Puppy Parties – do we just leave? (Q&A #1)

One of the recent questions in the Bombproof Boxer Training Club community was from Chezza about puppy play meet-ups and what to do when things don’t go as planned.

“Took a 13-week-old puppy to a puppy play event today. 4 dogs initially and they were playing well. Another pup joined 10 mins later. They played for a while but the other pup was very timid and then took a dislike to ours with them being separated promptly. Both pups were OK and still played with others in separate areas.
We left shortly after as we felt they’d played enough and our puppy was quite settled. I suspect they were probably getting tired and overstimulated.

My question is, what should we do in the future if that happens with another dog? Don’t want to exacerbate any situation or make our own pup fearful especially as she’s really mellow and happy. How do we handle it if the same pup is there again? Do we just leave?”

I don’t recommend puppy parties or any play meet-ups.

When I run puppy classes my Socialisation session is about teaching pups to be calm around other dogs, disengage and be able to focus on their owners.

There really are no benefits to puppy play sessions. What usually happens is the boisterous pups practice boisterous behaviours and find it very reinforcing; the anxious pups get stressed and bullied hence they start reacting.

Puppyhood is all about building the relationship between the pup and their owners, rewarding good choices, growing confidence and building strong training foundations before adolescence hits.

Khaleesi (my Boxer) is 11 months old now. So far she has only had 2 interactions with strange dogs out and about (both you can find in the Bombproof Boxer Training Club group). If I would allow her to play with other dogs I would have a dog that pulls and runs to every dog she sees. Instead, I have a dog that ignores all distractions, walks nicely on lead, has a super-strong bond with me and can recall from anything 🙂

Your pup needs to play with you, not other dogs.

In a situation when you are on a walk and you are not sure if your dog should interact with another dog you need bombproof recall.