Setting Up the Introduction
Ask your visitors to call you instead of knocking on the door or ringing the bell. The sound of an arriving guest might upset the new dog. Therefore, you should ask all potential visitors to call you before they arrive at the house. Alternately, or in addition, you could put an “out-of-order” sign over your doorbell to prevent its use altogether. Your dog might also be afraid of or agitated by a knock at the door. You could place a sign on the door that reads, “Dear visitor, please do not knock. Instead, call me at [your number].”
Play with your dog beforehand. Create a positive association with visitors. If you know your guest is arriving, start playing with your dog for the five to 10 minutes prior to their arrival. This ensures your dog will be in good spirits and – hopefully – a bit more relaxed when your guest arrives. Over time, your dog will come to associate the arrival of a guest with positive feelings like happiness.
Get a bag of treats. If your dog is behaving properly during a visit, whether it’s scheduled or unscheduled, feed your dog a steady stream of treats. This will keep the dog relaxed and less likely to engage in unwanted behavior. If your dog has a favorite treat, keep a bagful of those treats handy and accessible in advance of the visitor’s arrival.
Wait for the right time to introduce the dog. If your dog seems agitated or moody, hold off on introducing it to visitors until it is in a better mood. For instance, if your dog is barking loudly, whimpering, or pacing about with nervous energy, your best bet is to make introductions some other day. If you can’t control when the visit takes place – for instance, if your visitor drops by unannounced – provide the new dog a steady stream of treats when the visitor is present. Your guest should do likewise. If you’ve already scheduled the visit and find your dog is agitated, contact the visitor and explain that your new dog is in no mood to receive guests today. Reschedule the introduction between the visitor and the new dog at a different time. If you can’t reschedule the visit or have unannounced visitors and the dog seems agitated, put the dog in its safe place, such as its crate or a separate room with its own bed.
Put your dog on a leash before letting guests in. If your dog is on a leash, you can better control its behavior. If it bolts for the door, it won’t get far. And if it attempts to jump on your guests, you’ll be able to quickly pull the dog away and keep it at a distance. Remove the leash if and when your new dog appears calm and collected enough to not jump up on visitors or engage in other unwanted behaviors.
Stay calm. If you are on edge or have a nervous energy about you, your new dog will sense and reflect it. This could lead to unwanted behavior when your new dog is introduced to your visitors. To stay calm, breathe in through your nose for three seconds and out through your mouth for five seconds. Visualize a successful introduction. For instance, if you’re plagued by nightmares or thoughts of a disastrous introduction between your new dog and visitors, replace negative imagery with positive imagery. For instance, when you envision your new dog whimpering and unhappy in the presence of visitors, you should “turn the page” mentally and envision instead a happy dog meeting a host of kind visitors. If your guest is not calm, listen to what they have to say. Let them know that you understand their nervous behavior by asking, “Is there anything I can do to help you relax around my new dog?” Letting them know that you’re there will reassure them and help them calm down. Instruct them in some calming techniques that you’ve used such as envisioning a pleasant introduction to your new dog and practicing breathing control techniques.
Making the Introductions
Help your visitors adopt nonthreatening body language. Dogs feel least threatened by people whose body is oriented away from them. Encourage your visitors to turn in profile, keeping only their head aimed in the dog’s direction, and avoiding direct eye contact until the dog feels more comfortable around the guest. Your visitor should sit or squat at the dog’s level when greeting it for the first time. Instead of looking directly into the dog’s eyes, your guest should examine some piece of art on the wall or talk directly to you instead of addressing or interacting with the dog. Encourage your guest to use their indoor voice when around your dog and discourage yelling and boisterous behavior, including raising their arms or standing up suddenly. Encourage your guest to gently pet the dog on the shoulder or back. Ask them not to lean over the dog or pet its head at first. If the dog is comfortable with the guest petting it, the guest can work their way up to petting the dog from the back to the shoulders and neck.
Get the dog to sit. Tell the dog to sit when meeting new people, and make sure the dog remains sitting when being petted by guests. This creates a welcoming environment for both the dog and the guest. As soon as the visitors come in, say “Sit” or “Stay” to your leashed dog. Only then should you actually proceed with the process of introducing the new dog to the visitor. If your new dog does not know how to “sit,” teach it how by taking it to an obedience school or “puppy kindergarten.” Alternately, you could teach it yourself.
Introduce one dog at a time. If you have two or more dogs, you should introduce them to guests one at a time, rather than in a pack. When multiple dogs – new or old – are in one location doing something exciting like meeting a visitor, they could get overly excited. This abundance of energy and excitement could lead to conflict among the dogs.
Rewarding Good Behavior
Show your dog the visitors are friendly. Tie your dog up somewhere in the house. Encourage your guests to offer your new dog a treat. This will keep it happy and reduce its feelings of anxiety or stress related to the guest. Reassure your dog when it meets visitors. When guests come over, provide your dog with a steady stream of positive, comforting verbal feedback. For instance, you should say, “It’s okay, that’s my friend. My friends are your friends, too.” Adopt a kind and gentle tone when introducing your new dog to visitors.
Reward calm behavior in your new dog. If your new dog stays relaxed and at ease in the presence of visitors, you should show your approval with both verbal praise and a more substantial reward. For instance, offer your new dog a bit of its favorite treat. You could also toss a favorite toy or ball across the room to provide your new dog with an opportunity for play. Fill a KONG toy with kibble bits or other snacks your dog likes and toss it to your dog when it’s being good during the introduction. You could also fill the toy with peanut butter or squeeze cheese, and while messy, this will keep your dog happy and entertained while rewarding it for good behavior. Toss a chew toy your dog’s way to reward it. Pat your new dog on the head when it is behaving appropriately during the introduction. If your new dog likes being rubbed on the belly, rub its belly as a reward.
Do not reward antisocial behavior. If your dog demonstrates hostility, anxiety, or shyness, you should not reward that behavior. Doing so will only reinforce that reaction, and you will see your new dog repeat these behaviors in order to earn a treat. Instead, say, “No. That is bad,” in a stern voice. For instance, you might tie your new dog’s leash around a table leg. Instruct your guest to say, “Sit” to your trained dog. When your new dog sits, your guest can give it a treat.
Dealing With Potential Issues
Let the new dog determine the level of proximity. Your new dog should make the first move toward the visitor. If the visitor makes a move toward the new dog, it might get scared or territorial. With your new dog on a leash, wait for it to extend the leash to its maximum length. When it’s pulling gently at the leash and sniffing or woofing inquisitively at the visitor, allow the new dog to wander a bit closer. Provide verbal reassurance to your dog all the while. If it wishes to wander all the way up to the visitor, allow it to do so. Otherwise, allow it to wander off and don’t force it to stay in close proximity to the visitor. Read the dog’s body language—if the dog’s ears are forward, its tail is wagging, and its body is relaxed, the dog is probably ready to meet new visitors. But, if the dog is tense or stiff, has its ears back, and has a straight or tucked tail, it is probably feeling anxious and not ready for an introduction.
Place the new dog behind a barrier. Putting your dog in a crate or behind a baby gate is a good way to introduce the dog to visitors. This keeps the dog feeling safe and secure while at the same time preventing the dog from jumping up or on your visitor. This gives both the dog and the visitor time to observe the other from a safe distance. Allowing the dog to watch you interact with the visitor provides it with clues on how to treat new people. If your new dog is too disruptive even behind a low barrier or inside a crate, move it to another room while your visitor is visiting. You might try to introduce your new dog to your visitor again after 10 minutes or so.
Identify your new dog’s triggers. It might be hard to know what your new dog’s triggers are because it is new. However, if foster owners or previous caretakers observed any trigger behaviors in your new dog, they might have passed such knowledge on to you. If the prior caretaker did not pass anything on to you, or if the new dog had no prior caretaker, make careful observations about your dog’s reactions to particular people and stimuli. For instance, your new dog might become fearful or aggressive when in the presence of perfume, people wearing wide-brimmed hats, or other “intimidating” modes of dress. Some dogs may also prefer women to men or men to women, depending on the interactions it has had with people of both genders in the past. Avoid introducing your new dog to visitors who possess or demonstrate qualities that trigger negative behavior in your dog. Alternately, embark on a desensitization program to prevent your new dog from reacting poorly to its triggers.
Be patient with your new dog. Like people, some new dogs have fears or anxieties that they grow out of over time. The best thing you can do is to introduce your new dog to a variety of different people over a long period and give it lots of positive encouragement and stimulation during the introductions. This will help your new dog develop a store of experiences on which it can draw so that being introduced is not a novel or unusual thing, but rather, a normal part of a healthy social life.
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