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Dog-greeting tips to help avoid a bite

Denise Flaim | Animal House
November 20, 2008

It made for a lot of cute jokes about being "biting mad" over everything from his master's imminent departure to liberal media bias. But there's nothing funny about the bite that Barney, President George W. Bush's Scottish terrier, gave a Reuters reporter recently.

Had Barney been a Rottweiler or - heaven forfend! - a pit bull, nobody would be laughing.

(And it turns out Barney is an unrepentant recidivist: In September, he chomped Boston Celtics PR rep Heather Walker when the team visited the White House, and there is a standing order that tour-takers are not permitted in the Rose Garden if Barney is meandering outside. Ankles, watch out!)

Barney took responsibility for the Reuters incident, issuing an apology to political reporter Joe Decker on his own letterhead.

The First Dog's transgressions seem a timely prompt for some dog-greeting tips:

Get permission Decker did ask Barney's handler if he could pet the dog, but many passersby do not. The verbal exchange also lets the dog know that his owner knows and accepts you, and so he should, too.

But actually wait to hear the answer: No means no.

Approach obliquely In polite canine society, approaching head-on is a serious faux pas, and one that can trigger defensiveness. Instead, approach from an angle, always making sure, though, that the dog can see you.

No staring contests Similarly, making direct eye contact - and, worse, maintaining it - communicates a significant challenge in canine body language. Instead, use signals that communicate calm and friendliness: eye-blinking, offering your profile (more of that oblique stuff), even yawning. Don't hold your breath.

Learn to read a dog Though seemingly subtle to humans, canine body language expresses precisely what a dog is feeling. A wagging body, loose lips, relaxed ears and "soft" eyes mean "come hither." In turn, a tensed body, braced legs, stiffly wagging tail and flattened ears are not welcoming.

No aerial assaults "Never, ever swoop down over a dog. No dog, no matter its size, likes that," admonishes Darlene Arden, author of "Rover, Get Off Her Leg: Pet Etiquette for the Dog who Pees on Your Rug, Steals the Roast and Poops in Improper Places" (Health Communications, $14.95). Indeed, Decker's approach to Barney was lightning fast and, from the dog's perspective, totally unanticipated.

No head pats "Never immediately bring your hand down on the dog's head," Arden warns. "From the dog's perspective, this looks like he's about to be hit or have something land on him. And he is going to have something land on him - your hand!"

Be underhanded The safest and least provocative "hello" you can give a dog is offering your knuckles to sniff, with a closed fist, "so you don't risk losing fingers," Arden recommends.

After the dog has sniffed your knuckles, "you can start to slowly scratch the dog under the chin," she continues. "Be gentle and move slowly. If the dog accepts this, then you can slowly move your hand around to scratch behind the ears."

Slow and steady Dogs do not like quick, jerky movements. Try to approximate the fluid movements of your hands underwater. Be gentle, but not hesitant or unsure: This is just as worrying to an insecure dog.

No kidding Small children, with their sharp, birdlike movements, can be unsettling to dogs; watch the canine body language carefully. Also, be prepared to quickly pre-empt any hugging or hanging around the neck: Though this is a natural expression of affection for humans, it is a common aggression trigger in dogs.

Think calm This is tough to do if you are nervous, but dogs can pick up on your body English, breathing patterns, even the pheromones you emit, and respond accordingly. If you are not comfortable with the idea of petting a dog - any dog - then don't.

Related topic galleries: Boston Celtics, The White House, Baseball, Major League Baseball, George Bush

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