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Festive Entertainment
In general, during social gatherings, parties and meals, you likely need your dog to be pretty low key and out of the way.
The easiest way to manage their behaviour is to provide them with appropriate behaviours to keep them busy and entertained. Instead of thinking how to stop them doing things you don’t like, think what you would prefer them to do instead!
Get your dog hooked on entertainment!
Start practicing now with simple activities that your dog can work on themselves, without too much input required from you.
Pacifying Activities:
This category is great for confinement, for calming and when you want your dog to take themselves away and stay busy.
Get practicing now so you can find the best approach for your pet – it’s too late to discover they don’t like a certain thing or can’t work a toy on the day, when you really need it.
Activating Entertainment:
Before it all kicks off, provide your dog with plenty of appropriate mental and physical exercise so that they are relaxed and satisfied before the celebrations begin.
Always think in Rollercoasters: if you bring your dog up, they need help coming down again. This is why, it’s not necessarily a great idea to provide exerting exercise right before your guests arrive; your dog will still be wound up and now, with the extra excitement, will find it even harder to come down again.
Introduce some of these activities, and always follow with some down time and something from the pacifying category above.
Put these in place on the morning of your party, and even in the days leading up to celebration.
Puzzles!
Puzzles can be a great way of providing vital mental exercise and putting them together can be a great to get kids involved. When creating puzzles, think safety first!
With little time between now and the big day, and a busy time in general, elaborate training just isn’t going to be done or successful. When you can’t train, manage. Management means to prevent the dog practicing behaviour we don’t like, because the more they do it, the better at it they become!
Don’t worry too much about teaching new behaviours, and instead, make it easy on you and your pet, and plan to manage.
Does my pet really need to participate in this?
Parties and celebrations can be a bit much for pets and they will often benefit from a break. This may be just as beneficial for you too, as the festivities might stress you too causing you to feel frustrated with your pet’s behaviour.
Set up a safe space!
Set up a safe space for your pet to retreat to, that’s out of the way, and easy for them to access. It might be their bed, a mat, their crate, or a corner of a room.
Think about where will be best given the plans you have for the celebrations; where your pet can be away from the action safely.
Start practicing now!
set up your pet’s safe space now
make sure everyone is aware of the rules – nobody approaches or interacts with your pet while they are there
every day, give them at least one tantalising stuffable or similar there
Make confinement a winner!
Having a safe space is great, but you might need to confine your dog to provide relief for all and to safely manage their behaviour. Having your dog behind a closed door, baby gate or in a crate can help ease your mind from worrying about your dog getting into mischief.
Start practicing today!
pick your safe confinement area
every day, and I do mean every day, even if only for a few minutes, confine your dog with absolutely the best, most tempting, tantalising stuffable, chew or treat
release your dog before they become distressed and go back to normal
Consider letting your dog retreat or putting them away regularly during the festivities to give them a break, before they become over-excited or stressed. It’s also a good idea to confine your dog just before gusts arrive so you can get everyone in calmly and safely, and then bring your dog out to greet.
Keep away!
Presents, toys, decorations, Christmas trees, forbidden foods and tasty, tantalising treats everywhere makes it tough for dogs to resist.
Think prevention first!
Confine your dog from areas where decorations are within reach. If you have a puppy or a particularly interested dog, decorating elaborately in just one room makes it easier to keep an eye on all the bits and pieces.
Keep foods up and out of reach, so that your dog doesn’t get to practice even considering trying to counter-surf.
Confine your dog during particularly active times, when children are on the floor, when toys are ramping up the excitement, when food is flowing.
Start practicing today!
think of the situations in which your dog gets into mischief…
give your dog an alternative activity before these situations start
for example, before starting to cook or prepare food, or before sitting down to eat, give your dog a puzzle, a stuffable, a chew or something tempting to keep him busy in his safe zone
for practice, you can time confinement and safe zone work with these situations so that you are getting more bang for your buck!
Some excellent ideas from around the web (please let me know if you own one of these pictures or know who does for credit) and in this clip here:
Baby-gates and leashes solve problems
Management is simple with just three tools: stuffables or similar, your dog’s lead, and a baby gate here and there.
Baby-gates:
prevent access to the tree and decorations
prevent access to the kitchen and food prep areas
prevent access to rooms where foods and toys are within reach
stops dogs getting up stairs, where they might knock someone over
keeps dogs safe in a confinement area
prevents dogs getting to the hallway or doors to stop escapes or over-the-top greetings
Leashes:
tether your dog in their safe zone so that they are safely confined but not shut away from the action
bring your dog to greet guests on leash to prevent jumping up
sit with your dog’s leash under your foot so you can eat or relax in peace
allow your dog to drag their leash so that you can easily and safely restrain them should things get tense, when the door is opening, and when things get exciting
Start practicing today!
erect baby gates now so that your dog has time to get used to them before they are really needed
practice confining your dog, behind a baby gate, with a yummy stuffable to work on while you cook, prep, eat and relax
Park your Pup every day, while you relax or eat a meal:
With excitement ramping up, the mix of children and dogs will take extra care. Neither dogs nor children are doing anything wrong – seasonal excitement might just cause everyone to lose a little control, be a little less tolerant and decrease attentiveness.
more active and direct supervision is needed
more separation will be required
dogs don’t need to be involved when things get exciting so that they don’t associate such excitement with children and also to prevent jumping up, mouthing, knocking over or the development of discomfort in association with children
give children dog-care activities to keep them busy, rather than allowing them to hug, lean on, or lift pets
don’t allow children to take stuff from dogs and make sure to provide guidance about leaving the dog alone while he is in his safe zone or when he has possessions
Take care taking seasonal photos. Have an adult sitting between dogs and children and give children something to hold so they are not tempted to grab at or hug dogs, things that most dogs will find uncomfortable.
We often exert a lot of social pressure on dogs when taking photos – encouraging, luring and telling them to “stay!” and this can really cause dogs discomfort. Ease up, have an adult hold a chew or toy for the dog to work on during the photo shoot so that they stay put, without too much pressure.
Here’s an excellent webinar from Family Paws founder, Jennifer Shryock and it’s free! Check it out:
Start practicing and establishing management practices that you might come to rely on during the celebrations.
Everything is in flux around your pet in the run-up to the holidays so putting this in place now, will help to set up some stability for them.
This practice helps you develop confidence in these routines too, making it easier for you to implement them sensibly when everything is exciting and feels a little out of control.
Well, if you’re here, that’s likely what you are considering. We know that celebrations and festivities can be a bit hectic; add in some over-excited pets and it’s chaos-to-the-max!
Getting ahead of it and making it a normal part of your Christmas planning and preparation will help things run more smoothly on the day.
Holiday Hazards
Lack of routine and lots of potentially harmful food available can lead to ingestion of toxic and harmful substances, sometimes requiring urgent veterinary care.
chocolate, ‘sugar free’ treats, sweets and wrappers/packaging
grapes, raisins, Christmas puddings, mince pies
alcohol, caffeine, pain killers and medications (even those for pets)
cooked bones, high fat foods
decorations, Christmas trees, poinsettia, holly, mistletoe…yes, pets often eat these…
garlic, onions (and similar), some nuts like macadamia nuts
bins, rubbish and recycling – there’s lots of it about so make sure it’s out of pets’ reach
lots of dog treats and toys, and many other general products, come with little silicon or silica packets in the packaging, bag or box; if eaten by pets, they can cause serious problems and these packets in dog treats will smell of food making them more tempting – dispose of them before you give your pet their present and make sure that you put them well out of your pet’s reach, for example, in the wheelie bin outside or other inaccessible area
doors opening, comings and goings – make sure your pet is secured, one person is responsible for the, they are wearing a collar and ID, microchip is up to date
candles and extra electricals may lead to burns, singing of coat, chewing of electrical wires, hazards associated with oils and similar for burning
it’s best not to put wrapped foods under the tree or in reach – the dog’s nose knows and they may break through wrapping paper and packaging to access tasty treats, some of which may be harmful to them
Have your pet’s emergency OOH vet details ready, just in case!
Holiday Stress
I am sure most humans will agree that holiday celebrations bring about all sorts of stress. Your dog is no different. But the things that bring your joy, might be the very things that cause your pet stress.
changes to the house, garden and world around them
With decorations becoming more and more elaborate each year, pets may become overwhelmed by the transformations in their own house and garden, as well as in their neighbourhood. Extra cleaning and re-configuring furniture, including things relevant to the dog such as his bed, feeding areas and so on, may cause them confusion and concern.
Some decorations, particularly outdoor ornaments, can really spook dogs such as life-size figures, moving or noisy displays, and hanging things, especially as they seem to suddenly appear. If you notice this, bring your dog away calmly and choose another walking route.
Some dogs show extra interest in projected lights (often projected onto the exterior of houses) and reflections caused by twinkling lights. Bring your dog away, try to reduce their exposure by removing the dog or removing the decorations and contact us or another suitably qualified behaviour pro.
routine changes and lack of routine
Dogs find holidays hard – they don’t know what day of the week it is, after all. With the hustle and bustle during holiday periods, dogs may get less exercise, entertainment and attention, putting them out of sorts. These changes can lead to disruption to toileting behaviour, sleeping and nighttime behaviour, eating behaviour, and may see the resurgence of destructive behaviour, over-excited behaviour, barking, jumping up and other unwanted behaviours.
If you’re off work and home for a period of time, it’s important to attempt some level of routine in terms of alone-time for your dog throughout. This helps prevent the dog becoming upset when you go back to work and leave them alone again.
lots of comings and goings
Social gatherings, energetic children, shopping outings, deliveries and guests leads to more doorbells and knocking, which most dogs, at the very least, will find arousing. This can lead to susceptible dogs becoming sensitised to door-activity, making their behaviour more difficult to manage and possibly even dangerous.
Know your dog! A dog who barks at the doorbell and then recovers once visitors enter, is probably doing ok. But, dogs who continue to bark when guests come in, dogs who move forward in a direct manner, or dogs who move away and attempt to avoid interaction, will require closer management and care.
resource guarding
With the availability of lots of high value food, new possessions and toys, items left lying around, most dogs will be very tempted. So-called ‘stealing’ behaviour may increase, leading to inappropriate interactions between pets and their people.
This can lead to resource guarding related behaviour where dogs will take items, cache them, show aggressive responding (e.g. whale eye, freezing, growling, snarling, snapping and even biting) and may attempt to ingest items to prevent anyone else getting them.
children, vulnerable guests and general increases in activity within the house
Celebration means everything is go-go-go, children are hyped, new gifts and toys must be explored and tried out, elderly guests may be present, and everything is up a notch on normality.
Children, and their activity, may be particularly worrisome for dogs, and with holidays from school, dogs may not get their usual relief from this sort of activity. Kids will often have costumes, new noisy and moving toys, and will be excited – this can increase the risk of dog bites, so extra supervision and separation will be required.
Elderly or vulnerable individuals may be bowled over by an exuberant dog, be jumped on or knocked on the stairs.
It’s a great idea to assign one sensible adult responsibility for the dog throughout the gathering so there is someone consistently monitoring the dog, supporting them and keeping them safe. Get the entire family on board with planning and preparation so everyone is on the same page.
great expectations
We expect our dogs to deal with whatever we present, regardless of how well, or not, we have prepared them. Dogs need support during holidays and it’s up to you to help them. Planning and preparation goes a long way, but a sensible approach to managing your pet during celebrations is really the key.
Start by lowering your expectations and re-aligning them with reality, understand that all this will be overwhelming for your pet and that they will respond accordingly.
Feeling under pressure about our pet’s behaviour may lead us to exert more pressure on them, resort to scolding and reprimanding, and letting your frustration get the better of you. If you feel that frustration bubbling, remove your pet to another room with an irresistible stuffable or chew to work on in peace – everyone can get a minute to take a breath and gather themselves.
Ask, “does my pet need to be part of this?”. Their behaviour is information telling you how well they are coping, or not, so removing them from the action may be best for everyone.
During holiday seasons, dressing our pets up and posing them for photos can add to the pressure they feel. Dogs who show reluctance to have costumes fitted or freeze when wearing silly jumpers or props are experiencing a high degree of distress. You don’t need to put yourself or your pet through it – there are countless apps that allow you to add emojis and animations to photos and videos, without your pet every knowing about it.
stress related behaviour
‘Crazy’ & excitable behaviour is often interpreted as happiness, but more often than not, it’s the first tier of stress-related behaviours indicating that the dog is losing control and not coping well.
This means your dog can’t listen or respond normally, is more likely to have a more demonstrative response, and his behaviour may appear less predictable.
All this excitement may be associated with trigger stacking. Just this list of stressors, one on top of another, will cause your pet’s behaviour to intensify, even though one or a small number of stressors may normally cause your pet no concern at all.
Join us for Christmas Bites to help you prepare your pet for festive fun!
AniEd Ireland 