Socialization Methods?

[Bequavious]

Hey everyone! I've been reading this forum for awhile (tons of great information!), but just joined because I'm planing on getting a GSD puppy and have read some conflicting information about socialization. I know it's super important to get your puppy out and about, ensuring confidence and engagement around all types of distractions/potentially scary life situations.

Where the conflicts occurred were in how to socialize around other people/dogs. Some sources recommended inviting a diverse group of friends over to meet the puppy and play a recall circle game with lots of treats & petting. All these people would be people you know, so you would instruct them about how to properly interact with the puppy (not scaring it or rewarding inappropriate behaviors). Other sources, however, said that your goal should be for your puppy to ignore other people. Other people were simply distractions for your dog to practice being really engaged with you. Each school of thought also had similar ideas about how to socialize around other dogs (encouraging play vs encouraging focus).

My question is: what did you do that worked? I want my dog to pay more attention to me than anyone else, but I also want it to be friendly towards others and possibly be able to do therapy work one day. I'm less concerned about it's relationships with other dogs (whether it ignores them or plays with them), but I do want to avoid aggression and fear. Thoughts?

[Mary Beth]

When my Sting was a pup, I took him for short on leash walks around the neighborhood, by playgrounds, and by schools - wherever there were people - all ages and also other dogs. I would even drive to these areas. I would just let him observe from a distance and if people came up to him - I would ask them to stop and let Sting approach them. For other dogs, he wasn't interested until he was 8 months,and I was lucky to meet a couple with 2 dobes that he could play with.

[Bequavious]

Ok thanks! Does anyone else have opinions about whether it's better to teach your puppy that other people are good things with petting or just neutral things to be ignored?

[mego]

Originally Posted by Bequavious

Ok thanks! Does anyone else have opinions about whether it's better to teach your puppy that other people are good things with petting or just neutral things to be ignored?

I feed my puppy for looking at me when people walk by to 'ignore' but if the people would like to pet her I feed her for sitting nicely and letting them

[Bequavious]

Originally Posted by mego

I feed my puppy for looking at me when people walk by to 'ignore' but if the people would like to pet her I feed her for sitting nicely and letting them

Yeah that seems like a pretty good compromise

[uthomas]

I think it doesn't matter so much which way you do it. The effect should be that the puppy has seen many different people/devices/animals and connects ideally it with a positive experience.
Puppies are quickly over excited, so they will start jumping and biting at people, which might cause stress (and negative reactions of the people/dogs).
The dog will focus on you later, but that has nothing to do with the initial socialization. It is only about preventing fear in the future.
As a example of a socialization: we got our puppy with our new house (wouldn't recommend to anyone the double-work ;-) ), so in the first two months we had loads of different builders, delivery guys, construction workers, new neighbors (partial with their dogs) and all the constuction noise. We put a box with treats at the door and told everyone to take some and give it to the dog when they would pass by him. After some while he got it, that all those strange guys have always some treats with them ;-)

[Galathiel]

I socialized my puppy by taking it to first a puppy class at the local AKC licensed training club, then going on to do the beginner and interm. classes. We were exposed to a lot of people and dogs, but my preference is for my dogs to be indifferent to other people/dogs, not excited by the prospect of meeting. It worked out well. He learned to focus on me and not on the others around him. He was perfect in public, anyone could pet him (when allowed by me), but he never solicited attention or wanted it as long as his people were around.

[Mog]

Take a look at this article... I like the layout and plan on following it with our new pup.

Articles / Puppiest 1st Night, 1st Year