Your puppy’s first meeting with other puppies is a lot like a child’s first day of school.  There will be all sorts of things for your pup to investigate and become familiar with including new sounds, sights and smells.  Of course, there will also be new friends waiting to greet your puppy and to help them learn to improve their social skills during play.

This experience can be very exciting, and loads of fun for pups and their parents.  Just like children at school, social interactions might at times also be a bit of a challenge for your puppy.  In order for this to be a fun, positive, and beneficial experience, you should know what to look for and how best to react to a variety of common puppy play group scenarios. 

Puppies will learn an enormous amount from the other pups, but your intervention and feedback is also important.  By monitoring your puppy’s behavior, and knowing how to best react, you can set your pup up for a successful experience.  Here are a couple of common scenarios you may see as well as some tips to make the most of these social occasions.

1. Let’s Get This Party Started!
Some puppies charge into their first play group with gusto and confidence.  They run right up to every other pup without hesitation and may even insist on play by pouncing and barking.  If your pup is on this end of the social spectrum, part of the benefit of socialisation is for them to learn how to tone down their play with those pups that are less receptive or concerned.  After all, not everyone is a fan of a more in your face sort of social encounter and your pup will do well to learn some self-control.  Of course, being of the same species, puppies are well equipped to learn from each other.  However, puppy parents should ...