dog a break in the car for 3-5 minutes, and do this again in the same location. If it’s a large area, you can even move your car to a different spot and try again. 

Even though I like to use food for this, these types of interactions are great to generalizing toy play to different locations as well. If my dog is interested in toys, I will offer them some toy play for 3-5 seconds before returning them to the car. 

These sessions are not just for food and toys, either! It’s an opportunity to build social interaction as well. The key is to use things that they already like and have value for, and to keep things super short.