How Playing with Your Dog Like a Puppy Can Reduce Fear #95

Are you the type of dog owner who loves to play with your dog or puppy? It’s a great way to have fun, teach your dog life skills, and can help reduce fear. The tips we’re covering today are essential for all dogs, and if you have an interest in dog agility, I’m also sharing how this applies to dog sports and confidence. Changing just one element of the way you play will have a big impact on how your dog learns and help to decrease fears and phobias.
In the episode you'll hear:
• What happened with my Jack Russell, Shelby when she didn’t want to visit the Vet.
• How we can desensitize and counter condition fear for our puppies and dogs.
• My observations about how dogs play with other dogs.
• Why I have’ game on’ and ‘game off’ permissions when playing with my dogs.
• About knowing what happens before your dog says, ‘game off’.
• Why I created a game called “Smack Da Baby!”.
• The importance of our dogs learning to love physical touch by humans.
• How I incorporate “Smack Da Baby!” in a game of tug.
• All the stages of including touch for dogs in play.
• About putting time into where your dog tells you they need confidence.
• The one time I grab my dogs by the muzzle and why.
• How my dog DeCaff shaped me to play with her and the impact on weaving in agility.
• Why play helps your dog with many life skills.
• The importance of taking action if you notice your dog is not comfortable.
Resources:
Podcast Episode 89: Why Dogs Should Not Tug: The Truth Revealed - • Why Dogs Should Not Tu...
Book: Shaping Success by Susan Garrett - dogsthat.com/p...
Podcast Episode 86: How to Train Unmotivated or Overexcited Dogs - • How to Train Unmotivat...
Blog Post: Who’s Shaping me? -
susangarrettdo...
P.S. Subscribe to our KZbin Channel so you get notifications of new videos!
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Dogs That is brought to you by Susan Garrett and the Say Yes Dog Training Team.
Susan Garrett’s interest in animal behaviour started at the University of Guelph where she earned a Bachelor of Science majoring in Animal Science. Since then she has developed into a preeminent dog trainer and canine sports instructor and competitor. Susan is one of the most successful agility competitors of the last three decades. She has won multiple Gold Medals at National or World Championship events with every dog she has ever owned over the past 30 years.
A natural teacher and an entertaining speaker, Susan is world renowned as a leading educator of dog trainers. Her understanding of how to apply science-based learning principles to both competitive and family pet dog training has been pivotal in changing how dogs are trained.
Susan is now helping many thousands of dog owners in 132 countries have the best relationship possible with their dogs. The real joy for her comes from bringing confidence to dogs and their owner through playful interactions and relationship building games that are grounded firmly in the science of how animals learn.
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Our Website: dogsthat.com
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[@kaiomewolf]

Take a shot whenever Susan says "smack a baby!" haha

[@rosieleat6868]

LOL

[@cmkirn]

I can’t tell you how much I LOVE these short videos on very specific topics. I’ve taken quite a few of your courses and sometimes (a lot of the time) have gotten overwhelmed with the longer videos or have been unsure about what the to tackle next. I can listen to these and implement something immediately in a short period of time. Currently an alum back in recallers and this is a perfect adjunct.😎😎

[@funwithfido2430]

The Decaff story is BRILLIANT!!

[@chrismccollough545]

I also missed this gem! I thought my dog and I played well. We both have loads of fun together. I was eating lunch and thought oh I missed an episode-I can watch it while I eat. (I usually let NOTHING distract me from Susan's videos.) I am so glad I did. I have learned so much and cannot wait for my pup to wake up so we can go play.

[@keechpeach2863]

Lightbulb moment on this one! Thank you Susan! My new pup likes to cuddle but at times will also growl and mouth if we touch her belly. (Mostly in the evnening during her sharknado time.) I'm going to add smack da baby into our tugging and stroke her tummy while she is in high excitement too. :) Having had a different dog with a 'don't touch me there when patting' tummy and back end (we didn't want to force her to endure touch she didn't like but had no tools to change it) I don't want another!

[@teolinek]

Oh, that explains why our newest baby (5 months sheltie girl) is the first dog of ours that seems to r e a l l y like all the "beauty routines"! Combing, checking fur for ticks, checking ears and teeth etc. She is the first one I really play tug with from the beginning. And touch her face and sides while playng (happy growling mode on), now I'll try all the steps you mentioned. BTW I've started the muzzle (???) grab with my horse. We do some clicker training, so now I often deliver the treat a n d touch the top of his face at the same time. It works - he wasn't head shy, but now he seems to be more than OK whit this.

[@jt4351]

I've played my own version of "smack da baby" with all of my dogs. However, MY arousal state gets overwhelming and I always end up wanting to pick them up! lol My GSD didn't care as much, but my Jack Russell/Beagle mix immediately goes "whale eye" and tucked tail. Our sessions are just as much training me in impulse control as they are training him in when the game is off.

[@azogal53]

I'm familiar with Smack da Baby but learned a lot about nuances and growing da game in this podcast. Thank you! 🍪🍪🍪🍪🍪

[@georgetate6055]

I've just reviewed this video for the 2nd time. It's great. I'm inspired to go get my dog and take her out back and play tug!

[@robinrutherfordcost4748]

My guys LOVE the vet and the feeling is mutual. I started when they were puppies, bringing their little carpet square - it's like home base and works like a charm. (Carpet on both sides so it can be easily washed if necessary). They go in the office, jump on the scale, wait in the waiting room for their turn to see the vet. People watch in amazement. Am sure I did some clicker training in all the classes I've taken and taught. Now, all the puppies/dogs get their own carpet square and bowl for the 6 week course. The owners bring those items to each class as well as any future advanced classes plus any time they have to go to the vet. They and the dogs love it. It's like their place or hot zone, just on the ground rather than raised.

[@carolwagen7130]

I wish I could like a video more than once!

[@agnesyll]

Thanks Susan! I'm listening to your podcast in chronological order while driving and love it. I hope a future episode will talk about playing games to reduce fear with noises.

[@DogsThat]

We're so happy you're enjoying the podcasts, Agnes! Topic suggestion noted 🗒️ In the meantime, check out our Fearful Dogs Help playlist: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Z5PEg6WpnM6jf6s&pp=gAQBiAQB

[@crookedriverranchman]

Susan. This is brilliant. We have 45 puppies in our classes right now. I can tell you there is going to be a lot of smack da baby going on next week. Thanks

[@debbiecharlton7761]

You are awesome. I love watching your podcasts 😊

[@suenorwood6699]

Thanks Susan! I really enjoy these podcasts. We continue to work on tugging. I think that this will be helpful in tugging with new toys and in new places. Like a previous commenter, I like these podcasts because they give me something to try now. Keep 'em coming! 😉

[@shellycavallaro5174]

This podcast is in my all time TOP favorite!!!! It is powerful and awesome and I'm so happy for the information as I have already seen results from doing some of this once I saw Susan in videos tugging and IT WORKS!! My one dog has made huge gains in touch acceptance. SO BRILLIANT!

[@conanrumsey154]

Loving your podcasts! My girl, Fox, loves smack da baby - she came to us at 10 months old and we have practiced this from day one. There is nowhere on her body that I can't touch or inspect. The vet and strangers are another story but we work on cooperative care most days. Thanks for sharing all your knowledge.

[@joellecollette5843]

Love it 🫶🏽

[@gavsmart]

Thank you again Susan for yet another absolute gem of wisdom and help! It means the world! :) I have a very similar problem to Decaff with our tugging at the moment, where Marty my 2yr old Parson will happily tug away for a short while but once we get into smack da baby his grip begins to worsen, he starts losing interest and in turn struggles with environmental stumilus around him.. Our tug sessions have been getting a little weaker this week and I knew I had to find a way to fix this challenge before I he started to lose the joy of it. I can't thank you enough for the helpful way you breakdown tthings into really simple and achievable bite size steps.! I know this is gonna make such a difference to oue tugging for Marty and I, and I'm now certain it will help with other some other issues such as his hesitancy to be examined by another person (vet, etc). Many thanks, G & M :)

[@DogsThat]

Hi, thank you for being so thoughtful for your dog and listening to their feedback. Progressing in small steps will get you there 💕💕💕

[@gavsmart]

@@DogsThat Thank you v much! We tried some of these tips out in our daily morning play session this today and honestly what a difference! Just trying to listen to Marty's body language and follow his lead on his comfort levels and already we can see some lovely results! Best wishes, G & M :)

[@tamiiona6429]

Thank you very much for having this video. My dogs don't like my husband, and this is a great way to help them all play in a safe way and build confidence between them all.

[@indythedancinghovawart4883]

I loved this episode! My problem is that Indy doesn't grab the toy continuously but releases it after a couple of seconds and then quickly grabs the rope itself, very close to my hand, actually tries to grab it closer and closer to me, which is kinda dangerous because he grabbed my hand a couple of times. This is very annoying for me, and it is very hard to build up tugging this way, because I just can't convince him to grab the end of the toy and keep tugging the end of it. He can feel my discomfort and my annoyance when he grabs the rope close to my hand, as a result he does not like tugging. I really don't know how to move on with this, do you have maybe a video that mentions this?

[@windywilliamson5069]

When Eva was young we would go and sit in the vets office, just lobby, three times a week for the first month. Plus we did the feeling game from head to tail including the genitals.

[@nancyhooper1742]

Have to try this with my bosties ❤️❤️❤️❤️⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

[@marijanabegovic7827]

This is so very useful! Thank you ❤️

[@timothyburgi1812]

I love your podcasts and programs (recaller here), but do find the fan /shadow in the background very distracting.

[@devp2008]

Susan thank you so much for these great training videos! You are a life saver when it comes to understanding our dogs! You have answers to ever single problem I have faced while raising my puppy and all of your suggestions and methods work like magic ❤️😌very grateful for all of your videos and podcasts and your training programs ( I am a recallers and crategames student )you and your team are the best !

[@ionicamermaid1141]

I am learning so much from your episodes! Thank you for all your efforts to make them!

[@paulab3654]

Hi Susan, I am on the waitlist for Home school and spend lots of time watching your lessons on KZbin. You are wonderful! I have 2 rescues, 2 years old, 19 pounds each. The girl, Ginji is terrified of people, the boy, Brando, terrified of dogs. I have an awful time with Ginji and vet appointments. We have to muzzle her and she freaks out. She "screams" as it's been described and they are barely able to get blood drawn, shots, etc. We tried at the Vets suggestion drugging her prior to bringing her in. It made her vomit and her fear was intensified by 100%. She is not a cuddly dog and doesn't love being touched. She allows me to brush her teeth and clip a nail or two sometimes. Shall I start with Smack the Baby? It's a real problem that I do not know how to solve. THANK YOU, Paula B

[@DogsThat]

Hi Paula, thank you for your note an wanting to help your lovely dogs. We have a playlist to help with cooperative care, here's the link for you: kzbin.info/aero/PLphRRSxcMHy1wgUlMBX63miIBBpxE-DAO And another to help Brando with his fears: kzbin.info/aero/PLphRRSxcMHy0KAsqgnkMWv0v-5JGjNQG_ We'd love for you to send a not to us at [e-mail] about Home School the Dog.

[@rachellipkowitz3624]

Thank you Susan!!! I play this with my puppy ALL the time and he LOVES it. I didn't think about doing this technique with his face or tiny pinches and pulls, but I'm going to start! Any additional games I can play to help him get used to his teeth being brushed (with a toothbrush/finger brush)?

[@haleyheffley2501]

Is your book available anywhere to your current students? After Home School the Dog, I took advantage of the lower rate to join Wag Nation and keep the HSTD resources. There are many resources in the library, and I'm curious if you'd consider making your book one of them.

[@pascaleburnet7583]

Thank you for another great podcast. My older dog is not really into tugging, after listening to this podcast I will make sure to incorporate a bit of tug to our daily playing / training. Time to revisit the Tugger Bonus in Recallers!

[@qwertykotchka394]

My dog is a reluctant tugger so I have to be very gentle. It's rare that he touches my skin but occasionally he does. As it's so hard to get him to tug, I've been ignoring the fact that teeth touched skin or clothing but I always wonder if I am doing the right thing. But at the moment I am trying so hard to get him interested in tugging that I don't want to introduce too many rules and put him off totally. If you have any advice it would be very much appreciated. With thanks

[@jenniferamyx78]

My dogs (ridgebacks) are also very reluctant tuggers. I’ve had 4 and only 2 of them would engage at all with tugging- and only when very young. None were big chewers, either. So, I wonder if their jaw/tooth structure just makes it less fun?

[@TrainingHudsonAndMaisie]

Thanks for this great explanation of the benefits of Smack Da Baby and the steps you use to train it. I'm wondering how you trained Shelby to re-enter the vet clinic. Did you use the combination of desensitization, counter-conditioning and Smack Da Baby? Pre COVID my dog tolerated going to the vet really well, but after several visits of having to inside on his own, he now puts on the brakes at the door just like Shelby did.

[@AnnainAwe]

With this guidance I have a feeling Phoenix🐕‍🦺 is going to turn into a huge fan of playing tug. I think he's really missed the rough house playing he used to do with his previous human. I injure so easily and had to avoid absolutely anything that might result in his teeth landing on me or his rib cage body slamming my knee.