There are many reasons a dog will freak out when visitors come to your house. It may be because they are excited to see new faces, or they might feel threatened by the strangers. Whatever reason it may be, it is very desirable to have methods you can use to calm your dog when visitors come. That will be the main topic of our article today, and hopefully by the end you will have a couple techniques you can use when your dog goes crazy when guests come over.
How to Calm Dog When Visitors Come
Below are the best ways to calm a dog when visitors come:
Socialization
Socializing a dog properly is important for many reasons. If your dog doesn’t interact with any other humans besides you, then they will certainly be caught off guard when visitors come to your house. In order to help socialize a dog, try to introduce them to as many people as you can. It is best to only introduce them to one person at a time. Another great way to socialize your dog is to take them on a walk or to a dog park. By seeing and interacting with other dogs and/or humans, your dog will gain confidence and won’t feel as threatened when visitors come to your house.
Exercise
If your dog freaks out from excitement when visitors come to your house, there is a chance they are not getting enough attention and/or exercise from you. A great way to fix this is to take your dog on a walk or run just before guests come over. Since your dog will have a lot less energy, they will be less likely to go crazy when the visitors come over.
Avoid eye contact
In case you didn’t know, eye contact in the dog world is a sign of aggression. Two dogs will lock eyes with each other before they fight. Therefore, it is best for you to tell your visitors to avoid making contact with the dog. This will help your dog be more relaxed, and it will help them get used to the new faces in the house.
Avoid physical touch
While it can be tempting for your guests to reach out and pet the dog, we advise against this. If a dog is feeling threatened and someone reaches a hand towards them, they might get defensive and bite the hand. This is very common in dogs that went through physical abuse. However, you as an owner can pet your dog and try to calm them down since they recognize you.
Giving treats
Instead of trying to pet them, your guests can try to offer the dog a treat. This will help your dog feel more comfortable around the guests, and your dog will recognize that the strangers do not pose a threat.
Quiet room
If your dog gets anxious easily, there is a good chance they will freak out when visitors come. You should try to put your dog in a room that will be far away from the noise. You should put some of your dogs toys in there, as well as their bed and some blankets. To help block the noise, you can put a towel under the door.
Dog calming products
There are also a lot of dog calming products you can use to help calm your dog when visitors come over. On this amazon page, you can find a wide range of products such as calming blankets, dog calming collars, and dog calming diffuser kits.
Play mate
Another great idea is to tell one of your visitors to bring their own dog to your house to keep your dog company. Obviously, it is best if your dog has already met your friend’s dog. Having a play mate will help keep your dog distracted form all the strangers at your house.
