{"id":2811,"date":"2026-07-04T13:45:57","date_gmt":"2026-07-04T10:45:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thedogside.gr\/how-to-approach-a-dog\/"},"modified":"2026-10-29T12:09:05","modified_gmt":"2026-10-29T09:09:05","slug":"how-to-approach-a-dog","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thedogside.gr\/en\/how-to-approach-a-dog\/","title":{"rendered":"THE NEIGHBOUR’S DOG, THE DOG NEXT DOOR"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Just because a dog<\/strong> is on the street, in the park or at the next table doesn’t mean they’re available for petting<\/strong>, hugs and introductions. Before we approach a dog<\/strong>, we need to remember something very simple: they’re not ours<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Not every dog is available for petting<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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It’s a very familiar scene: we see a beautiful dog<\/strong> in the street<\/strong> and instinctively want to stroke them. Maybe they’re looking at us, maybe wagging their tail<\/strong>, maybe even coming towards us. But none of this necessarily means they want contact.<\/p>\n

They may be scared, anxious, in pain, in the middle of training<\/strong>, or simply not in the mood to meet someone new. And of course, the same goes for their human. They may not want their dog<\/strong> to have contact with strangers, for whatever reason.<\/p>\n

That’s why the simplest rule is also the most important: we ask before we approach<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

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Don't rush at them<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Even if their human tells us we can stroke<\/strong> them, there’s no need to rush at the dog<\/strong> with open arms and excitement.<\/p>\n

A stranger leaning over them, reaching out their hands or coming quickly towards them can feel quite overwhelming, especially for a more insecure or fearful dog<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

We let the dog<\/strong> approach at their own pace and watch whether they really want contact.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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\u201cNo\u201d is enough<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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If their human tells us they don’t want us to stroke their dog<\/strong>, no explanation is needed.<\/p>\n

There may be fear<\/strong>, a health issue, an allergy<\/strong>, training<\/strong>, a previous bad experience or simply a personal choice. We don’t need to know the reason to respect the boundary.<\/p>\n

The same applies when a dog<\/strong> shows they don’t want contact. We don’t need to wait for them to growl or react strongly before giving them space.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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And something very important: we don't feed someone else's dog<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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A treat<\/strong> may seem like an innocent gesture of affection, but we don’t know whether the dog<\/strong> has an allergy, follows a specific diet, is taking medication or whether their human is working on a particular behaviour<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Even with the best intentions, we don’t give food to a dog<\/strong> who isn’t ours without asking first.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Children need even more guidance<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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To children, a dog<\/strong> can look like the perfect new friend. But it’s important for them to learn from a young age that we don’t approach an unfamiliar dog<\/strong> without permission.<\/p>\n

We don’t hug them, we don’t pull their tail<\/strong> or ears, we don’t put our face close to theirs and we don’t run straight at them.<\/p>\n

Even a very sociable, friendly dog<\/strong> can get scared or feel pressured when they can’t move away.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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A dog isn't public property<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Just because a dog<\/strong> is beautiful, cute or very friendly doesn’t mean they’re available to everyone.<\/p>\n

They don’t have to greet every person they meet. They don’t have to accept every stroke<\/strong>. And they don’t need to become our best friend just because we met them on a walk.<\/p>\n

Respect towards a dog<\/strong> often starts with something very simple: we give them the choice.<\/p>\n

And in the end, the best thing we can do when we meet a dog<\/strong> we don’t know is to remember that at the other end of the lead there’s a person who knows their animal better than we do.<\/p>\n

We ask. We wait. We respect. Because we may really want to stroke a dog<\/strong>, but that doesn’t mean they want to be stroked.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Just because a dog is on the street, in the park or at the next table doesn’t mean they’re available […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2398,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"page_builder":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[172],"tags":[253,272,229,302,268,288,244,290,316,282,281,283,188,178],"class_list":["post-2811","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-relationship-and-behaviour","tag-can-i-pet-a-dog","tag-children-and-dogs","tag-communicating-with-your-dog","tag-dog-behaviour","tag-dog-boundaries","tag-dog-doesnt-want-petting","tag-dog-socialisation","tag-dogs-and-strangers","tag-fearful-dog","tag-how-to-approach-a-dog","tag-how-to-meet-a-dog","tag-how-to-pet-a-dog","tag-safety-around-dogs","tag-unfamiliar-dog"],"yoast_head":"\nHow to approach a dog safely | The Dog Side<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"How should you approach a dog you don't know? 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