Someone once said, “however long a hug lasts, it doesn’t last long enough.” And if it’s from a dog, who would ever want the hug to end? If your dog is okay with it, hugging is an amazing command to teach him. Statistics also state hugging your dog helps release endorphins (happiness hormones) in both you and your dog and is known to be a stress buster. Well, No Surprises there! Let’s look into how to teach a dog to hug…
Find out if your dog likes to hug
Hugs aren’t for every dog. What looks as love to the human eye, may not always be the same with dogs. An embrace between humans signals warmth and intimacy. But when it comes to dogs, hugging them can give them a feeling of being trapped in a spot and most times it’s a sign of dominance and potential threat. This is no way means that your dog loves you less. The difference is we love dogs in a primate way whereas they love us in a canid way.
Signs of stress in your dog if he doesn’t like being hugged –
- Licking of lips
- Snarling
- Trying to back off
- Avoidance
- Growling
- Freezing
- Covering
- Tucking under
The above are some of the most common stress signs in dogs that don’t like being hugged. There can be so much more beyond that.
Types of Hugs
When we talk about how to teach a dog to hug, there are so many ways to go about it. While picking up the type of hug you wish to teach your dog, make sure you’re selecting a method that your dog will most quickly and favourably respond to. This will help set you and your dog up for success.
The hug from the back or the “Selfie trick”
Step 1 – Make your dog Sit and wait while you Sit down on the floor right in front of him with bite sized treats in your hands
Step 2 – Lure your dog to get the treat by showing him the treat near your neck and shoulder region
Step 3 – As soon as he places his paws on your shoulder, give him a treat
Step 4 – Increase the duration between your dog laying his paws on you and rewarding of treats with every attempt
Step 5 – Start adding the command ‘Hug’ or “Selfie” or any other command
Laying chin on the shoulder Hug
Step 1 – Kneel down to be at your dog’s eye level
Step 2 – Take a piece of treat in your hand and place your hand behind your head around your neck
Step 3 – Let your dog come forward and take it from your hand
Step 4 – Add the command “Hug me” once your dog starts doing it consistently
Step 5 – With increased no of repetitions, increase duration of the command and make your dog wait longer before he gets the treat
Step 5 – Start petting your dog’s back slowly to reinforce the behaviour while hugging
Step 6 – After a couple of days, see if your dog does the command without the lure. If not, continue the lure for a while
Pro Tip – A lot of dogs can feel uncomfortable going so close to the human face initially. In such cases, consider shaping, ie, reward the dog even if he comes a little close to keeping his chin on your shoulder if not all the way. Take it slow and reward every small progress.
Laying paws on the shoulder Hug
This trick is easier for medium to big dogs that are natural jumpers. All you need to do is bend down when they jump and add a command “Hug me.” By doing so, not only are you teaching your dog a cool trick, but you’re redirecting the jumping to be performed only on command.
TO teach this command to an avid jumper, for the first couple of days, start adding the command “Hug” everytime he jumps up on you and reward the behaviour. Over the next few days, once your dog starts associating the behaviour with the command “Hug,” reward only when asked to perform the behaviour. Do not reward your dog if he jumps up on you without the command.
Step 1 – Once your dog starts jumping every time you say “Hug,” start bending down a little with each repetition to get his paws closer to your shoulder
Step 2 – Kneel down to your dog’s eye level and encourage him to do the behaviour while you’re kneeling
Step 3 – If your dog is unable to get it, you can ask someone to stand behind you holding the treat over your shoulder to lure your dog into jumping. But make sure the person that’s hugging is the one that eventually rewards the dog
Step 4 – Practice Practice Practice
Further reads – 10 ways to entertain a bored dog at home
– What experienced trainers and Bloggers want you to know about puppy raising and training
How to teach your dog to give another dog a hug
Let’s call the dog that’s going to do the hugging “Hugger” and the dog that is going to be hugged “Huggie”
Prerequisites of teaching this behaviour
Both the Hugger and Huggie must be okay with proximity and contact with each other
Laying paw on another dog could be perceived as a sign of dominance. It’s best to teach this behaviour to the naturally dominant dog to avoid any friction and resistance.
Be thorough with the basics – Sit, Stay, Look
Step 1 – Work with the Hugger first. Take a surface that’s about the same height as the Huggie
Step 2 – Teach the Hugger to lay his paw on the surface and start adding the command “Who’s your Best friend” or any other command that you deem fit
Pro tip – You can teach the dog to lay a paw on the surface by extending the ‘shake hand’ command to the surface. Start by keeping your hand on the surface for the first few attempts. Eventually, start removing it.
Step 3 – Work on perfecting it and get your dog to a point where he knows the command like the back of his paw
Step 4 – Keep a soft toy on the surface and make the Hugger hug the toy.
Step 5 – Instead of the surface and the toy, this time use the Huggie. Make the Huggie and the Hugger sit and Stay next to each other
Step 6 – Say the command and see if the Hugger responds favourably. If not, practice for a longer time on the surface before you do it on the Huggie
Step 7 – If the Hugger and the Huggie succeed, reward BOTH of them heavily.
If the Huggie keeps backing off and avoids being hugged, do not force. Simply try on another dog that you know that might like being hugged.
Possible hiccups –
My dog does not like/ hate being hugged
You’re not alone. I understand it can be heartbreaking that your cute cuddly, poofy, fluffy dog does not like to cuddle. But you need to understand beneath all that poofiness, he’s still a dog that has his own unique personality with likes and dislikes.
Not liking being hugged can be a result of several things –
Feeling trapped and overwhelmed – When you hug your dog, especially a dog that is shy and anxious of human contact, hugging will be perceived as a threat to your dog.
Physical contact with sensitive spots – Hugging a dog can lead to contact with those spots on his body that he might not be okay with being handled. Multiple dogs have issues with being touched on their paws, lower back, head, ears etc. If you accidentally end up touching these areas everytime you hug, it will lead to a negative association for your dogs.
Discomfort to proximity – When you have a slightly reactive, snappy or a touch-sensitive dog at home, hugging should be out of the question. Such dogs are not 100% okay with you bending down, picking them up and getting uncomfortably close to their faces. They can find this intimidating and as an encroachment in their safe space.
Possible dominance issue – In the dog world, laying paws on another dog is a sign of dominance. If you’re living in a household in which the dog has established himself as the alpha (irrespective of the size of the dog), hugging might be an issue.
My dog bit my child when he tried to hug him
A relationship between a dog and a kid is very different than a dog and an adult. Kids come close to their sizes and are also a perfect match to their energies. Moreover, dogs get away with a lot of unwanted behaviors with kids than adults as children seldom have the know-how of correction and training. Hence, dogs often communicate with kids in the same way as they would with a littermate.
If you look at it from your dog’s perspective, your dog will respond with either Flight or Fight in stressful situations. When you’re hugging him, you’re denying him of the Flight response as there is no way he can run or back off when he’s being hugged. This is why, your dog bites (Fight response) because the end result of that is your child putting the dog back down.
Solution – ALWAYS monitor every interaction between your dog and your kids. It’s best to have dogs on leash around kids as correction and training becomes a lot easier. If you see your dog nipping, biting and jumping on your child, put necessary corrections at the right time and encourage gentle play. Likewise, if your kid is being the mischievous one, teach him the right way to interact with the dog. Your dog and your kid getting along with each other is entirely your responsibility.
How to teach your dog to accept a hug
It all depends on how much your dog avoids being hugged. If he’s at a stage where he’s showing minor signs of stress and avoidance, you can work with him through handling and desensitization exercises. You can teach him to accept a hug through shaping techniques – One small step at a time.
However, if you have a dog that growls, snaps, snarls or bites when being hugged, it’s best to consult a professional behaviourist. While you’ll find a lot of techniques and advice on the internet, when it comes to dealing with complex behavioural issues, even a tiny mistake can result in scarring your dog for good.