I've been having some bad socialization luck lately. Pit's a very shy, very soft dog. He's cautious about most new people and animals, but will warm up to them quickly if he deems them safe enough. On the other hand, he will have a major confidence set-back if they're not friendly.
Today I was walking him around a busy marketplace to meet new people. Everyone was really nice, and he was happy to see them all (yay). We came across a little cocker spaniel, wagging her tail, sitting outside the store with his owner, so I went over my little speech with the man. "Hello, my dog is very shy and I am trying to boost his confidence by meeting friendly dogs and people. Is she (pointing at his dogs) dog friendly?" He said yes, so we let them meet. I knew it was bad news as soon as Pit approached her. She went stiff and tagged him on the face as he went to turn away thus setting us back a good bit.
Why say yes when you're not sure if your dog will be nice?
How do you guys go about letting your dog meet other dogs? Do you trust the owners word, or do you go by your own judgment on the dogs body language?
Today I was walking him around a busy marketplace to meet new people. Everyone was really nice, and he was happy to see them all (yay). We came across a little cocker spaniel, wagging her tail, sitting outside the store with his owner, so I went over my little speech with the man. "Hello, my dog is very shy and I am trying to boost his confidence by meeting friendly dogs and people. Is she (pointing at his dogs) dog friendly?" He said yes, so we let them meet. I knew it was bad news as soon as Pit approached her. She went stiff and tagged him on the face as he went to turn away thus setting us back a good bit.
Why say yes when you're not sure if your dog will be nice?
How do you guys go about letting your dog meet other dogs? Do you trust the owners word, or do you go by your own judgment on the dogs body language?