The Best Spots to Pet a Dog

As a dog owner, you obviously love spending time with your dog and petting him/her. However, were you aware that there is a certain way to pet your dog? Surprising right? Well, the best part about this is that the right petting methods can make your dog like you way more. In fact, petting a dog the wrong way can cause the animal to avoid you. This is one of the reasons why it’s not uncommon to see even the friendliest of dogs avoiding certain people. It’s likely because that particular person isn’t just good at petting.So, go through the list of dog techniques below. These tips will help you get closer to your own dog and also, other dogs.

When humans meet, don’t we greet each other? That’s somehow the norm, isn't it? Well, dogs have rules too. The first rule is to never pet a dog who doesn’t want you to. If a dog wants to be friends he/she will approach you first. This is an important fact that a lot of people and especially, children need to be educated about.If you would like to meet the dog or make friends with him/her, the ideal thing to do is to invite the dog. For this, you may squat down, while moving a little closer. It is also advisable to turn your body sideways to not appear threatening. This is especially done when dealing with fearful dogs. For a confident dog, an approach can be initiated by bending over a little bit and patting your legs, while coaxing him/her to come to you. Never hover over a dog. This is often seen as a threat. As mentioned earlier, turn sideways and keep the eye contact to a bare minimum. The dog must be allowed to approach your first. So, you’ll have to be patient.

Once you have initiated contact, you can try petting the dog in a certain way. Of course, there are no specific areas as such, but, there are a few tried and trusted zones. For instance, the chest is one spot where most dogs love being petted. Then, you have the base of the neck and the shoulder area.The trick is to approach these zones from the side, rather than from the top. Other common areas that dogs prefer include the under-chin area, the base of the tail and behind the neck.Another fact that might surprise you is that most dogs don’t like having their head touched along with other parts such as ears, paws, legs, tail and muzzle etc. As for the petting technique itself, it is safer to go for a gentle massage or light scratching type of approach.