Debbie Thomas CPDT

REALLY like this book!

In case you haven't seen, there's a proposed USD 1.9million settlement in a class action lawsuit in California about "gravely dangerous" shock collars. Amongst other things, the court filings say “In reality, Shock Collar Products are far from safe and harmless. In fact, the use of electric shocks is gravely dangerous to the pets’ physical and psychological well-being.” The class action is about different kinds of shock collars (bark-activated, barriers, fences) and Californians who purchased a shock collar between October 1st 2018 and October 31st 2022 are eligible for the settlement.

Details via the link in bio or https://www.companionanimalpsychology.com/2025/11/shock-collars-in-dog-training-are.html

Using Dog Sign Language in Training - Whole Dog Journal Dog's can respond better to hand signals than verbal cues, meaning dog sign language is a viable option for training any dog.

SECONDS COUNT
This post is not advocating that dogs meet every other dog, but rather about how to go about it in a safer way, if and when it does happen.

The 3 second rule for dogs meeting each other is used as a guideline to help foster positive introductions, prevent either dog from feeling overwhelmed or trapped and prevent any potential reactivity and stress.

A short 3 second introduction is enough time to provide important information to both dogs.

Enough time and information for dogs to decide – “are you a threat?”, “do I like you?”, “do I want to learn more about you?”, “do I really dislike you?”, “do I want you to go away?” etc. Both dogs may not feel the same way – one may not be happy to engage while the other may want to.

All interactions should ideally happen like this, not just initially. Just like us, dogs can have off days – things like pain, trigger stacking, lack of sleep or a host of other reasons can influence a dog’s emotional state and whether a dog wants to interact or not.

There are countless times I have witnessed meetings or introductions between dogs that have gone on just a few seconds too long and have not ended well.

This can have long lasting effects on future behaviour when meeting other dogs.

Understanding body language is critically important. If we are going to share our lives with another species, protect them, advocate for them and help them feel safe, then we need to understand and respect their language.

The examples in this post of red and green flags are just a few general ones to look out for – there are many more and these will differ depending on the individual dog, context and circumstances.

Here are some resources that provide more detailed information about body language –

The Veterinary Behaviour Centre
https://bit.ly/4hwC8k1

On Talking Terms With Dogs - Calming Signals, 2nd Edition by Turid Rugaas
https://bit.ly/4oftWqW

Make sure those first 3 seconds count – they can make all the difference.