Canine Etiquette in a Human World

Is your dog polite out in public? Do they ignore other dogs and people who maybe aren’t interested in interacting? If you took them to a school yard, would they chase the kids or be a model canine citizen?

This is a tricky subject since we all have our different perspectives when it comes to lines in the sand, however when it comes to public spaces, it’s always best to air on the side of caution and put your dog’s best foot forward. I recently heard a very simplistic way to go about life: You can add to someone’s day, you can not impact their day at all or you can take away from someone’s day. Which would you choose in a perfect world? It would be very nice to constantly add to people’s day and if you aren’t able, the least you should try to achieve is to not impact their day at all. You should always aim to avoid being the negative in someone’s day.

Having said that, a dog can do the same thing! They can brighten someone’s day if they are well mannered, well socialized and respectful or they can take away from someone’s day if they are unruly. It’s our responsibility to make sure that our dogs are always showing good canine etiquette in our human world. Here are a few of the important pieces to the puzzle.

Leash Your Dog

If your dog is not under complete verbal control in an area away from your own…