Should I give up on the idea of going to the dog park?

I think I wouldn't go either anymore, but if you decide to go still, I would only take one at a time so you can devote the time to just that one to help it succeed. Also, they may be feeding off of each other on the scared energy and just kind of snowballing off each other. I find to work through a problem, it is so much easier with one dog at a time.

Saying this, I would say still work on one at a time even with walks where you encounter dogs. It would make life easier!
 
Thanks so much guys, this has really helped.

I just hate seeing them get so worried/upset over other dogs coming near, I don't like to think of them scared about certain situations that don't seem to warrant being afraid (in my eyes, of course) if that makes sense.

If I knew someone with a dog near by, I definitely would have gone down the playdate route, but I don't. :(
 
If you really want to go, I'd consider taking them during "off hours" like Tuesday morning when it's likely to be empty to let them get used to that place as a fun place without other dogs around, and then gradually working up to more populated times.

That said, like every else has said - dog parks aren't for everyone. Our collie basically hates them, so we let our membership lapse when it ended. :rolleyes2:
 
I'm actually in favor of dog parks, honey goes and usually has a great time, but after being around three dogs that weren't socialized enough and seeing the problems that developed later on, I really pushed to make sure Honey got plenty of interaction with other dogs, so she's pretty outgoing now.

If you do want to take yours, I would follow the above suggestion of taking them in off hours when it's empty at first so they can get all the scents and sort them out. Even empty the parks are a pretty full and intimidating place.

Taking them one a time is also a great idea, even if its just to get them used to being apart some of the time. (Our family had two dogs, purchased together who were not well socialized, once they hit six or so and started getting set in their ways you almost could not pull them apart, they would drag and mope, cry, circle frantically... They also went from shy to aggressively protective of each other...)

Before bringing them in to meet the other dogs, and ideally I would say you want times when there is just one other dog there, walk them around the fence, see if they will race up and down it a little.

Good Luck if you go!
 
When we did go I did deliberately choose off-peak hours, initially we thought it was just going to be us but literally someone brought their dog seconds before us.

My main intention was allowing them to have a run around without leashes and us humans getting in the way of their play time, and we thought that there being one other dog it wouldn't be too bad, but that little fella's excitement kinda got to my two.

I think if I give it a go again I'll try and make sure absolutely no-one is there and if anyone does arrive I'll leave.
 
My only issues with dog parks are the owners not the dogs. I seen some cliches demean other owners and some make people they don't take to feel so unwelcome it really bothered me.
My dog sat there for a long time and one day he jumped up and started running and my heart swelled with happiness for him. Chauncey doesn't always join in but he always is happy to just sit and watch and smell the smells and sometimes just a little walk around is all he wants. Sometimes he finds another dog he really takes to and loves to follow the pack in a race.
 
I understand, when I went the woman who owned the dog that was trying to play with ours while our shelties were getting upset was totally ignoring her dog and texting on her phone constantly.
 
I have to put in a good plug for the dog park...

some background first....
Cran and Dix have been a few times and today was the first time for little puppy Jocu.

so Cran has become kinda iffy with kids....
last spring he played with a little girl at a dog park- she threw his frisbee so he took it back to her- when she didn’t throw it again, he barked at her. then she started crying. luckily her dad was dog-smart and we got there at the same time. I explained to the little girl that he just wanted her to throw it again and she understood. the dad threw it a few times and then I took it back and everything was fine.
then later - in the summer- we were in an ice cream shop parking lot and there were some kids there. he barked and was very unhappy to be near the kids- pulling and jumping while on his leash.
he’s also barked at some kids in the pet stores. and this morning he barked at a little boy in the lobby of the vet’s office. I was paying for their pills and didn’t see the dad, boy and dog come in. but the shelties did. so I had to get Cran in front of me and got him to sit so he wasn’t looking at the boy. I told the boy that he could pet the black one and he wanted to take Jocu’s leash instead of just petting him. but he did and we left after that.

on to the pet store to get dog food. we were talking to these two ladies from a local club that had a table set up with dog information- brochures from AKC, etc.
so when we were ready to go down the aisle to get the food, there was a family with some young kids so I thought we should avoid the situation and we stayed where we were. had the pups do some sits and downs until they left and we got our food. not as many kids at the next pet store so not as much to worry about there.

then on to the dog park- no one at all in the small dog side and not sure how many in the big side. we chose the small side. we were in there playing for a little while- I was trying to get Cran to be as good with bringing the tennis ball back as he is with the frisbee- but not too much success. A guy with his basset mix came in from the other side- there's usually one or two smaller dogs in the large side. I had thrown the tennis ball and Cran and Jocu went after it but then decided it would be more fun to talk to some of the bigger dogs through the fence. So I was looking for the tennis ball in the grass when this family came in- puppy about Jocu’s size, mom, dad, little boy and baby girl in carrier. the boy just thought the shelties were the best and wanted to pet them and play with them. I really thought we’d have to leave but Cran was really good- never barked at him or reacted to small child hand waving and tottering around. I was giving the bpups cookies for being good and the little boy wanted to do it too. so I had him hold his hand out flat and put a treat on it, Cran was very good taking it and so was Jocu when he got a turn. mostly Jocu played with the puppy and the other dog until that dog and guy left. I was pleasantly surprised that Cran was so good with the boy- the boy was running and making noises being an unpredictable kid and Cran showed none of the behavior that I saw at the vet’s office this morning or the other times when he's reacted. Dixie was in full evasive mode and never let the little one get near her.
he even tried to throw the frisbee for Cran but it didn’t go very far. and one time, he even hit Cran with it and no reaction from Cran. though he did appreciate it when I took the frisbee and threw it...
the family moved on to the kid playground and we stayed a little while and then headed home.

so that’s my plug for a good experience at the dog park.
 
My older dog, whom was a rescue and I've had for 10 years now, is very insecure and does not like other dogs. He is pretty reactive and I would never think of taking him to a dog park. He just wouldn't handle it well.

My younger dog came to me as a well socialized puppy and have worked really hard to keep him that way as he's grown up (I don't want him learning bad habits from my older dog). He was a little shy when I first got him, just because he had never been exposed to much. I took him to training classes, and I took him on lots of walks on his own. He has gotten better and better about it.

What might help is if you can sign your dogs up for training classes - not both at the same time, but each one individually - and do something that would be easy for them, like basic obedience. They are usually much more controlled sitations, dogs are not off-leash. That will likely help your dogs gain confidence on their own.

Another thought is to take one dog at a time to the local pet/dog food store.

Taking them one at a time will help them to slowly gain confidence on their own, and will also prevent them from feeding off each other's uneasiness. Keep things really simple at first, then go from there.

Play dates with well socialized dogs in a small group work wonders too.

Anyway, this is what I've done with my young dog, and it's made a huge world of difference. He has turned into a confident little guy who deals with new things relatively well. He will sometimes stand behind me, but then his curiousity gets the better of hm and he wants to check new things out.

Good luck to you!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top