In a perfect world, dogs would never meet face to face. They would much prefer to give each other loads of space, in a wide berth, circle each other, sniff to gather information in a yin and yang shape and have full option to disengage and move away when they need to. However, in our very human oriented world, we walk on paths and inadvertently set put our dogs at a disadvantage and put them in uncomfortable position meeting other dogs in a head on interaction. It’s a widespread belief that having dogs interact on leash is the safest way to introduce dogs. There are many reasons to avoid on-leash greetings between dogs.
The restrictions caused by the leash can cause an adverse reaction in dogs, especially if the owner isn’t aware of the subtle non-verbal communications dogs will give each other. Dogs will have “conversations” even from far away. A dog that doesn’t want to meet will turn away from and avoid an interaction with another dog but when on leash we can inadvertently walk our dog straight into a tense meet. Dogs won’t usually choose a face-to-face greeting. In dog language, this can be rude and even downright threatening. Instead, they would prefer to approach at more of an angle coming in from the side.
Leashes leave our dogs with very few choices and don’t dogs to greet one another properly. When dogs are on leash walking with us, they are forced to greet head-on, not how dogs naturally greet each other. In dog language, this can be rude and even downright threatening. The leash prevents this natural introduction from occurring and puts dogs at risk of a bite from another dog. For nervous or stressed dogs, the leash takes away their “flight” escape option and leaving them with just the “fight” option which would lead to bites.
Tension On The Leash Can Lead To Reactivity
Leashes take away the dog’s right to choose. In addition to this, being forced into close proximity on a leash can raise your dog’s anxieties and make them highly uncomfortable. This can lead to them feeling all other dogs are stressful or a threat leading to reactivity and emotional or social issues.
So, what is the perfect way for dogs to meet? On a long leash and harness, walking side to side sniffing and exploring together with every option to move away or get space from each other as and when they need to.
