The Dog Gurus Resources: Volume 1 – July 2014 (from www.SafeOffLeashDogPlay.com) By Robin Bennett, CPDT, and Susan Briggs

Published by: The Dog Gurus, a joint venture of RB Consulting, LLC and Crystal Canine, LLC www.TheDogGurus.com

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the author, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review.

Copyright© 2014, Robin Bennett and Susan Briggs

Bennett, Robin and Briggs, Susan The Dog Gurus Resources: Volume 1 – July 2014 Robin Bennett Susan Briggs P.cm.

All other photos courtesy of the author unless otherwise noted above/below the photo.

Limits of Liability and Disclaimer: This book has been published with the intent to provide accurate information in regard to the subject matter within. While every precaution has been taken in preparation of this book, the publisher and authors assume no responsibility for errors or omissions. Neither is any liability assumed for damages resulting from the use of the information herein. Furthermore, the authors and publisher shall not be liable in the event of incidental or consequential damages or loss in connection with, or arising out of the furnishing, performance, or use of the instructions or suggestions contained in this book.

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www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 2 Table of Contents How to Evaluate Dogs for Off-Leash Play ...... 4 The Secret Most People Don’t Know ...... 7 Why Dog Owners Should Attend Evaluations ...... 9 The Pitbull Controversy – Should they Play? ...... 12 How to Fail a Dog Without Alienating the Owners ...... 16 Training Staff Without Breaking Your Budget ...... 20 Green, Yellow or Red, Oh My! ...... 22 Are the Client and the Dog On the Same Page? ...... 25 How To Create Better Playgroups Instantly ...... 28 Are You Putting The Right Dogs Together? ...... 30 Playstyles: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly ...... 32 Which Playstyles Work Best Together? ...... 34 Finding Hidden Cues to Playgroup Fit ...... 36 Dangers of Play Between Large and Small Dogs ...... 38 Minimizing Fights and Bites in Off-Leash Play ...... 40 What Happened? Evaluating Fights and Bites ...... 42 When to Dismiss a Dog For Fighting ...... 43 Warning Signals That Precede A Fight ...... 45 How to Break Up A Dog Fight ...... 47 How to Tell A Dog Owner About A Fight ...... 49 Have You Achieved Excellence? ...... 51 Does Your Dog Deserve Excellence? ...... 53 Have You Found The Missing Link? ...... 55 Just Do it! Please!!! ...... 57 Fun Ideas For Your Business ...... 59 The Games People Play…With Dogs ...... 61 How to Solve 90% of Daycare Problems ...... 65 Supervision of Dogs at Excellent Daycares ...... 66 What Benevolent Leadership Looks Like ...... 68 Hiring Employees that Have “It” ...... 70 Conjure up Fun and Safe Playgroups ...... 71 Dog Daycare 2.0 - A Time for Change ...... 73 Dog Activities Revealed, Part 1 ...... 74 Dog Activities Revealed, Part 2 ...... 76 Exhaustion is Not the Measure of Success ...... 78 How Long Has Than Been Going On? ...... 80 An Ounce of Prevention ...... 82 Are Bully Breeds Right for Playgroups? ...... 84 Specialized Daycare ...... 86 Is Daycare Counselor The Right Role For You? ...... 88 Does the Staff Drama Ever Stop? ...... 89 Positive Reinforcement: It’s Not Just For Dogs ...... 91 Don’t I Just Play With Dog All Day? ...... 93

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How to Evaluate Dogs for Off-Leash Play

What comprises an excellent and efficient dog evaluation process?

This article will help you elevate your evaluation process to excellence. Your dog application form becomes your foundational planning tool. (Access a sample form which you can start using today in the resource section at www.TheDogGurus.com)

What is the Goal of Your Dog Evaluation Process? Have you really stopped and thought about your answer to this question? When you provide off- leash play services, dog evaluations or temperament testing is a generally accepted, required practice. However, in our experience not only is there a wide variety of goals for the process, there is even more variety in how evaluations are done.

If you have dogs that you find challenging to manage, that require special handling or that need to be put on a rotating schedule of play with only limited other dogs, then it’s time for you to take a fresh look at your evaluation process.

Your Primary Goal Determine if the applicant dog is a good fit to your playgroups. It’s important to keep in mind the objective of physical safety and emotional well-being of all dogs during play.

Four Steps of an Excellent Dog Evaluation Process 1. Assess applicant dog’s communication skills 2. Observe behavior and stress levels with the new unfamiliar place (your facility), people and dogs 3. Determine dog’s response when he’s uncomfortable 4. Understand dog’s social interactions and fit of behavior to your playgroups

Step 1. Assessing Communication Skills Not all dogs have polite communication skills in social interactions with other dogs. Assess these communication skills by • Observing dog greetings and their subsequent behavioral interactions • Allowing all forms of dog communication including warning growls, snaps and barks • Preventing aggressive attacks, for safety • Allowing lower level aggressive displays (an important part of dog communication and one method for dogs to work out their social rank)

Step 2. Observe Behavior in Unfamiliar Setting You cannot expect to fully know all aspects of a dog’s behavior during the short evaluation process. You want to assess how a dog responds in a situation that might be initially uncomfortable. The initial evaluation session is a time that “pushes” most applicant dogs as they

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 4 are dealing with the unfamiliar. Use this to your advantage so you can see a potential inappropriate aggressive response in the evaluation scenario instead of in the dog playgroup. You will walk a fine line in trying to make the applicant dog comfortable so you can observe it’s natural behaviors and recognizing this may be a stressful event for them.

Step 3. Determine Dog Behavior When Uncomfortable Knowing in advance situations that make an applicant dog uncomfortable is very valuable for planning the evaluation. For this reason excellent centers will obtain written dog application forms in advance from dog owners. (Be sure check out The Dog Guru’s sample Off-Leash Play Application form that is available in the Resource section at www.TheDogGurus.com). Getting the application information in advance gives you time to assess scenarios that could result in an inappropriate aggressive response and create a plan to respond to them during the evaluation. A couple of examples:

Clients respond in the application that their dog

1. Does not like men in hats or, 2. Barks at large black dogs it meets

During an evaluation most centers can replicate the applicant dog meeting a man in a hat and a big black dog. In our experience, very few of these “aggressive situations” replicate as described in the application during the evaluation, but it does serve as the right opportunity to test them out.

Step 4. Understand Social Behavior and “Fit” to Playgroup Your observation of dog behavior during the evaluation process is first on the applicant dog (in the following article, you will learn what the tester dogs tell you). Once you rule out inappropriate aggression in the applicant dog you will decide if joining your playgroups is an emotional good fit.

Signs the environment is a good fit include: • Reduction in stress signals displayed • Green body language (see Off-Leash Dog Play by Robin Bennett and Susan Briggs available at www.RobinKBennett.com) • Interest in meeting and engaging with tester dogs • Play behaviors

Signs that may indicate social playgroups are not a good fit include: • Ongoing, multiple stress signals and displacement behaviors • Yellow body language (see Off-Leash Dog Play by Robin Bennett and Susan Briggs available at www.RobinKBennett.com) • Lack of interest in meeting or engaging with tester dogs • Rude behaviors that continue after correction from tester dogs • Bully behaviors (consistently pinning or rolling other dogs) • Avoidance of applicant dog by tester dogs

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 5 Elevate to Excellence You will gain confidence in your dog evaluations and know they are efficient and effective when you have: • Clearly defined your dog acceptance policy • Set goals for your evaluation • Received a thorough dog application form before the evaluation • Defined these items o existing dog playgroups, o staff abilities to manage dogs, and o core group of tester dogs

With these items in place, you will be able to rely on the process to screen out dogs initially that will not be a long-term good fit.

Results You will create easier to manage playgroups without the management exceptions and behavior problems that surface later. So many times when we consult with facilities and recommend dismissal of certain dogs, we hear comments that staff had doubts during the evaluation process about that dog. The lesson here is “trust your gut”!

The dog evaluation process is one where you should get a clear “yes, it’s a good fit” response for acceptance into your facility in majority of cases. We do recognize there are instances where an applicant dog can take time to adjust to the environment of group play. Be sure you have a plan in place for slowly introducing these dogs to play so they have a positive emotionally healthy experience on every visit. Make sure the dogs added to your playgroups keep play safe and fun for everyone!

What happens if the dog isn’t a good fit? Communicating bad news or behavior concerns to owners is often a challenge so we have an entire separate article about this included in this handout.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 6 The Secret Most People Don’t Know

Do you know the secret of making good decisions during dog evaluations? Keep an eye on your tester dogs! In this article you’ll discover the key steps to creating a core group of tester dogs and understanding what they can tell you about the dogs you are evaluating. Dogs understand each other and by observing reactions of good tester dogs you will build better playgroups.

Identifying Great Tester Dogs Great tester dogs love their job and help you make good decisions about the dogs you accept into playgroup. Tester dogs might be dogs owned by staff members or they might be existing playgroup dogs (e.g., client dogs).

Your core group of tester dogs will enjoy dog greetings and should fit the following profile: • Calm, low-key adult dogs o Self-assured during greetings o Balanced o Predictable greeting behaviors • Large in size (at least one of your tester dogs) • Exhibit a wide range of behaviors • Pull behaviors from other dogs • Variety in size, sex and personality

Your variety of tester dogs each serve an important role during the evaluation session. The first tester dog classification to meet an applicant dog is a calm, low-key adult. Once that meeting goes well, you should consider introducing other personality types including:

• Playmates (to identify play style or encourage play behaviors) • Subordinates (to rule out inappropriate bully behaviors) • Button-pushers (to see how dog responds to rude behaviors in other dogs) • Comfort providers (to put fearful or stressed dogs at ease)

Trust the Message Observing behavior of the tester dogs you know is a key part of the dog evaluation process. Always trust the messages these dogs give you by observing their reactions to applicant dogs. When multiple tester dogs you know well behave differently around a new dog there is usually a reason for it.

There may be times you cannot point to any specific behavior of the applicant dog, but recognize that your tester dogs are saying “no”. In these cases you need to trust the tester dogs you know, and not accept the dog for group play (even when you can’t pinpoint a specific behavior reason). Your explanation to the owner is that you know your tester dogs and their behavior with their dog was not what you normally observe in greetings or playgroup. The decision is that for

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 7 safety of all dogs physically and emotionally, your playgroup environment is not a good fit for their dog.

Rewards Be sure to reward your tester dogs as their job is stressful. Monitor their behaviors and give them breaks when you observe any signals of hesitation to meet a new dog. As much as we study and learn dog language we will never be as proficient in assessing “good fits” to playgroups as the tester dogs. Pay attention to their signals and messages to build safer and easier to manage playgroups in your pet center.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 8 Why Dog Owners Should Attend Evaluations

It might surprise you to learn that at Urban Tails dog owners have attended their dog’s evaluations for 13 years. As we gained experience in evaluating dogs, we found a few simple guidelines allowed over 90% of the owners to stay in the room while their dog was evaluated and we wouldn’t have it any other way. In this article you’ll learn why giving dog owners a peek inside your dog evaluations can be a winning strategy for your off-leash play program.

When we founded Urban Tails a big part of our mission was educating pet owners and being a partner with them in the care of their pet. So to us it was a logical step to invite dog owners to observe us evaluating their dog for off-leash play. Honestly, we were naive in the pet industry and never thought there would be an issue having owners observe evaluations.

So why did we ask owners to watch our evaluations? • Dog owners didn’t know about our services. When we started offering dog daycare services in 2000, the industry was still new so we had to explain to dog owners what the service entailed and why it would benefit their dog. • Dog owners didn’t know about canine body language. We took the opportunity to explain the basics of dog body language and polite versus rude greetings. We also talked about appropriate play, dog-to-dog corrections and stress signals. Soon we were known in the community as the dog professionals and off-leash play experts.

How did we do the evaluations? • Owners in a chair: We asked owners to sit on one side of our evaluation room and to ignore their own dog. • Dogs introduced one at a time: Our evaluations were performed on leash with introductions to one dog at a time. • Staff handled the leashes: Our staff handled the applicant and tester dogs so evaluations did require two staff members.

The results? Our experience is that the majority of dogs can be evaluated with their owners in the room without an issue. In fact, it was often beneficial as we saw interesting behaviors when our tester dogs initiated interactions with the dog owners. (We did encourage dog owners to interact with the tester dogs; they just had to ignore their own dog). In cases where a dog was too focused on the owner we would then ask them to step out of the room and view the evaluation via our webcam.

The benefits? • Educating dog owners on basic dog behavior • Demonstrating group play safety efforts as they observed first-hand our evaluation process required of all dogs

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 9 • Establishing our staff as pet professionals with a vast knowledge of dog body language and off-leash play behavior • First-hand observations of their own dog’s behavior when introduced to other dogs and in small playgroups

The last benefit was one of the most important as many owners were surprised at the behaviors they observed; especially in cases when the decision was made that off-leash play was not a good fit. Being able to explain to an owner why off-leash play is not a good fit for their dog in real- time while they are observing can be invaluable.

Alternatives for an Inside Peek We recognize that space and staff limitations makes having dog owners attend evaluations difficult for many centers. However, the ultimate goal of providing that inside peek into your evaluation process can still be achieved using technology and good communication. We challenge you to take these extra steps to educate dog owners on the inside scoop of off-leash dog play.

Set your center apart from your competition by: • Starting the relationship with a professional focus on safety and dog knowledge • Confirming that the best interest of their dog is your priority • Demonstrating that your playgroups are a good fit and an enjoyable activity for their dog • Educating the owner on dog language and appropriate play • Clarifying misperceptions they have from other social play experiences (e.g., dog park, tv shows, and neighborly advice) • Laying the groundwork of trust for future conversations on dog behavior changes or accidents that could happen in the future during play

Six Steps to Involve Dog Owners in Your Evaluations • Prepare a FAQ flyer or section of your website that explains your evaluation process. Include purpose is for the physical safety and emotional well-being of every dog. Share it with the owner prior to their evaluation appointment or on evaluation day when they drop their dog off. • Formalize times for performing dog evaluations during the day and let clients know when they can expect feedback on the results. Even though evaluations are routine to you, for most new clients it is an anxious event and they expect prompt feedback on evaluation results.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 10 • Perform evaluations so clients can watch live via a web cam, save the recording or video- tape the evaluation. You may only have dog owners view portions of the recordings in the event it is determined that off-leash play is not a good fit for their dog. When they see the behavior for themselves they can better understand the reasons that off-leash play is not a good fit. • Verbally communicate evaluation results to owners as soon as possible once the evaluation is completed. You can always indicate additional details will be provided at pick-up if a more in-depth behavior discussion is needed. • Provide a detailed written feedback report (a template is available at the Resource section of www.TheDogGurus.com) summarizing results of their dog’s evaluation at pick-up. A brief single page report with specific behaviors noted and recommended schedule for attending playgroup provides validation of your professional process. • In the event the dog is not a good fit for playgroup but will still spend the day at your center, have a fun day planned for them. Provide a special treat or a play session with a staff member so the dog enjoys his stay and you have something positive to tell the client. In this case it is very important to include a written report and, if possible, provide some options at your center that the dog would enjoy as an alternative to off-leash play.

Pro-active communication on evaluation results with dog owners is a great way to create the foundation of a pet professional partnership. Be sure the tone of all your communications focuses on the best interest of their dog as your first priority. By including the dog owner as a key part of the evaluation process you portray openness and your knowledge of off-leash dog play.

This is a winning strategy and makes dog evaluations a valuable first impression of your professional pet care services.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 11 The Pitbull Controversy – Should they Play?

Allowing pit bulls to participate in off-leash playgroups is a controversy in the industry. Safety is a top concern for operators and is the reason some exclude the breed. Others receive feedback from customers that they don’t want their dogs to play with pit bulls. As pet professionals we are sensitive to the perceptions of global breed bans…so what do you do?

As professional providers of off-leash playgroups do you have a responsibility to evaluate every dog that applies to your center? Are admittance policies that exclude certain breeds discriminatory? How do you balance group safety, public relations, and setting individual dogs up for success in your evaluation process?

Good intentions are not always enough in today’s world of social media and over saturated news coverage looking for a good controversy. This article will help you learn how to stay out of the breed discrimination fray and keep your focus on efficient dog evaluations and ensuring safe playgroups in your center. You’ll learn how to use your dog application form as a tool to navigate these controversial waters. (If you do not have an application form, visit the Resource page at www.TheDogGurus.com) .

Avoid This A recent news story about a private dog park operated by a dog daycare business that excludes bull terriers and pit bulls is a great example of unintentionally creating a media controversy and potentially very bad public relations for your business. In reading the comments to the online story, by far, the majority of people responding: • viewed the policy as discriminatory, • vowed to never frequent the business, and • asked their many dog-loving friends to join them in a boycott.

A later post clarified that the ban was required by insurance, but this seemed to do nothing to sway the public’s opinion once the breed discrimination accusation bandwagon was set in motion. Unfortunately, many posts also questioned the knowledge base and professionalism of the business operators in establishing a breed ban policy.

A Better Alternative As you create your own admittance policy focus on appropriate and inappropriate behaviors of each individual dog as an alternative to breed bans. We recognize taking time to evaluate every dog that applies for play is not the best business policy either.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 12 Your solutions include: • a pre-screening process prior to scheduling the evaluation • well-designed Off-Leash Play Application form that clients are required to submit prior to scheduling an individual dog for an evaluation (The Dog Gurus off-leash play application form available at the Resource page of www.TheDogGurus.com is one example). • reviewing responses in advance on the application so you can screen o dogs that have the social background that sets them up for success, or o to exclude dogs that do not meet the behavior requirements for your program

Reviewing the Off-Leash Play Application Responses • Assess Dog Background Section • Breed • Age • Reason off-leash play is desired • Prior social history

Red flag responses in this section include: • Red breed play styles as outlined on page 50 of Off-Leash Dog Play: A Complete Guide to Safety & Fun by Robin Bennett and Susan Briggs available at www.RobinKBennett.com • Seven years of age or older • An adult dog coming for socialization • Social history is playing with the same few dogs (in the neighborhood, or friends and family)

These responses typically indicate a dog does not meet the requirement of currently having good social skills. These dogs might tolerate an off-leash play environment, but very few enjoy it. Since we are focused on both the physical safety and emotional well-being of dogs in our centers it is in these dog’s best interest to find another activity that they would enjoy rather than off-leash play.

Assess Household and Behavior Sections • Do they have few or many social experiences? • How many fears? • How frequently are warning signals given? • How much is obedience used with the dog? o do they respond positively? o do they have self-control • Is there any history of aggressive behaviors? • What is their energy level? • Clues on prey drive?

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 13 Red flag responses in these sections include: • Very limited social experiences outside the home • Very limited social experiences with dogs outside the family or neighborhood • No obedience training or little use of cues in home • Limited boundaries in the home environment and multiple behavior problem areas • Multiple fears • Multiple instances of aggressive displays • High energy or lack of self-control • High prey drive

An application with multiple red flag responses is one that warrants a phone conversation with the owner….not because of the breed, but because of the experience and behavior of the dog.

Determine Your Client’s Motivation Your goal during your conversation with the pet owner is to clarify their red flag responses and to determine the reason they are applying for their dog to join an off-leash playgroup.

During the conversation: • Listen closely to the owner’s description of their dog’s behavior and reinforce that they have a great pet dog. • Stay focused on the behavior responses and the reasons they are seeking off-leash play for their dog. • As you reply, refer to your professional experience that the dog may not be a good match for an off-leash play environment. • Listen to understand the client’s motivation for applying to see if you can provide an alternative solution to the problem they want to solve by bringing their dog to play.

Many of these conversations result in the owner changing their mind about scheduling the dog evaluation appointment; especially when you find an alternative solution to their real problem. It could be a need to get the dog out of the house for a day, or short time period, or need for behavior modification work.

Is Evaluating a Safety Risk? Evaluating the safety risk should be done based on your professional assessment of the application form, not just based on the breed. Is the safety risk so high that you would be endangering your staff and or tester dogs? • If yes, decline the application • Explain that based on your experience the dog’s behavior and background is not a good fit for your playgroup environment. • Offer alternative services you provide that could help the dog and owner • If you don’t offer the right service then refer to your local network of other pet professionals

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If the safety risk is low, schedule the evaluation, but ensure the client has an inside peek. These cases are opportunities to educate and share specific behaviors with the owner in the event you do not accept the dog.

As a pet professional you do not want a high-risk dog continuing to be put in social situations with other dogs. You have a responsibility to attempt to educate the dog owner on the potential risk.

Deciding not to evaluate a dog can be best for your business, the dog and client. These situations require great communication skills and a clear understanding of appropriate versus inappropriate off-leash play behaviors. In these situations it will be best to focus on the key behaviors and red flag responses that are problematic rather than focusing on the breed type. The key to success is the communication of your message to the owner and we will talk more about that in the next article. Keep in mind your overall responsibility is to the safety of your staff and all the dogs that attend your playgroup. Have confidence and say no to evaluations to keep the dogs safe!

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 15 How to Fail a Dog Without Alienating the Owners

Telling an owner their dog failed your social evaluation is one the toughest parts of the job. You often get tears, anger, denial and rarely a new client. We think you can change the emotion of this tough conversation and keep the client. Learn how in this article.

All dogs go to heaven and all are great pets! This mantra is important for all providers of off-leash play services. Inevitably there will be those dreaded discussions when an owner must be told that their dog cannot attend your playgroup. Unfortunately, an owner’s first thought is I have a bad dog, so your communication must over compensate on the good qualities of their pet! This article will give you tools you can use to help communicate bad news to owners and tips on how to turn these dreaded conversations into more revenue for your pet center.

Social Environment Remember that off-leash playgroups are designed for dogs that have good social skills, play appropriately and enjoy spending time with a group of dogs. When we describe “a good fit” it means that the dog: • has the appropriate social play skills and • enjoys spending their days with other dogs

This is an admitted soapbox issue for us, but also an important reminder: off-leash playgroups are not a necessity in the life of the typical family dog. Unfortunately, dog daycare and socialization has become a status symbol of sorts to people and as a result, dog owners can be devastated when told their dog is not a good fit.

Help the owner understand by emphasizing: • The off-leash play social environment doesn’t work; but the dog is a great pet (in other words…it’s the environment, not the dog that is the problem) • Types of behaviors that are a good fit in off-leash play • Specific behaviors you observe in the client’s dog that indicate there is not a good fit • Focus on both physical safety and emotional well-being of all dogs in playgroup • Bully and rude, inappropriate play behaviors are not acceptable in the environment (Since these are frequent in dog parks it can be challenging to explain to owners that other dogs do not enjoy them.)

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 16 • Use educational tools o The Dog Guru Dog Play Keeping it Safe & Fun tip card (free gift with your membership at www.TheDogGurus.com). o Off-Leash Play Poster photos as body language examples. Sometimes it is easier for the client to see stress signals or yellow body language postures in a photo and then correlate it to their dog or the “victim dog” posture. We recommend the poster set available at www.RobinKBennett.com. o Video footage from evaluation so dog owners can see behavior specifics that are not appropriate in playgroups. o Your professional experience operating off-leash play groups

Speak the Truth Due to the multiple options available for off-leash play, pet professionals have an added responsibility to honestly discuss inappropriate behaviors in social situations with dog owners. It is not fair to owners or their dogs to avoid the behavior truths and put other dogs at risk. Not all behaviors that cause a dog to be dismissed from playgroup pose a risk to dogs in future social situations. However, when physical injuries are involved or significant negative emotional impact to other dogs is a concern, your responsibility is to honestly describe the behaviors and future potential impact to other dogs.

These are not easy conversations to have with dog owners. The Four E’s of Excellence in Off- Leash Play by Robin Bennett and Susan Briggs recommends ongoing behavior feedback reports to dog owners.

Many play behavior issues can be resolved when identified early: • Discuss inappropriate behaviors when first observed with clients • Recommend options for correction o obedience classes and o use of cues consistently (at home and during playgroup)

Dog owners frequently are more willing to register for training when there is concern that their dog will no longer be accepted into playgroups. These owners often have issues at home with their dog’s behavior and have come to depend on playgroups as a key form of exercise and behavior management.

Communicate: Tactful & Compassionate Tactful communication of bad news and inappropriate behaviors does require excellent communication skills (some of our favorite resources include How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie and People Skills by Robert Bolton).

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 17 Tact in communicating bad news: • Over communicate that you and the staff really like the dog • Refrain from talking specifically about the breed • Avoid saying anything that implies the dog is a “bad dog” • Do not imply the owner is to blame for actions or inactions

Each dog is an individual and their varied experiences result in the behavior patterns that develop. “When we know better, we do better” so approach the issue from the current day and moving forward.

Compassion for the owner is an important emotion to keep in the forefront during this conversation. Surprising an owner at pick-up with a lobby full of other clients may not be the best setting to deliver bad news.

Take time to thoughtfully plan your delivery: • Limit phone call message delivery to failures you anticipated and discussed previously with the client or existing, strong client relationships • Schedule an appointment for serious conversations • Ensure privacy and time for all parties to be focused on the conversation

Regardless of the delivery method it is important to use language and analogies the owner can relate to easily; you do not want to deliver news in scientific or “dog lingo.”

Offer Alternatives What often helps bad news discussions is to prepare in advance alternatives for the owner. Options you offer may help their dog’s behavior issues or meet owner needs for reason they were bringing the dog to off-leash play. You must ensure that your staff and other dogs will be safe if the dog comes to your center for other services.

Offering alternatives lets you keep the client, continue to generate revenue and helps the owner find a solution that works for their dog. Some good alternatives to offer include (only as appropriate to each specific circumstance): • Individual play sessions with staff or exercise alternatives during day visits to your center • Obedience sessions during day visits to your center • Behavior modification private training sessions • Pet sitting or mid-day walk visits at client’s home • Small group or one-to-one play sessions with select dogs at your center

The day after you deliver bad news to an owner, place a follow-up call to the client to see if they have any questions after your discussion. You may find they have a different emotional response or can’t recall specific details. No matter how well you prepare and communicate, some clients may be upset and not receptive to your message. However, in our experience, even clients that are initially upset and indicate they will not continue as clients may come back in time for other

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 18 services or with other pets. Honesty, tact and compassion is a winning communication combination when you must deliver bad news. Nine times out of ten your business will benefit from this combination and every time you will sleep better at night!

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 19 Training Staff Without Breaking Your Budget

Do you fully utilize the best dog body language classroom available? Every center offering off- leash dog play has a great classroom for studying dog language and behavior: the dog evaluation session. Do you take advantage of this opportunity and use it for staff training? In this article you’ll learn how you can use dog evaluation sessions to train, grow and retain your staff and learn how you can use your off-leash play application form to identify the best training opportunities for your staff. (For our sample form visit the Resource page at www.TheDogGurus.com)

Dog evaluation sessions frequently use two people so use staff members as assistants and further their learning of dog behavior while getting the evaluation done. We bet that some of the most interesting and unusual dog behaviors you’ve observed were during evaluation sessions. In fact, every dog evaluation session offers an opportunity to learn something new about dog behavior and by receiving your dog application form in advance, you can identify the evaluations that will be good classroom studies and use them purposefully for staff training.

Ideas on using a dog evaluation session for staff training: • Newer staff learn and gain understanding of the formal process used to accept the dogs that are in their playgroups • All staff learn to focus on dog greetings, a high risk event, that should always be observed closely during dog arrivals in playgroups (even dogs that have met previously) • Dog body language displays will range through yellow, green and at times red, so it’s a great classroom to point out postures staff may not see during playgroup • Confirm staff understanding of body language by asking them to describe specifics of what they observe in posture, ears, face, tail along with color of the varying postures • More experienced staff receive continuing education in dog behaviors that include stress or warning signals, play behaviors and dog reactions to being uncomfortable

In addition to learning more about dogs, staff that participate in evaluations experience career growth. They may start as an observer, and progress to a regular assistant during the evaluation process.

Questions to ask your staff as they gain experience: • Which tester dogs should be introduces to the applicant dog? (and reason why) • Why did a dog respond as they did? • Did the applicant dog pass or fail the evaluation? • How will the applicant dog fit into your existing playgroups? • How should the applicant dog be introduced to a large playgroup?

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 20 • What behaviors did they observe that the dog owner needs to know about? • How would you communicate this? (staff may not deliver the message to the client, but it’s a training development tool)

Involving your playgroup staff actively during the dog evaluation process has many benefits. • Confirm staff body language and behavior knowledge levels • Opportunity to clarify dog behavior misperceptions • Better job satisfaction as staff receive ongoing training opportunities • Employee retention increases as staff realize they have input to important job decisions

Evaluating dogs is one of the most important processes performed in off-leash play operations. Take advantage of the responsibility of these roles to train, grow and retain your staff by involving them in the process.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 21 Green, Yellow or Red, Oh My!

What comprises an excellent and efficient dog evaluation process?

As we continue our discussion of dog evaluations we focus on using a standard off-leash play evaluation checklist. We think you are going to love the consistency and objectivity a formal checklist provides. Your applicant dogs can be classified by the traffic management signal colors you have learned in Off-Leash Dog Play by Robin Bennett and Susan Briggs. (Be sure check out The Dog Guru’s sample Off-Leash Play evaluation checklist that is available in the Resource section at www.TheDogGurus.com).

How many times do you evaluate and accept a dog with some reservations? Do you have a difficult time finding the right words to explain to clients why their dog might not enjoy group play? If you answer yes to either of these questions we want you to try out our new Off-Leash Play Evaluation checklist. Continue reading to find out how you can use it to determine the best mix of dogs for your center.

The goal of the checklist is to provide an objective scoring system (based on easy color coding with the traffic signal colors) to validate your “gut feeling” during the evaluation. A daycare manager that has used this evaluation form says: “It helps us have a plan for each specific dog, reduces the time spent doing the actual evaluation and gives us confidence in our final decision.”

Think about managing dog playgroups when the majority of the dogs are “green”. A green dog is: • social • enjoys play • listens to other dogs • responsive to the staff leader • easy to manage

Wouldn’t it be great if all our dogs were green? This is the best type of daycare dog that requires the least amount of special management and control by the staff.

What percentage of your current dogs do you consider “yellow”? These dogs have social skills, but may: • have high energy • frequently push other dog’s buttons • not listen well to staff leaders • be nervous or stressed-out during active play • spend much of the day hiding from the group • be ones staff dread hearing arrive for play

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 22 We all have a few yellow dogs in playgroup. They require more leadership, more management and can upset the balance of energy in the playroom.

Do you have any red dogs in your groups today? These are the dogs your gut said could be an issue, but you accepted them anyway. You may have reasoned that with special management the dog might be able to improve their social skills and be accepted into the playgroup. Red dogs really don’t belong in a playgroup.

How Many Yellow Dogs? The best off-leash playgroups of easily managed, well-socialized dogs, consist of high numbers of green dogs, very few yellow dogs and no red dogs.

However, we generally see many off-leash dog playgroups with too high of a ratio of yellow to green dogs and playgroups that include high-risk red dogs. This is one of the reasons there are injuries and tragic deaths of dogs that participate in off-leash playgroups. The bar of safety in off-leash play needs to improve and it’s possible when you have a way to classify the dogs. Classifying dogs as green, yellow and red provides an objective tool to achieve a better ratio of dogs in your playgroup.

Use the Off-Leash Play Evaluation checklist to: • Identify “green” dogs for acceptance into your playgroup • Identify “yellow dogs” and have a plan for adding them to your group • Identify “red” dogs and provide other alternative services for them

Set a Goal and Start Working Toward It For the average daycare catering to well- socialized dog play (rather than behavior modification for iffy dogs), consider starting with a target of 80% green to 20% yellow dogs in your playgroups (if your staff is inexperienced your yellow dog percentage should be lower). This means that over 10 dog evaluation sessions 8 dogs will score green and 2 yellow. How close are you to that ratio today?

As you get closer to your goal you will see: • Improved safety • Easier to manage playgroups • Fewer “difficult” conversations with existing clients • Staff that enjoy supervising their groups.

Note that our percentage goal doesn’t include any red dogs. These dogs do not have the background or exhibit the behaviors to be a good fit into the social environment of group dog play.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 23 We love the niche service providers that have programs to accept “yellow” dogs that effectively help them transition to “green”. However, this does require additional skills, special programs and a specific management plan to keep all the dogs safe during their learning and transition process.

When clients pay you for off-leash play services safety is your top priority and responsibility. “Red” dogs are high-risk in the play environment. Attempts at “special management” to allow them to participate is never 100% risk-free. Excellent operators will not subject their other clients’ dogs to this risk.

Don’t expect to make this change overnight as it has taken time for your playgroups to evolve to the dog mix you have today. That’s why we want you to start using the checklist with the new dogs you evaluate for acceptance into your groups. There is also value to objectively scoring the existing dogs in your playgroups.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 24 Are the Client and the Dog On the Same Page?

One of the biggest challenges during dog evaluations is helping dog owners understand that their dog really does not enjoy playing with other dogs. Increase revenue by offering play alternatives for dogs and clients that prefer solo activities.

The focus on the importance of dog socialization has contributed to the growth of the off-leash play service industry, yet it has also resulted in some miserable individual dogs. As fun as off-leash play is for many dogs there are actually more dogs that dislike, fear or merely tolerate being in off-leash playgroups.

One of the hardest conversations pet professionals need to have with a client is the owner that is very enthusiastic for their dog to be social when your evaluation indicates that off- leash play is not in the dog’s best interest.

Unfortunately, there are operators that will accept these dogs and either leave the dog in playgroup to be miserable or mislead the owner and keep the dog separated out of play for the day. Excellent operators serve as the dog’s advocate with a goal of educating the client and helping them find a good social activity match for their dog.

Social Alternatives to Off-Leash Play This scenario is actually an opportunity for everyone providing off-leash play services to add revenue. The traditional off-leash playgroup model really fits a small percentage of dogs. With increased education of dog owners on the importance of socialization there is an opportunity for excellent operators to provide other social services that are a win for both the dog and the client.

One of the most important questions asked of the owner in the off-leash play application process is “why are you considering our off-leash dog play program for your dog?” In the event the dog scores low in the evaluation process, go back to this question and find a better alternative that still meets the client’s goal.

As an excellent operator leading the off-leash play industry you may need to create new programs. You have an opportunity to increase your client-base by adding programs that meet client’s social goals for their dog. Keep them socially focused and emphasize fun and the good match for each individual dog.

Good alternative programs to offer include: • Doggy Day Out – Individual playtimes or activities provided by a staff member. Great for dogs that like people more than other dogs. Include a special treat and many dogs will pull their owners in the door on each visit. • Doggy Manners Day School – Obedience training sessions offered in 2-3 short sessions

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 25 during the day. Good for dogs that are high energy with little previous obedience work or use in the home. Dogs that respond with improved self-control and listening may be re-evaluated for off-leash play. Other training options include teaching tricks, nose work, just-for-fun agility obstacles, or any other program offered in short sessions during the day. All of these provide the dog with mental work, physical activity and fun interactions with people. • Private Socializations – Structured training sessions to build a dog’s confidence in off- leash play or to learn self-control and polite behaviors when interacting with other dogs. A good fit for dogs that have interest in other dogs, but need time to adjust to a large group. Also good for young dogs that are comfortable with other dogs, but need to learn polite play behaviors. More details on creating private socialization programs will be presented in a future Dog Gurus product. • Doggy Fitness Program – Physical exercise and fitness activities provided by staff. Options include dog treadmills, swimming, long walks or runs and Fit Paws equipment. Recommend for overweight dogs or ones that the owner was looking for more exercise. (For Fit Paws equipment go to J&J Pet Supply and search YouTube for video demonstrations). • Specialized Daycare – Off-leash playgroups targeted to specialized groups of dogs like tiny breeds, puppies or seniors. Offered on limited days with shorter play sessions. A good option for safety of these targeted groups of dogs and to concentrate attendance on specific days. • Dog Buddies Play Sessions – A very small dog playgroup (2 – 5 dogs) with play buddies matched for good play. A good option for dogs that enjoy a small group of dogs for shorter play sessions than provided by your regular off-leash play program.

All of these programs require individual enclosure space to house the dogs when they are not participating in activities. For many centers this is a great use of boarding enclosures during the week when numbers are lower. You can also use crates set-up in an area for housing when dogs are not participating in activities.

A small play space is needed for shorter time periods during the day. Get creative by rotating groups into a play space or modifying other available physical space in your center (e.g., large hallway, exercise area for boarding dogs, large boarding enclosure, etc).

A staff member is also needed and you may free-up one if your playgroups are easier to manage by better matching dogs to their preferred social activities. Scheduling new social programs on limited days and setting a price that allows you to pay for staff time are important practices when adding any new service.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 26 When you offer social alternatives it makes the discussion with the client about getting on the same page as their dog much easier. Focus on each dog’s behavior and finding a social activity that is a fit for the client and their dog. In the eyes of most clients you’ll be viewed as a true pet professional looking out for the best interest of their dog.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 27 How To Create Better Playgroups Instantly

What is one thing you can do in your playgroups today that would help ensure all the dogs are having fun? Match the right dogs in the right groups! Keep reading to learn how to determine a dog’s playstyle and why playstyles matter to the success of your groups.

As we discuss playstyles, be sure to check out The Dog Gurus Playstyle Management Chart (available in resource section at www.TheDogGurus.com) to help you and your staff assess playstyles and match the right dogs in the right group.

What is your favorite game to play on family vacation? A lengthy and strategic game of monopoly? A fast paced, animated game of Pictionary? A slow, methodical game of chess? We each have our own idea of what we consider fun, and we all know how painful it can be when we have to play a game that we don’t particularly enjoy. The same is true of dogs.

There are 4 different types of dog playstyles discussed in Off-Leash Dog Play

Neck biting – These dogs mouth the neck and face of other dogs when they play. This is often a form of wrestling done while laying on the ground and rolling around one another. Naturally, these dogs have great bite inhibition, as they don’t leave punctures, just lots of slobber.

Chasing – Chasers enjoy running after other dogs and/or they love to be chased. The sport of running is fun for these dogs.

Body-slamming – This is the “bull in a china shop” These dogs play hard and physical. They have a high tolerance for pain and don’t seem to mind running into people, other dogs, or even walls.

Cat-like – A calmer, quieter type of play, the cat-like playstyle involves batting at dogs gently with the front feet. Often these dogs will also play by spinning in quick circles and leaps around another dog.

Just like people, most dogs have a primary game or playstyle preference. This doesn’t mean they

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 28 won’t use another style of play, but usually they have a default based on their temperament.

There is no perfect playstyle. Playstyles aren’t important because some are good and some are bad. Playstyles are important because dogs need to play with other dogs that are an appropriate playstyle match.

I love a good board game, but making me play charades is not much fun. Some of my other friends love Pictionary, but since I really can’t draw I find that game rather frustrating. Our preferences aren’t right or wrong, but they do help to determine the best choice of game and it’s much better if we can find a game that we all enjoy. Dogs are the same.

Some behaviors you don’t want to see regardless of playstyle. • Pinning – Anytime one dog repeatedly pins another dog to the ground, you should intervene. This is usually not fun for the dog being pinned. • Rolling – Any dog that repeatedly is body-slammed hard enough to be rolled over is usually not having fun. Intervene to prevent this from continuing. • Non-stop play – Even if two dogs have well-matched playstyles, if they don’t take breaks every few minutes you should intervene. Play that goes on for an extended period of time without interruption is likely to become a problem.

A dog who loves neck-biting may not enjoy calmer, cat-like play. And similarly, the cat-like dog, may really dislike being body-slammed. For pet professionals offering off-leash play services it’s not enough just to evaluate the dog and say he’s a good, social dog who enjoys off-leash play. Now you have to put him in the right group of dogs. This is one of the flaws with dog parks. Even if you have really social dogs attending the dog park, they are usually put in one large group and you end up with too many different playstyles together. Some of the dogs will usually end up unhappy.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 29 Are You Putting The Right Dogs Together?

So how can you be sure that you are putting the right dogs together? The Dog Gurus Playstyle Management Chart can help. It will help you learn about the different types of playstyles, learn general classification by breed-type, and note potential green, yellow, and red categories by playstyle. Follow the simple steps outlined below to see if you are putting the right dogs together.

First: During your initial assessment of a dog, assign them a playstyle preference. If you are using The Dog Gurus Off Leash Play Application, then the owner will have provided you with an initial description of their dog’s behavior during play. If you are using The Dog Gurus Evaluation Checklistyou will have already verified their playstyle and documented the results. (Both resources available at www.TheDogGurus.com).

• Don’t worry if you aren’t completely sure of the playstyle at this point. The important thing is to make a best guess on the playstyle you think the dog is showing. It’s ok to change your opinion later. • Create a process in your center to update dog playstyles as you get to know them better or as dogs age. Playstyles can change as a dog matures.

Second: Determine how many different playstyles you have in each of your groups. Take about 2-3 minutes and assess the playstyle of every dog in a particular group. How many different styles do you have? (Note: this is a great activity to ask your staff to do each day. It will generate conversation and help enhance their education).

Third: If you have 3 or more playstyles in one group, you may have some mismatched playing going on. Some questions to ask yourself as you assess the quality of play in your groups: • Does everyone have a playmate? How many wallflowers are in your group? (For example: If you have 5 body-slammers, 4 neckbiters and 1 cat-like playstyle, watch to see if the cat-like player is playing. That one wall-flower may not be playing because there are no suitable playmates!) • Are all the dogs having fun? If a dog likes to chase, is he chasing a dog that seems to enjoy that game? Is the neck-biter dragging an unwilling victim across the room or is he engaging in fun wrestling with another dog that likes neck-biting? • Do you see any signs of stress? Again, look at all the dogs. Often it’s easy to get captivated by watching one dog who is having fun. It’s your job to make sure all the dogs are enjoying the play.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 30 • Are there options for moving dogs around so they are in different groups? This is a great discussion to have with your staff to increase their engagement and awareness of the various playstyles.

Fourth: Modify the playgroups if necessary. If you are seeing some poorly matched dogs, consider rotating dogs in the groups or moving dogs to a new group.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 31 Playstyles: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

You’ve evaluated the dogs, and you know they all love to play off-leash. Now what? One of the common problems with the next step in effective and safe off-leash playgroups is putting the right dogs together. Continue reading to find out the pros and cons of each dog playstyle, which playstlyes work best together, and the best way to manage each type.

Just because a dog enjoys playing off-leash with other dogs doesn’t mean he will play well with every dog. In a prior article you learned the four different types of playstyles. Now let’s look at the pros/cons of each one.

Neck biting Pros – this is a benign playstyle of wrestling. Dogs usually are showing great bite inhibition and don’t hurt one another. It’s often done when dogs are getting tired and laying down on the ground. It’s one of the easiest playstyles to monitor because the dogs stay in one basic area so interrupting the behavior is a bit easier. Cons – This playstyle can look scary when you first see it because dogs often show their teeth while mouthing each other. It takes a bit of education to realize the body language of the dog is loose and relaxed. Dog’s ears and neck normally get slobbery during this playstyle.

Chasing Pros – A high energy game that can wear dogs out quickly. Cons – You need a dog that likes to be chased as well as one that enjoys chasing. If you only have chasers, they may stalk or harass dogs. In a group of dogs, chasing can get the entire group revved up and you have to be careful not to create a pack of dogs who want to chase a single dog. Finally, with any chasing behavior, the dog doing the chasing needs to have enough self-control that when he catches the dog he is chasing, the game does not end in biting or snapping.

Body Slamming Pros – As with chasing, this is a high-energy game that can wear dogs out quickly. This is a very physical game well-suited to sturdy dogs who enjoy rough and tumble activities. Cons – Body slammers are not always discriminating in who they body slam. You have to be careful that they are playing with other dogs who enjoy this style of play and who are healthy and strong enough to tolerate it. If you are supervising this playstyle you are at risk of being knocked over, so pay close attention to your surroundings. Typically dogs who enjoy this style of play may need help with impulse control so they don’t get overly aroused while playing.

Cat-like Pros – This is another benign style of play that is relatively easy to supervise. This playstyle does not usually lead to over arousal as the dogs usually do a good job of taking breaks

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 32 during play. Cons – Sometimes the quick, exaggerated motions of play can be overwhelming to a new dog or a dog that is unaccustomed to playing off-leash.

Remember that playstyles aren’t important because some are good and some are bad. Playstyles are important because dogs need to play with other dogs that are an appropriate playstyle match.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 33 Which Playstyles Work Best Together?

Understanding playstyles helps to match the right dog’s together. The first part of this article refers to the use of The Playstyle Management Chart (available at www.TheDogGurus) which provides you with an overview of some of the common breed types, what playstyle they most frequently present, and management tips for supervising them.

Use the Playstyle Management Chart for Staff Engagement A great way to generate discussion and engagement among the staff is to discuss dogs in your facility and have each person identify the different breeds and playstyles. When you have mix breeds, this type of discussion is especially helpful in trying to determine a dog’s fit in your groups. You’ll also note that the chart uses the traffic management signal to classify dogs as green, yellow, or red. This can help you identify potential problem areas in your groups and will help the staff make some better assumptions about their own supervision of the dogs. Remember that if you have 3 or more different playstyles in a single group, you may need to supervise more closely or even rotate dogs in and out of the play session.

Which Playstyles Work Best Together?

• Neck-biters – generally do well with other neck-biters and often with calm, cat-like players. They are often not a good match with chasing dogs because the neck-biters will sometimes get too revved while running and may chase and grab a little too hard. • Chasers – generally do well in groups with a mix of dogs who like chasing and dogs who like to be chased. Chasers don’t always care who they chase and will easily chase a dog that is running out of fear. For this reason, they aren’t suitable with dogs who get scared by the chasing behaviors. Dogs that are scared are likely to defend themselves from the chaser by showing defensive aggression. • Body-slammers – they typically do best with other body slammers. When they are tired, it’s not uncommon for them to do neck-biting as well so they can sometimes be mixed with that playstyle. Body slammers are generally not good with cat-like playstyles because they are too rough for the calmer play. • Cat-like – do best with other dogs that are cat-like in their play. Sometimes they also enjoy chasing games if the dogs are of a similar size. The cat-like playstlye is not a good match with body-slammers.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 34

Even the best-matched groups require supervision, and there are some specific management concerns related to playstyles.

• Balanced play – dogs of similar playstyles still need to take turns in playing. The best playgroups occur when dogs take turns. So dogs take turns body-slamming each other or chasing each other. The play is balanced and fun between the dogs playing. Interrupt the dogs and give them breaks if this isn’t happening. • Over-arousal – The high-energy playstyles such as body slamming and chasing can lead to over-arousal in all the dogs in the playgroup. Interrupt chasing every 30-60 seconds. • Barking – This can become a sign of over-arousal that can occur in the high energy playstyles. Intervene to help calm down the energy in the room. • Stalking – Dogs that like to chase will sometimes stalk dogs who don’t enjoy being chased. Interrupt this behavior if the stalking is causing stress in dogs who are trying to avoid it. • Predatory Drift – Everyone supervising off-leash playgroups needs to understand that a dog’s instincts can lead to dangerous (sometimes fatal) outcomes. Predatory drift can occur during chasing games when the quick motion of a running dog triggers the chaser to attack. It can also occur when a dog begins making a high pitched yelping sound causing another dog to attack. When playgroups include dogs of all sizes, the outcome of these situations can be deadly. Typically, a smaller dog is the victim of an attack by a larger dog. For this reason, we recommend separating dogs by size as well as by playstyle.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 35 Finding Hidden Cues to Playgroup Fit

By using both the Off-Leash Play Application, the Evaluation Checklist, and the Playgrhopu Management Chart (all available at www.TheDogGurus) you can learn meaningful information on a dog’s fit to the play environment. We found two hidden clues that can predict playgroup success for yellow and red breed-styles.

In most dog evaluation discussions one of the first questions about a dog is…what is the breed type? As pet professionals, our knowledge base needs to include an understanding of common breed-style tendencies and behaviors. Origins of the breed and the “work” they were designed to perform does drive behavior and the fit to the off-leash dog play environment. Specific breed types are also prone to specific playstyles as indicated in the Playgroup Management Chart. Dogs that are classified as “yellow” or “red” breed types can be more challenging to manage due to breed traits and behaviors that include:

• Guarding • Hunting live prey • Independent (versus social nature) • High intelligence

Balancing breed-style tendencies with learning the traits of each individual dog is the tightrope excellent operators walk in every evaluation.

Clues From Obedience Cues The consistent use of obedience cues in a dog’s daily life is an important clue that translates directly to dog behavior in the off-leash playgroup environment. In our experiences when obedience cues are consistently used at home dogs tend to listen well and were easy to re- direct and manage during group play. The reverse is also true. Even relatively laid back “green breeds” living without the structure of obedience can be very difficult to manage during the environment of group play.

Boundaries at home and use of obedience cues as part of daily living with a dog does translate to improved social skills and ease of management in off-leash play. For this reason you will note that The Dog Gurus Application form includes multiple questions on obedience classes attended and use of cues at home. The Off-Leash Play Evaluation checklist scores dogs higher that live with the structure

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 36 obedience provides. Dogs that live without boundaries or use of obedience will score lower in the checklist regardless of breed.

Any dog that will not listen or respond to cues from the staff leader is high-risk in off-leash play. If this concern is combined with breed types and playstyles that lead to high arousal behaviors, the risk in off-leash play is even higher. You have the unique opportunity to ease management of these dogs and increase your training revenue by recommending obedience classes as part of your commitment to safety.

Prey Drive Clues An example of a breed-style tendency that does not always do well in a social playgroup environment is “high prey drive”. Dogs with high prey drives are considered high-risk when placed in the environment of off-leash play due to their tendency to want to hunt and chase. Sight hounds and terriers were bred to have a high prey-drive to hunt. For this reason dogs of these breed-types will score yellow for breed in our Off-Leash Play Evaluation checklist. Some of these breeds have playstyles that might lead to chasing and stalking behaviors. The Playgroup Management Chart includes management tips to watch for stalking, high arousal levels and mixing of sizes due to possible problem

Of course, determining the intensity of prey drive for each individual dog can be difficult to assess. Therefore, to get a clue on level of prey drive, talk to the owner and ask a few questions (our recommended questions are included already on the Off-Leash Play Application form).

Past behavior is one of the best indicators of future behavior. If a dog chases small animals ask follow-up questions of the client. You want to learn consistency of the behavior and result of the chase. A red flag response is one where small animals are caught and killed after the chase.

Be careful when managing any dog suspected of having a high-prey drive. Be sure to observe the behavior of both dogs. A dog chasing or stalking another dog may be having fun, but the other dog may be showing signs of fear and avoidance.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 37 Dangers of Play Between Large and Small Dogs

It seems like every month The Dog Gurus hear about an injury that occurred with a dog in an off-leash play environment. Sometimes these injuries are minor, but more frequently we hear about severe injuries and even fatalities that occur during off-leash play.

One of the main safety factors for any off-leash play environment should be the size of the dogs interacting. Dogs of vastly different sizes should be separated during play. Our Playstyle Management Chart shows playstyles for small/medium dogs as well as for medium/large dogs.

The Dog Gurus recommend dogs 25 pounds and under should play with dogs of a similar or smaller size. You may even want to consider a tiny dog playgroup for dogs 10 pounds or less.

We know this policy is controversial. Many pet care professionals will disagree saying large dogs often play well with small dogs, some small dogs are feisty and need a larger dog for play, or that this type of separation policy is a hardship for owners with different sized dogs in the same household. There is truth in these statements. But this does not negate the fact that a dog owner is paying for a pet professional to take the best care of their pet. We think the bar of safety is significantly higher when dogs are separated based on size as well as by temperament and playstyle.

When it comes to off-leash play, you raise the bar of safety by separating large and small dogs regardless of whether or not the dog has played well with big/small dogs in the past.

Here are three dangers of having dogs of vastly different sizes play together in an off-leash environment.

• Small dogs can get injured quickly by a group of large dogs playing. - Large dogs cannot always move out of the way of small dogs who might be running in the play area. And not every tiny dog is aware enough to move out of the way of two large dogs rolling on the ground wrestling. Dogs of different sizes are likely to get in each other’s space more easily when they run to the gate to see a dog entering or leaving the playgroup. While it’s nice to believe that every large dog will handicap his behavior to accommodate the small dog, it just doesn’t always happen. The small dog is at risk of injury and the larger the dogs he is with, the greater that potential. • Small dogs can look like prey. It’s a sad reality but one we have to face as pet care professionals. Last week we talked about prey-drive. Dogs that like to chase things may mistakenly chase a

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 38 smaller dog just because, from a distance, the small dog looks like something that should be chased. This is particularly true in a play area where dogs get riled up and run around quite a bit. Some dogs will chase one another during routine play, others will chase a ball, other dogs just like the fun of running. But when a small dog begins these fast moving activities, it’s possible to trigger a large dog into a predatory chase. If this happens, it’s possible for a bite to occur when the large dog catches up with the smaller dog. The small dog is at risk of injury. • In the event that there is a bite or fight incident, a large dog can do significant damage to a small dog. It’s not that dogs of the same size can’t hurt one another, but we rarely get calls that a 70 pound dog killed another 70 pound dog. We hear about the 70 pound dog who killed a 10 pound dog. Dogs of all sizes can fight and bite. But when the dogs are two different sizes, the large dog has an advantage in a fight or bite. The small dog is at a much higher risk of injury.

We recognize that there are gray areas in this policy to separate large and small dogs. There are some dogs that are small but tenacious. They seem too active to be with other small dogs. And there are some big dogs that are calm and don’t do well with all the high energy of large dogs. It seems better to put them with the tiny dogs.

These are areas where decisions have to be made about how to handle the situation when a dog doesn’t fit into a particular group (whether due to size of the play area, size of the dog, type of playstyle, etc). You might decide to make an exception and put large and small dogs together. We only ask that you recognize that these exceptions come with risks. The fact that gray areas exist does not nullify the truth: small dogs are more easily injured playing in the big dog area.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 39 Minimizing Fights and Bites in Off-Leash Play

Fights and bites in off-leash play. It's one of the biggest fears for anyone in the pet industry. On the one hand some say minor injuries are as common a scraped knee when children play on a playground. On the other hand, there are an alarming number of punctures and even deaths during off-leash play. Keep reading to learn how to minimize injuries, how to classify dog fight/bite incidents, and how to assess an incident after it occurs.

One of the main goals of The Dog Gurus is to reduce the risk of injury in off-leash play by helping everyone raise the bar of safety in their playgroups. The first step to minimizing injuries to dogs and people is to establish a safe environment. The following safety factors should be considered in any off-leash play area:

• Space - A good recommendation that provides dogs with enough space without overcrowding, is 75-100 square feet of play space per dog. If you have a small dog area (dogs under 25lbs) you may be able to get away with 40 square feet per dog. Overcrowding can result in more frequent incidents between dogs because they don't have enough room to get away from other dogs when needed. (Just as people can get grumpy in a crowded concert hall). • Supervision - To provide the safest supervision to the dogs playing, always have someone physically in the same room with the dogs. This staff member should be properly trained in understanding canine body language and in the use of humane, management techniques for handling the dogs. Watching only through TV cameras or windows will not provide staff with enough time to best control and manage the dogs while playing to prevent escalations. • Staffing - A safe staffing ratio is one person for every 10-15 dogs, depending on the size of the dogs and the experience of the staff. Having an inexperienced staff person handling dogs puts both the dogs and people at risk. However, even an experienced person will have trouble managing over 15 dogs in the event of a fight.

Next, you'll want to have a common language that everyone can use to talk about dog incidents. Dog behavior is on a continuum and you need a way to classify the continuum in terms of dog fights/bites. You don't want to call everything a dog fight, regardless of the level of intensity. At the same time, you also don't want to refer to incidents with such vague terminology that no one knows what you mean. For instance, saying two dogs "got into it" doesn't really help to explain what happened.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 40 So what terms should you use? There are four common terms introduced in Off-Leash Dog Play (include link), that we reexamine here. These provide a good foundation to discuss the various types of incidents that might happen.

• Snark: a big aggressive display that usually includes strong vocalizations from one dog to another when the receiving dog does not vocalize or fight back. • Tiff: an aggressive sounding moment between two dogs in which both dogs vocalize but there is no contact • Scuffle: a very brief (less than 10 seconds) aggressive interaction between two or more dogs that includes body movements and not just vocalizations. • Fight: An incident between two or more dogs over status or control of some resource that lasts longer than 10 seconds and includes body contact and possibly vocalizations. May or may not result in injuries. Whatever terms you use, be sure everyone understands the meaning so you share a common language when talking about the incidents in your playgroups. This will give you a leg up on assessing any incident that might occur.

In our next post we'll look more closely at the detailed process for assessing a fight/bite incident and you'll be able to download this month's bonus Dog Incident Checklist and Assessment Instructions (available at www.TheDogGurus.com) which will allow you to objectively evaluate any incident and make decisions on the whether or not you should allow a dog to continue to participate in off-leash play.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 41 What Happened? Evaluating Fights and Bites

Fur is flying, adrenaline is high, everyone is freaking out. These are common phrases heard when a dog fight breaks out. It's perhaps one of the scariest things that can happen during off- leash play. Seconds seem like hours when a scuffle happens. Once the dust settles, your biggest responsibility is to answer two questions: • What happened? • What next?

To help you answer both of these questions, establish an incident checklist. Check out The Dog Gurus Dog Incident Checklist and Assessment Instructions (both resources available at www.TheDogGurus.com). Also check out the Incident Report from Knowing Dogs Staff Training Program (available at www.RobinKBennett.com) which will help you document incident's that happen in your center.

A checklist will take you step by step through a process to review the past history of the dogs, assess the current incident that has happened, and help you make a decision as to suitability of the dog in continued playgroups. We're going to discuss several of the topics seen in the checklist during this month as we continue our focus on dog bites/fights.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 42 When to Dismiss a Dog For Fighting

The Dog Gurus are often asked how many times a dog should be allowed to fight before getting dismissed from off-leash play. Is it realistic to have a “three strikes and you’re out” rule? Are there times when mitigating circumstances might be a reason to give the dog another chance? Should the dog be dismissed immediately? Keep reading to learn how to make these decisions at your facility.

When should you kick a dog out? Well, as with so many things regarding off-leash play, the answer is, “It depends.” This is an issue that can be very emotionally draining on the staff. It’s hard to make rational decisions when we have fallen in love with a particular dog. Often, staff members don’t like to face the truth that a dog isn’t a good fit in playgroups anymore than the owner wants to hear that reality. The more objective you can make the decision, the easier it can be on everyone.

Determining whether or not to revoke a dog’s play privileges after a dog fight/bite incident is a three-step process:

Step 1. Use your Dog Incident Checklist and Assessment Instructions (available at www.TheDogGurus.com) to objectively quantify the incident and the potential for future problems. This assessment is going to give you a classification of green, yellow, or red for the dog(s) involved. Obviously, a yellow or red classification will be a dog that has a higher chance of a repeated incident in playgroups. This should factor into your willingness to allow the dog to continue in playgroups.

Step 2. Use Ian Dunbar’s Bite level chart to determine the level of a dog’s bite during any fight/bite incident. Dogs have an amazing ability to inhibit their bites. The best scenario is a fight in which no dog was injured (classified on the bite scale as a level 1 bite). Dogs with bites that are level 3 and above are much more of a risk during off-leash play.

Step 3. Ask yourself these two questions:

• Was the incident preventable? Talk with the staff, replay the video if you have it on camera, think about the day’s events, and honestly assess whether or not you could have prevented the incident. If the answer is “yes”, then additional staff training is warranted to prevent a repeat occurrence in the future. If the answer is “no” then the dog is at high risk of biting again in the future. • If this happens again with the same dog, will I be able to tell the owner of any dog bitten that I didn’t know it was possible? To me, this is a key question that serves as a “gut check” on whether or not to revoke a dog’s play privileges. If a dog with a prior bite history injures a second dog, how will you justify that to an owner? You are responsible

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 43 for every dog in your care and you have a responsibility to keep all the dogs safe from one another. If you can’t trust a dog and you know a serious bite is a strong possibility, I would not allow the dog to continue in off-leash play activities.

After going through this step by step process you should have a good idea about the relative risk you take in allowing a dog to continue in playgroups. Now it’s time to make some decisions based on the level of risk you are willing to accept.

Here are some basic rules of thumb I use when making these decisions.

• A dog that is classified as red on the Dog Incident Checklist will most likely be dismissed. There are often too many warning signs for me to accept the risk of keeping the dog in playgroups. • Dogs with level 3 bites and above will be dismissed from playgroups. This indicates a dog with bite inhibition that is not as strong as I would like. Although the next bite might be lower, I don’t want to take the risk. • If my staff expresses any concern that they cannot trust a dog, the dog will most likely be dismissed. I value gut instincts even if the staff can’t always explain exactly what is going on with the dog. I also value my staff’s opinions and will work hard to empower them to make decisions. I have never regretted dismissing a dog. I have often regretted ignoring my staff’s gut instincts recommending that a dog be dismissed.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 44 Warning Signals That Precede A Fight

Want a great way to prevent fights in an off- leash play environment? Do you know the key events that trigger a fight? Can you tell when a fight is most likely to happen? Keep reading to find out how you can keep dogs safer when they are playing with other dogs off-leash.

Fights between dogs seldom happen “out of the blue." To those who are skilled in understanding canine body language, there are some tell-tale signs that things are headed down the inevitable road to a fight. Learning to identify these signs will dramatically increase your ability to keep dogs safe and raise the bar of safety in off-leash play.

• Dramatic increase in arousal – the idea that” letting dogs play without supervision or control is fun and safe for the dogs” is a myth that needs to be debunked. Taking off the leash and allowing a dog freedom to do whatever he wants is not only unsafe, it’s also irresponsible. Lack of management by those supervising will lead to increase levels of arousal among the dogs. Arousal and aggression is linked. One often leads to another (think of sports fans who get revved up and then fight in the stands). Dogs need help to prevent their arousal levels from getting too high. Good leaders keeps arousal levels low by intervening to redirect the dogs if they begin to get overly excited during play. • High-energy events – Certain events and activities will trigger higher arousal level in dogs. You may need to limit the number of dogs in the playgroups when these activities are happening: Dogs coming or going to/from the group People coming or going to/from the group High activity games such as group fetch or chase • Too much inappropriate behavior. The following behaviors will generally lead to an increase in aggression between dogs. For this reason, these behaviors should be interrupted and the dogs redirected if they happen frequently: Rolling a dog Pinning a dog Bullying (one dog picking on another dog) Excessive chasing of a dog (especially if the dog being chased begins to hide)

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 45 • Early warning signs to aggression. These are explained in detail in Off-Leash Dog Play by Susan Briggs and Robin Bennett (available at www.RobinKBennett.com) and include the following: Stiffness Freezing Direct Stare Snarling Growling

If you observe any of these signs, intervene immediately to separate the dogs. It’s surprising how many times I’ve heard people say, “Oh, he growled all the time, but I never thought he would bite.” Keep in mind that growling is an early warning sign…ignore the warning sign and a dog is likely to escalate from the signal to a bite!

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 46 How to Break Up A Dog Fight

What’s the best way to break up a fight? How do you keep from getting bitten? What do you do after a fight? These are all great questions and are among the top questions that The Dog Gurus get asked. Keep reading to learn some tips and tricks on what to do if you have a fight in your center.

First of all, let’s set the record straight. Fights should be a rare occurrence. If they happen every month, then the first order of business should be to evaluate your screening process and your staff training process. If both of those are top notch, you’re going to have fewer fights. I’m always a little concerned about the businesses who spend more time creating their toolbox for breaking up a fight than they spend on their staff training and assessment process.

Fights should be a rare occurrence. If they happen every month, then the first order of business should be to evaluate your screening process and your staff training process. If both of those are top notch, you’re going to have fewer fights.

But fights are a realistic fear we should all acknowledge. I am equally concerned by pet care operators with a “It could never happen to me” mentality. It can happen to anyone because dogs are dogs. So you need to be prepared.

As you read these guidelines, please understand that The Dog Gurus do not recommend these measures as a normal way of dealing with dogs in off-leash play. We do not recommend physically grabbing dogs or using harsh or physical methods with them. However, when a fight breaks out, we recognize that the goal to break up the fight takes precedence. This is no longer a training situation. It is now a safety issue.

So what do you do when a fight happens?

1. Train everyone to respond. A fight sounds different. Any staff member who hears a fight should drop what they are doing and respond to the room where there is a fight. 2. Try not to touch the dogs. This is the hardest part of breaking up a fight. Our first instinct is to grab the dogs. However, this puts the staff members at risk of getting bitten. You already have to worry about dog injuries. Try not to add staff injuries on top of it. Rather than grabbing the dogs, try one of these techniques: • Make a loud sound. The first goal is to get the two dogs fighting to stop fighting. A loud sound can sometimes startle them enough that they will separate. That’s the goal. So using something like an air horn, yelling, or

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 47 banging stainless steel bowls together might work. Understand that if you use this kind of punishment on a routine basis at your facility (which I don’t recommend), you take away any value it might have in a fight. The idea here is that the dogs are hearing sometime new and startling…not something annoying that they hear all the time. • Throw something over the dogs or push something in between the dogs. If you have a blanket or some bedding you can throw that over the heads of the dogs fighting. Alternatively, you might try shoving something in between them (a chair, a piece of play equipment, a clipboard, etc). Again, the goal here is to startle them enough to separate. • Use a deterrent. If you have a water hose you may be able to spray the dogs and cause them to separate. Another option is to use Petsafe Sprayshield Animal Deterrent Spray which is a citronella, based spray you can spray in the face of the dogs. • If none of the above options work, you may need to grab the dogs as a last resort. If you have to do this, grab the hind legs and lift up and away from your body. Be prepared to let go quickly because the dog may turn around and redirect his aggression to the person. • Once the dogs separate, throw leashes over their head and take them to a safe area.

3. As the actions listed in #2 are taking place, others who have entered the room should be leashing and moving all the other dogs out of the play area. Move them quickly into any location you can find, even if it means bathrooms and storage areas. You aren’t going to keep them there…you just want to move them until the fight is over. Then they can come back out. The more dogs that are in the room, the more chances you have for those dogs to join the fray or get overly aroused and start fighting themselves. 4. Once the fighting dogs are separated, put them in individual crates or runs and begin checking the dogs for injuries.

In the aftermath of a fight it’s important to give everyone time to calm down. The staff will be feeling overwhelmed and should have 10-20 minutes to process what happened before they return to their regular duties.

Make sure no employees are injured and have them write down what happened from their point of view. These will be helpful when you are trying to work out the sequence of events later.

Check the dogs throughout the day. It’s not uncommon for a puncture wound to go unnoticed upon initial inspection of the dog, especially with dogs that have longer fur. Continue checking the dog throughout the day to see if you notice any injuries or bleeding. It’s best to keep the fighting dogs separated from one another for the rest of the day, but often the dogs can return to separate playgroups. This will need to be determined based on the level of injuries of the dogs and the comfort level of the staff in supervising the dogs.

Use the Dog Incident Checklist to determine the level of injury and provide you information as to whether or not you should dismiss the dog from playgroups. And then…you’ll want to talk to the owner. We’ll talk more about that in our next article.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 48 How to Tell A Dog Owner About A Fight

We continue our discussion of bites and fights by entering the realm of client conversations. How do you tell the owner about a fight? What do you say? Who is responsible for any medical bills? Do you dismiss the dog from playgroups? Keep reading to learn The Dog Gurus thoughts on these topics.

Pet facility owners take on a huge responsibility when they bring a dog into their care. Pet owners are paying for services that should keep their dog safe. However, when an injury happens, how you respond to the incident is vital to determining how the client will respond to your business.

Transparency is key. Never try to hide the incident from the owners. Honesty is always the best policy.

When should you tell the owners? If the fight resulted in an injury, the owners should be notified immediately. This is especially important if the dog was taken to the veterinarian. Call the owner to assure them their dog is ok, and provide them with an update on the dog's medical condition. Assure them you will follow up with them throughout the day. This first phone call is hard to make and will likely cause the owner stress and anxiety, but you need to be upfront with what happened. Make a follow up call to the owner after a couple hours just to check in with them if the dog has not gone home yet.

What do you say? Again, honesty is the best policy. Let the owners know what happened, but be careful with your choice of words. Explaining there was an incident between two dogs is better than saying one dog attacked another. Saying the incident resulted in a single puncture is better than saying one dog bit another. Be clear on the length of the fight. Most dog incidents last less than 30 seconds so be clear the owner understands it was over quickly (assuming it was). Spend the bulk of your conversation focusing on the current condition of the dog and explain all the positive actions of the dog (: i.e. explaining the dogs have been separated, they are calm, they are eating, drinking, etc.) If the dogs are acting normal, playing with toys, interacting with the staff as usual, let the owner know.

This initial conversation with the owner serves to notify them what happened but also attempts to let them know the dog is ok (again, assuming this is true). If the dog is doing well, paint a picture of a happy dog that is enjoying the day because the owner is going to assume their dog is injured, scared, and depressed. If you can take a picture of the dog looking happy and relaxed, I would send a picture to the owner (perhaps several).

When the dog is picked up, reinforce all that has been done. Apologize for the anxiety of the day, and remind the owner to call overnight with any questions.

Who pays the bills? Most pet care facilities have a policy signed by the owner which puts the

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 49 responsibility of medical treatment on the shoulders of the owner whose dog did the damage. However, there are times when you may want to pay the bills yourself. If the cost was minimal (under $300), it may be worth the good will you will receive to pay for any bills yourself). Additionally, as you review the incident, you need to make an honest assessment about the role your facility or staff may have played in failure to provide quality care. If there were things you could have done differently, if your staff failed to perform their job adequately, or if you have an unsafe environment for safe play, then you should pay for the medical bills and commit to making changes in your policies and procedures.

Do you dismiss the dog from playgroup? Use the Dog Incident Checklist (available at www.TheDogGurus.com) to help make a valid assessment about whether or not a dog should continue to attend playgroups.

If you keep a dog, you should discuss the decision with the staff and makes sure your staff is comfortable supervising the two dogs who were fighting. If not, consider having them attend on separate days. If you dismiss a dog, try to find other alternatives for the owner to give their dog an outlet for the day (ideally these are other services you provide).

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 50 Have You Achieved Excellence?

One of the key reasons we founded The Dog Gurus was to share the components of the best off-leash playgroups we had observed. We hate hearing about dog injuries and even deaths that result from dogs attending social playgroups as we know many of them they are preventable. We also don’t understand why some playgroups continue to operate without human supervision. Doesn’t everyone realize the avoidable high risk of this practice? Keep reading if you agree our industry can improve its safety record.

Since injuries continue to happen during daycare, more needs to be done. So we set out to to compile in one written document the best practices related to off-leash dog play. As we pulled together current industry standards, we realized that there was an opportunity to actually raise the accepted standards of care and safety in off-leash play.

From our book Off-Leash Dog Play and Knowing Dogs staff training programs we knew many service providers joined us in wanting changes in the industry. We saw facility owners striving for excellence and felt they should be recognized by dog owners as the leaders in our industry. The time was right for The Dog Gurus to build a community of excellent off-leash play providers and help dog owners choose the right providers.

We know our Dog Guru Community will make a difference and lead the pet care industry in raising the bar of safety and industry standards of care. So we made our 50+ page book of standards free to every member of The Dog Gurus. (The Four E’s of Excellence in Off-Leash Dog Play is a FREE download available when you join at www.TheDogGurus.com).

If you were busy when you joined our community and haven’t had a chance to download and read this book, we’re going to encourage you this month to put it on your “to do list” for the off- season.

We’ve now created a series assessment checklists which are a companion to the Four E’s of Excellence. We challenge each of you to print the checklists, read the Four E’s and score your center’s current performance. You will calculate an objective score and find out if your operations are below baseline, baseline or excellent. (You can find the checklists in the resource section at www.TheDogGurus.com).

Keep in mind that our goal is to raise the bar of safety and challenge the industry to adopt best practices. We really don’t expect any center to score excellent today in all four categories of Environment, Dog Evaluations, Education and Excellent Operations.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 51 However, our commitment to our members is to provide the tools, resources, training and community sharing that will allow each of you to achieve excellence. We feel strongly that our dogs deserve nothing less than excellent care and your membership keeps us focused on helping you be among the first recognized Excellent Operators!

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 52 Does Your Dog Deserve Excellence?

Right away I knew this playgroup was different from the others by the energy. Dogs were relaxed, calm and happy. In contrast to the last place where Fifi, the toy poodle, shook and hid behind the crate as Rascal and Rowdy raced around the room barking and chasing the smaller dogs. At first Steady Eddy and I would cut them off and woof to let them know they were rude and not playing nice. But each time we ended up in trouble with the human that yelled and threw that noisy can at us. Rowdy bit me so hard the last time I tried to help Fifi that I had to visit Dr. Joe. So after a while we stopped trying to help as knew we’d be the next victims of the juvie dog gang attack.

Being in that wild crazy energy kept me nervous and jumpy all day. The worst time was when dogs started going home and everyone crowded the gate…snarling and snapping at each other trying to push through to get the heck out of there. I was so happy to go home to finally relax and recover from the day’s wild free-for-all. I know Mom and Dad thought they were keeping me from being home alone, but I dreaded my days at that place.

This new place is so different…the human actually understands “dog”! They actually back us up when we “woof” to teach the juvies to stay in control during play. My favorite time is when we play as a group and all sit waiting for the human to toss balls. Being with dog buddies my size that love playing ball and chase makes the play session go by so fast. I’m ready for a rest break on the cushy bed and snooze away with the soft calming music playing in the background. Then I get to enjoy another round of group play with my buddies. When I go home at night I’m tired from a fun busy day versus exhausted from the stress of staying safe.

Mom and Dad had to wait for a spot to open up in this new place and they say even though it costs more, I’m worth it. They are so happy that no dogs go to Dr. Joe for injuries from this place. They say there’s a separate playgroup for Fifi and her friends so even though I miss seeing her, it’s great to know she and the other tiny dogs get to run and play together. All the humans are so nice and since they went through “dog school” (to learn about dogs!) it’s easy to trust them as they seem to read our minds.

I’m not sure what “excellence” means to humans, but to the dogs playing here it means doggy heaven. Every place that offers playgroups for dogs needs to be excellent…we dogs deserve it!

Note from Authors: The Dog Gurus’ mission is to ensure all dogs have the option to attend an excellent off-leash play center. For the first time, off-leash play industry best practices have been published by experts in the pet care industry, and assessments are available to see how your

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 53 facility compares. Join the Dog Gurus today and get a copy of the standards FREE in our Four E’s of Excellence in Off-Leash Play downloadable ebook.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 54 Have You Found The Missing Link?

Why do some service providers fall short of excellence? What separates excellent providers from the average or baseline operators? In this article you’ll learn about the missing link that keeps most pet centers average. Keep reading to find this missing link and move your operations to excellence!

Think about a business you truly love…one with great customer service and a product or service that you use frequently. What words do you use to describe this business? Why is it a favorite for you? I’m willing to bet many of you thought of words like reliable, dependable, or consistent to describe this business.

Customers like consistency in products and in the delivery of services. This is the reason franchises are successful…their brand is built on consistency of operations. As a business owner, my biggest frustration and challenge was achieving consistency in my pet center’s services. If you are like me you have written policies and procedures and have a formal staff training program so why is consistency so hard to achieve?

To me the answer was drift…staff would slowly drift away from following the written procedures. Drift is not usually intentional. It’s just something that would happen gradually as one person found a “better way” of accomplishing a task.

So how do you prevent drift? The answer is our missing link to service excellence…quality control (QC). I realize many of you are thinking…we have checklists and still have drift! Checklists are one tool in your quality control system and to be effective they do require staff accountability, which we’ll talk about in an upcoming article.

The key to achieving excellence is having quality control for the right procedures. Prioritize your systems and procedures and implement quality control for areas that are high risk for dog health and safety or client satisfaction. Areas to consider include: • Security of fencing and gates • Preparation and use of cleaning products in pet areas • Sanitation procedures • Dog roll calls and physical checks • Gate management • Moving dogs between play areas • Dog interaction and activity schedules • Dispensing medication

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 55 • Feeding meals and treats • Invoicing • Inventory and return of personal belongings • For each area you need to decide which quality control tool will best ensure compliance with procedures. Checklists are good for tasks that are performed 1 – 3 times per day and which are part of a specific job assignment. An example is preparing the play areas prior to admitting dogs and tasks on the checklist may include: • Perimeter fence check • Gates closed and latched • Cleaning tools and products prepared for day • Play equipment checked to be in good repair • Play yard checked for foreign objects that could be harmful to dogs • Performance audits are another quality control tool that are good for tasks that are performed multiple times throughout a day or on a schedule. A supervising staff member can spend time auditing or observing staff members performing tasks on a regular basis and complete an audit form on their compliance. Examples of procedures that could be audited include: • Sanitation • Gate management • Moving dogs between play areas • Dog activity schedules

One of my favorite assignments as a consultant was when I was asked to “spy” on a client’s staff. My spy work was observing if they were using the dog leader skills they had been taught in Knowing Dogs. I parked across the street from the outdoor play yards and watched the staff through binoculars. My visits were random and not announced to anyone at the pet center. While I observed the staff I made notes including time, dog description and behavior of dogs, and staff responses that concerned me. Now a key part of my spy missions was also pointing out good and positive behaviors that the staff did implement from the training. After an hour I met with the Daycare Manager and shared my specific notes and overall observations from the spy mission.

The quality of care in this center has improved as a result of the staff training and quality control audits. This is a large center that has over 75 dogs per day in their playgroups. Their dog incident rate has decreased tremendously and they reported to me on two separate months they had zero dog injuries or serious incidents. Quality control is the missing link to achieving excellence and a key component in the Four E’s of Excellence guidebook.

You invested a lot of time in creating solid procedures and training staff, but to achieve excellence you must have a quality control system implemented to eliminate “drift”. A good QC system will ensure consistency and help you achieve designation as an Excellent Operator!

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 56

Just Do it! Please!!!

How many times do you want to shout this phrase, most likely without the courtesy? I’ve had many conversations with pet center operators and a common frustration seems to be getting staff to follow procedures, complete checklists, and even read important instructions. Achieving excellence requires that staff be responsible and accountable for their role in pet care so keep reading for some ideas and tips on how to get them to just do it!

How many times have you heard: • “ I didn’t know I was supposed to do that” • “That’s not the way I was trained to do it” • “Bob told me we use this report now”

Let’s take away these reasons or excuses by having documentation for each employee that confirms they understand their job responsibilities, policies, procedures and completion of training. In our employee files we kept these key documents: • Job description signed and dated by employee • Acknowledgement of receiving and reading Employee Handbook • Acknowledgement of reading standard operating procedures for their job • Training summary – courses completed and date • On-the-Job Training Checklist – initials and dates employee was trained on standard operating procedures

Maintaining these records removes the first two excuses and makes staff discussions easy. You have signed documents as evidence they knew their job, had reviewed procedures, and received training.

In the last article we talked about strong quality control programs that help prevent “drift”. QC systems are an important tool to achieving staff compliance in following procedures. Another key is the quality of your staff training program.

Formalize your on-the-job training process by creating a worksheet of the procedures each job position needs to be trained to perform. Be sure you are selecting good people trainers that know and consistently follow your written procedures. During the training process be sure there is an audit process to confirm procedure compliance before signing off that training is completed. It is important to provide regular and timely feedback to new employees to prevent bad habits from developing.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 57 There will be times when you need to make procedure changes. For consistency you need to have a formal procedure change system in place to update the standard operating procedures and document retraining of all staff on the new process. It is also important to be diligent with quality control when you first make a procedure change to ensure all staff implement changes correctly.

How do you get staff to complete checklists? First they need to understand the value and reason why the checklist is required. Completing the checklist should be easily linked to another task so that it becomes a habit. It can also help to focus on a team goal of completing the checklist and provide rewards for improvement.

Once you have your systems in place it is important for you to be consistent in holding all staff accountable for their job performance. Staff will imitate each other and if one person gets by with not completing work then others will soon follow. Once you have systems in place it is much easier to have staff performance discussions as everything is in writing. Clarify expectations and be prepared to release staff that won’t comply.

We also recommend that you create a recognition and reward system for your staff. Rewards do not always have to be monetary and verbal recognition of a good job is often valued more by staff members. Create fun for your staff by holding competitions and challenges to improve skills and job performance. Celebrate and recognize winners and most improved staff in a team celebration with food. Be sure to recognize staff that complete training programs, like Knowing Dogs (available at www.RobinKBennett.com). Have a formal presentation of their certificates and announce their achievement in your newsletter or on Facebook announcements.

Frequent feedback on performance is also important so consider a short quarterly assessment on key dog leadership areas in addition to an annual review. Offering cross-training opportunities and a clearly outlined career path are important steps that can keep staff engaged and motivated.

By providing clarity through documentation, formal training and feedback programs you can build a team of responsible staff members. Your focus on excellence will result in motivated team members that will just do it and help your center achieve a designation of Excellence!

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 58 Fun Ideas For Your Business

The pet care business is a service-oriented business that does best with strong relationships: Relationships with the owners, with the dogs and between staff members. Games and fun help all these relationships grow stronger. Keep reading to find a helpful list of activities and a list of annual celebrations that will allow you to increase the fun factor in your facility…and make money while you do it!

Listed below is a brief overview of some revenue-generating ideas you can implement today. They cost very little to start, are low risk, don’t require excessive payroll, and can be used in virtually any pet care center regardless of the primary business you are doing. But more importantly, be sure to check out The Dog Gurus detailed list of annual calendar ideas you can use throughout the year. You’ll never be at a loss for ideas!.

• HOLIDAY/THEMED PARTIES Set aside a day when you celebrate a holiday (Memorial Day, Thanksgiving, Fourth of July) or a special theme (a picnic, vacation on the seas, a rodeo, etc.). You run the day just as you would normally, but add the addition of more photos, a goodie bag for the dogs to take home, and a few decorations. You can charge a small amount for the party (on top of your normal fees) to offset the cost for the décor and special treats. If you do this on a slow day, you’ll find attendance skyrockets!

• BIRTHDAY PARTIES A month before Fido’s birthday, send an email to the owner asking if she would like to sponsor a party for her dog during the normal daycare or playgroup time. The owner can pay you a predetermined fee, and you’ll provide goodie bags and party hats to every pet who attends daycare that day. You can even include invitations to send to all the other pet center animals inviting them to the birthday party. Just as with the holiday parties, do this on a slow day, and you’ll find a boost in attendance. Take plenty of photos, which will double for advertising for future parties.

• TRICK OF THE MONTH Offer to teach a “trick of the month” to any dog who visits your facility during a particular month. The owner pays a set amount, and you have a staff member teach an easy trick (e.g. shake, roll-over, play dead, etc.) to their dog. Use treats to speed up the training process and then show the owner how to get their dog to do it when they pick up their pet. Of course, you’ll want to select easy tricks that can be taught in a few short sessions, but if it takes more than one day, that’s just incentive for the owner to return for another visit! • SPECIAL TREAT OF THE DAY Create special treats that owners can purchase to be given to their pets at naptime or some other period of the day. Frosty paws at lunch time or yummy, homemade, one-of-a-kind dog treats are a big hit. You can suggest these food items for a nominal fee when an owner drops off their pet. The special treat of the day

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 59 could also be connected to a special time of year such as Cinco De Mayo “barkaritas” made with animal-friendly ingredients.

• MASSAGE Who doesn’t love a massage? Offer some one-on-one time to the animals in your facility. The owner provides additional revenue for their pet to receive some extra care and attention while they are with you.

• GETTING FIT Core training is important to all of us, right? Specialty balancing boards and exercise balls are now being made for dogs. Doggie treadmills have also become more popular. Why not add gym equipment to your facility and offer some short 10- to 15-minute fitness training sessions to dogs during some of your slower times of day. With the extra revenue you can generate, you’ll pay off the equipment in no time.

• WHATEVER THE CLIENT WANTS! Rather than turning down special requests from clients, see how you can offer it for a fee. Some examples I’ve seen include a telephone call to the pet, Skyping with a pet, turn-down service in the boarding facility, reading a book to a pet…these all started as unique ideas from one owner, which later turned into revenue-generating ideas offered to everyone.

Be creative and look for ways you can have more money with less work and have more fun while you work!

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 60 The Games People Play…With Dogs

How many times have you heard someone say, “You work with dogs…that must be fun to play with dogs all day.” Most of us realize it’s not all fun and games, particularly if you are the owner of the facility. But we SHOULD be having fun with the dogs. In this article, we’ll provide you with some of our favorite games and resources for increasing the fun factor in your facility.

In an effort to keep dogs safe in off-leash play, we’ve found that some of the fun has been taken away. The dogs barely interact before they are interrupted in an attempt to keep them from getting too out of control.

There is a need for supervision, and a need to keep arousal levels low, but we need to find a balance between safety and fun!.

There are some important reasons for making your facility fun for the dogs and the staff. • You’ll increase revenue because happy clients are returning clients. • You’ll increase promotional opportunities for your facility. Everyone loves to show photos of dogs having fun. You might even get the press to cover some of your fun activities! • You’ll have happier, healthier dogs. Dogs who have more fun have less stress which means they are less likely to get sick while at your facility. • You’ll have happier employees…which means lower turnover! When the staff is having fun, they tend to stay at a job longer.

And as if that isn’t enough…having fun will increase the bond between the dogs and the employees which makes working with the dogs easier and safer.

Here are a few games that help to instill staff leadership with the dogs while letting everyone have some fun.

• The hula hoop game – the object of the game is to put a hula hoop on the ground and then keep the dogs out of it. You are not allowed to use your voice, or your hands. All you can do is move your feet and body forward, sideways or backwards to get the dogs to move. This is a great game to practice body blocking. See how many dogs you can keep out of the hoop…and for how long!

• Follow the leader – dogs love to follow people and this is a great way to establish your leadership in a non-threatening way. Just walk around the room, over the play equipment, under tall jumps or anywhere…and encourage the dogs to follow you. It doesn’t matter if you’re not going anyplace….just encourage the dogs to follow!

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 61

• Obedience Cues. Start with just one dog and teach them all individually first. Then do group behaviors such as a group sit and see how many dogs you can get to sit at the same time. Can you beat your personal record? Who can control the most dogs? Here are some standard cues you can use to get started: • Come – dog stops what they are doing and comes to you • Sit – dog sits facing you • Wait – dog is to stop moving forward (often used at the gates)

• Freeze Tag – this is a great game to teach impulse control. Get the dogs revved up and then say “FREEZE” and get them all to sit. Start with a small group of dogs and add more as they master the game. The idea here is that you are teaching them to settle down after a brief game that is exciting to them.

• Obstacles – Encourage dogs to go over and under things. Use lots of praise as a dog is learning. This is a great confidence building exercise for the dogs and helps create a bond between the dog and staff member. This is a game that is best done when things are calm. If a dog is having difficulty, you might recommend some one-on-one instruction (which would be an added revenue stream). Here are some easy obstacles you can use: • Puppy Playground equipment (be sure to tell them you are a member of The Dog Gurus to receive 10% off!) • Jumps made from a broom or mop handle • Tunnels from a kid’s toy store • Hula hoops to create a hoop to jump through (balance it in between chairs or hold it in your hand as the dog goes through) • Or you can get more fancy with easy to make agility equipment in this book: Do it Yourself Agility Equipment

• Find the person – hide in the playroom and let the dog find you. This is a fun way to practice the come cue with the dogs. You don’t have to be hard to find. The dogs just like the game of the find! Be sure to have a big celebration when they find you.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 62 Looking for even more games to play with the dogs? Here are more ideas that you can incorporate into special events and activates. Be sure check out The Dog Gurus detailed list of annual calendar ideas and start planning some fun events for the year!

• Special games day events – these can be done as group games or just set up as time for each dog to participate on his own. The game day events would be an additional charge on top of the normal daycare charge. • Bobbing for tennis balls • Swimming pool time • Mother’s day cards • Father’s day photos • Outdoor picnic • Pawprint photos or frames or anything with a dog’s pawprint on it • Easter egg hunt • Halloween costume dress up day • Birthday parties • Adoption day parties • Reading stories to the dogs

• Dog Sports for fun - Consider special training to introduce dogs to some of the dog sports. For this option you may need the help of a dog trainer who can do the teaching.. This could be done as a weeklong camp or as an add on to a normal day of daycare. Be sure to take photos or videos to show what the dog did in camp! • Agilty • Nosework • Freestyle • Trieball • FitPaws equipment

• Tricks – offer an easy “trick of the month” or a special trick class to teach some basic parlor tricks such as rollover, beg, or play dead. There are lots of ideas in 101 Dog Tricks – Step-By-Stpe Activities to Engage, Challenge and Bond with Your Dog.

• Fun photo ops – here are some activities you can do that make great photo opportunities that you can share and help market your facility • Bubbles – blow specially formulated bubbles for dogs and let them catch them • Fetch – with a Frisbee, a ball, a special toy

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 63 • Soccer – some dogs love to chase a soccer ball and you might even set up goals and create a game between two dogs • Tug – between a human and dog…or take photos when the dogs are playing tug with one another • Special decorations – anytime you decorate for a holiday, be sure to set up an area where you can take photos of dogs in front of the decorations

This is just a start! Get creative and start having fun!

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 64 How to Solve 90% of Daycare Problems

If you could solve 90% of your daycare problems with just one change in your staff management, would you do it? Just imagine playgroups with less jumping, less barking, less humping, less crowding at the gates, less snarkiness between dogs. It is possible. Keep reading to find out the one thing you can do to solve 90% of your problem dog behaviors.

Years of consulting and working with dogs in off-leash play have pointed out one significant factor that differentiates good daycares from excellent daycares: Leadership. That’s it. With excellent leadership comes safety and easy management of the dogs in playgroups.

Naturally, screening is important, but even the best natured dogs who are good in off-leash play can get into trouble if not properly managed and supervised by someone with excellent leadership skills. This month, The Dog Gurus focus on how to build the leadership skills of your staff with leadership exercises you can start using TODAY!

Use The Dog Gurus, Leadership Exercises (available at www.TheDogGurus.com) and start changing the leadership culture of your facility today! This pdf handout includes everything you need to know to get started teaching your staff these leadership exercises:

• The Hula Hoop Game – see how a $15 kid’s toy can teach how to use your body effectively

• Recall Cues– learn how to build your relationship with a dog through the use of the dog’s name and avert problem situations at the same time

• Group Sit – challenge yourself to manage the group through this easy exercise that can help calm the group down

• Gate Boundary – Gain control over the dogs at the craziest period of the day…when dogs enter or exit the group, by practicing this exercise

We’ve included instructions, goals, and even a scoring chart so you can set goals and challenge your staff to achieve excellence in all these leadership skills. Start today!

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 65 Supervision of Dogs at Excellent Daycares

One of the most important questions a family should ask before drooping their dog off to a facility for daycare or off-leash play is “Who is watching the dogs?” But do you know the correct answer to that question? Keep reading to learn what supervision of dogs means in an excellent dog daycare facility.

Supervision of dogs does not mean merely watching the dogs through a camera, window or video monitor. In a good daycare, dogs playing off-leash will be supervised by a staff member who is physically in the room with the dogs. However, supervision of dogs also does not mean just the physical presence of a human being in the rooms where the dogs are playing.

In an excellent daycare, supervision will mean physical presence in the room by a fully trained staff member who understand canine body language and who is skilled in using leadership skills to manage the dogs.

What does that mean?

First of all, it means that staff members are with the dogs 100% of the time when dogs are playing off-leash together. The staff is physically present in the same room as the dogs.

Second, it means the facility should have a formal staff-training program. Ask how the staff is trained and what continuing education they have in place. Ask about their knowledge and skills in the areas of

• Canine body language (can they read dogs?) • Recognizing stress signals (do they know lip licking, yawning, shaking off and a closed mouth can be stress signals?) • Appropriate versus inappropriate dog behaviors during off-leash play (do they interrupt when dogs are pinning, rolling, or bullying other dogs?)

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 66 Third it means the staff is trained and skilled in using benevolent leadership techniques that do not require the use of physical or harsh handling of the dogs. This includes the following standards of excellence:

• Positive methods of managing dogs which preclude the use of prong collars, choke collars, electronic shock collars, muzzles, and physical manipulation to handle dogs in off-leash play. • Praising dogs for appropriate behavior and using non-physical corrections to stop inappropriate behavior. (Non-physical intervention includes body blocking, obedience cues, leash walking, rest periods, staff interaction with, and interruption of the dogs) • Proactive use of tools that help alleviate stress in dogs such as aromatherapy, calming essences, body wraps, sound therapy, or visual barriers

How do you find these excellent daycares? Ask for information about how the staff is trained. Look for framed certificates hanging in the lobby and a commitment to continuing education by membership in pet care industry associations or communities. Also look for facilities using Knowing Dogs Staff Training program.

And, of course, look for daycares that are members of The Dog Gurus community. This shows a commitment to learning and education in the most current, up-to-date industry standards and access to the latest resources for off-leash play.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 67 What Benevolent Leadership Looks Like

The Dog Gurus are advocates of benevolent leadership and we often speak at seminars on this topic. It’s so important that at one point it was the first chapter of our book, Off-Leash Dog Play. But after a particularly engaging seminar where The Dog Gurus explained the importance of leading the dogs, we asked for a demonstration of what it looks like. The demonstration looked a bit like the photo. We were horrified.

This type of attitude and posture isn’t at all what we meant when we talked about leadership, so let’s take a moment to clarify. Effective dog leadership means establishing a bond of trust between you and the dogs in your care. You want a dog that seeks your guidance and loves to follow you because the dog trusts you….not because he is afraid of what will happen if he doesn’t follow you!

Two important aspects to the establishment of trust with dogs are your posture and your attitude:

• Posture: Effective leaders walk tall with their shoulders back and head held high. We have started referring to this as “Walking like royalty” because it’s the self-confidence of a king or queen that you want to portray to the dog (but without the stomping around shown in the first photo). • Attitude: Effective leaders have a calm confident attitude. It’s the attitude that causes dogs to check in and see what the leader is doing or saying. Effective leaders do not yell, scream or intimidate their followers.

With these two minor adjustments in your behavior you will see a huge shift in how the dogs respond to you. Keep these two ideas in mind as you practice the Leadership Exercises which are available at www.TheDogGurus.com. You’ll find that those who are struggling with their leadership exercises often need some assistance in adjusting their posture or attitude too.

Try some of these games to help improve your posture and attitude:

• Walk with a book on your head (yes…it works!). You’ll become more aware of the need to keep you shoulders back and your head up because otherwise the book falls on the floor. You’ll also have to walk slightly slower. Dogs will notice the difference in posture too.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 68 • Do something fun before going into the room with the dogs. Sing a favorite song, play with your favorite dog, think about your favorite memory, give thanks for 10 great things in your life. This will help to foster an attitude of peace and calm. Dogs key off your energy so having more positive energy will make you a more effective leader.

Be sure to reward success in both the dogs and the people! As you see improvement in any areas of the Leadership Games, posture and attitude, be sure to celebrate the progress of your staff!

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 69 Hiring Employees that Have “It”

Once upon a time, all pet care facilities were operated by employees that had “IT.” For most of us…we were those employees…the entrepreneur who started the business. We had “IT” and we could manage the dogs with ease. Then we started hiring other people and we quickly realized that hiring the right people was hard. We had to find the people who had “IT.” You know…the people who could read the dogs, understand the dogs, handle the dogs…all as if by magic. Those are the people that have “IT.” And we all want those employees.

For a long time I bought into this myth that only certain people has “IT” and could work with the dogs. I attempted to find them in my hiring process. I attempted to find them by creating better job descriptions and better interviewing processes. I did on site interviews so that new potential employees could work with the dogs. Surely that would allow me to see “IT” in action and I would be sure to hire the right people. And those things were helpful, but I still failed to find enough people with “IT.”

Soon, I realized, “IT” has to be taught. And then I was celebrating because “IT” CAN be taught. Each employee I hire can be taught how to read the dogs, understand the dogs, handle the dogs…all as if by magic. But it takes time and it takes an employee who is willing to learn. Amazingly enough…I found that most of my employees not only wanted to learn, but they thrived on this education! My staff was better and now my care of the dogs was better too.

These teaching tools have become The Dog Gurus Leadership Exercises which are available at www.TheDogGurus.com

Each of these exercises will help your staff learn the “IT” required to be an excellent leader of the dogs.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 70 Conjure up Fun and Safe Playgroups

Are you tired of telling your staff to play with the dogs? Frustrated by the challenge of keeping staff engaged with the dogs every day? Wouldn’t it be nice if you could wave your magic wand and put your image of safe and fun playgroups into action in your center every day? What is the magic trick to achieving consistency in the quality of off- leash play?

We hope you’ll check our the Playgroup Staff Role and Schedule handout (available at The Dog Gurus membership site www.safeoffleashdogplay.com) which provides the secret formula you have been missing to conjure up consistent safe and fun playgroups. This handout will clearly defines the role of a playgroup leader and provides templates you can use to create set playgroup schedules.

We categorize activities for the dogs into five categories and provide examples of over 15 different ways leaders can interact during playgroups. The real magic in this document is that many of the activities make your staff better leaders and are multi-purpose to ensure dogs stay safe (e.g., recalls are combined with performing a physical health scan).

One of the most common questions we get during speaking engagements is how do you keep staff doing this over time?

First they need to know this is expected as part of the job, so we included the leader role definition. Second you will create a schedule for the day using the templates provided so leaders know what activities to perform each part of the day. Now you have the framework to hold your staff accountable to managing playgroups exactly as you envision.

Our handout includes questions for staff to answer for each activity you outline for the day. Instead of asking them to checkmark that the activity was completed they are providing information on how dogs responded to them during the day. This can serve as a multi-purpose feedback tool to your clients.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 71 This document also includes an example weekly report template that your program supervisor or manager can complete and submit to you. You get feedback on the leadership performance of staff and dogs in your playgroups. Your supervisor is responsible for holding the leaders accountable to following the schedule and you hold the supervisor accountable for reporting on the performance of the service through a weekly report.

The Dog Gurus see many safe and fun playgroups in the your future when you implement formal playgroup schedules and program reporting.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 72 Dog Daycare 2.0 - A Time for Change

The dog daycare and off-leash play industry was created because dogs like to play and busy dog owners loved having a dog as tired as them at home in the evening. It seemed like the perfect solution and our industry exploded. As a result there are many providers offering off-leash play services, but the quality of care varies widely.

As the industry matures it’s the perfect time for Doggy Daycare 2.0 – a focus on quality off-leash play interactions

How do you recognize quality play sessions and what does it take to keep play safe?

Safe play sessions require trained staff that understand dog body language and appropriate play. However, we know that training staff members does not mean they will automatically lead quality play sessions. That is the reason we created the Playgroup Schedule (available at www.safeoffleashdogplay.com). When The Dog Gurus conjure up a quality off-leash play session it includes: • Dogs playing and interacting in appropriate play together with green body language • Staff leaders initiate games with dogs keeping arousal levels low while everyone has fun • Staff leaders use verbal cues, body blocking and proactive intervention to manage group interactions • Dogs are challenged mentally during games, movement to and from the playgroup and use of leadership exercises • Staff leaders spend time interacting with each dog individually and sets dogs up for success by knowing their limits, play styles and help signals

We focus on five different types of activities (Games, Observation Exercises, Relaxation exercises, Leadership Exercises, Dog Engagement Activities) that are scheduled throughout the playgroup sessions. It’s important to understand the reasons behind each activity type so you can expand on our list. Adding new activities keep sessions interesting for the dogs and your staff leaders.

We love this quote from Karen London and PatriciaMcConnell in their book: Play Together, Stay Together, Happy and Healthy Play Between People and Dogs: “Just like beauty, the joy of play is in the eyes of the beholder. Every dog is different and every dog enjoys playing in different ways.”

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 73 Dog Activities Revealed, Part 1

The Dog Gurus Playgroup Schedule (available at www.SafeOffLeashDogPlay.com) outlines the five different types of activities that should be provided when dogs are playing off-leash. Keep reading to learn more about the first three activity types

1. Games Games are primarily about play and physical exercise. Sue Sternberg says in her book, Serious Fun, Play Like a Dog, that

“Play and exercise are the two most important components to having a happy, contented, well- behaved dog.”

Have a variety of games on a list for staff to lead as not all dogs enjoy a game of fetch. Assess the quality of the games played in your sessions with this criteria:

• Green body language (specifically playful and curious emotional states) • Physical activity – dogs are up and moving around the play area • Mental engagement – dogs are using their minds by responding to leader cues and instructions • Interest and participation by a majority of dogs in the playgroup

2. Observe dogs playing with each other Social interaction with other dogs is a primary reason clients select off-leash playgroups as an activity for their dogs. As pet professionals it is your responsibility to ensure that the interactions are positive and safe. Remember that safety means both physical and emotional well-being of all the dogs in the playgroup. Assess the quality of the interactions when dogs are playing with each other using this criteria: • Low arousal levels between the dogs playing • Green body language, play postures and behavior (lateral movements, taking turns, exaggerated movements) • Minimal stress signals observed • Dogs take breaks naturally or initiated by staff leader using splitting and redirecting • Attentive leader that keeps eyes on dogs and is up and physically moving while dogs are playing together • Leaders control access to toys (removed during high risk periods)

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 74 3. Relax There is a natural ebb and flow to high quality off-leash playgroups that includes dogs taking a break from play to relax. When dogs feel safe they will take breaks from play to lie down and rest. When dogs relax, the leader can still be engaged with the dogs with low-key activities. In addition, the leader can sometimes help the dogs relax by engaging in some of these activities. Several of the relaxing activities recommended are multi-purpose as described below: • Read or tell a story – Keeps staff leader connected with dogs and can help force dogs to take a break as a group; leaders can sit and invite dogs to come lay around their chair during “story time”. Be sure they are on the webcam or share photos on social media for clients to enjoy. • Individual Petting and Scratching “sweet spots” – Important time to interact individually with all dogs. Great time to focus on “wallflower” dogs that do not push for attention or participate in games. Most clients expect you to know their dog as an individual so individual attention is a great way to confirm this by knowing their favorite petting spots. Encourage staff to physically scan each dog from nose to tail during these interactive moments and report anything out of the ordinary in a dog feedback form to the client. • Shakes/high fives – These cues work the dog’s mind and are a fun way to interact with dogs. You may even teach a new “fun trick” to some dogs that will really impress the client at pick-up. • Physical scan of dogs – You can combine this with your recall exercise as a multi- purpose activity. You want to find any physical injuries that occur during play sessions so recommend each day start and end with a physical scan. This activity can also be life- saving during extreme weather conditions by checking dogs who may be experiencing early effects of heat or cold temperatures, so would increase frequency in the schedule during hot/humid and very cold days. Refresh staff on the symptoms of heat and cold distress so they check each dog during the physical scan activity session.

Continue on to the next article, “Dog Activities Revealed Part 2” and we’ll go in depth regarding leadership exercises and dog engagement.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 75 Dog Activities Revealed, Part 2

We’ve been discussing the five different types of activities that should be provided when dogs are playing off-leash. In part 1 of “Dog Activities Revealed” we revealed the secrets behind the first three types of activities, keep reading to learn more about the last two.

4. Leadership exercises The Dog Gurus spent the month of January 2014 detailing the importance of leadership and provided specific guidelines to teach and objectively score what we consider the most important leadership exercises (the come command, gate boundary, and group sits). Each of the three exercises help your staff establish themselves as leaders in the eyes of the dogs. They also help to ensure the safety of the dogs during playgroup by keeping leaders engaged, dogs attentive to leader and making key events, like moving through gates safer. Assess the quality of your staff’s leader skills with these criteria:

• Objectively measure their performance in each exercise weekly & reward skill improvements • Observe their gate management during play sessions that they are using their gate boundary skills • Observe them using recalls as a tool to intervene and manage dogs during play sessions • Observe them using group sits during games and gate management

Keep it fun with individual competitions to improve scores, get challenging dogs to recall and achieve personal best scores (Participate in The Daycare Games competition each year).

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 76 5. Dog engagement Who do you always want to please or have a difficult time refusing requests? For most of us it’s our spouse, followed by family and close friends. Why is this? We have a close relationship or bond with them which makes us want to please them. This concept translates to dogs and the purpose of the dog engagement activities is to deepen the relationship of your leaders with each individual dog. In time they will find this focus makes managing the playgroups much easier and we think more rewarding too! Encourage your staff to engage and bond with dogs in these activities:

• Encourage dogs to use play equipment – Invest in play equipment and use it for fun dog play. Using the ramps and stairs can help dogs increase confidence as they try new things. However, if it is unfamiliar to them many dogs will ignore the equipment so staff will need to encourage them to walk or jump on it or through openings. Be sure they praise each dog that learns a new “trick” on the play equipment and share with your client. • Play bow to dogs – Staff leaders can use the playbow movement to initiate play with a dog. This is great to try with shy and timid dogs (be sure they use softer and slower movements) or to get the dog group actively playing again. Encourage your leaders to try this with dogs that do not normally initiate in dog play; they may need to be taught how to play. • Recall wall flowers – We realize not all dogs enjoy active play with other dogs and will observe from the sidelines. However, these dogs are a part of the group and too often get ignored because they don’t cause any trouble. It is important to work to engage with these dogs each shift so leaders do build a relationship with every dog. Make sure your leaders engage the wallflowers in some type of activity during their playgroup sessions.

The real value in keeping staff engaged with a formal activity schedule is you end up with easier to manage playgroups. Combining the five different types of activities on a daily basis will create great leaders in the eyes of the dogs and strong relationships between the dogs and staff. Sue Sternberg explains the final result well in her book:

“Nothing gives you more power and control than being the one to provide access to fun. Dogs like you more…when you’re well-liked, you get listened to, you get paid attention to, and you have control over other situations having nothing to do with play.”

We have a few books we would recommend. While these books were written for dog owners we found great information that helped us create our activity schedule.

• Play Together, Stay Togther, Happy and Healthy Play Between People and Dogs by Karen B. London and Patricia B. McConnell • Serious Fun, Play Like a Dog, by Sue Sternberg • Bonding With Your Dog, A Trainer’s Secrets for Building a Better Relationship, by Victoria Schade

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 77 Exhaustion is Not the Measure of Success

You want a tired dog after a day of play with their buddies. We understand your goal and good play sessions will help you tire out your best friend while also monitoring the overall safety and health of your dog. It’s important that exhaustion is not the only measure of success when you bring your dog for a play session. Our approach to your dog’s day in off-leash play is to balance physical exercise, mental activities, and rest periods. All three are equally important components to keeping your dog safe and healthy when socializing with other dogs.

Physical exercise is the most obvious benefit of off- leash play and it’s what most pet parents think about when they drop their dog off to play. But for your dog’s health, we also consider it important to provide mental stimulation, which allows your dog to think and use his brain during the day. Mental work is tiring for your dog while building their confidence and self-control. And naturally, after all this physical and mental work, dogs need rest. This is why we include formal rest periods as an important component of our health and safety program for your pet. Dogs that get overly tired are less tolerant and more grumpy (just like kids) which increases risk of injury.

Research studies report that dogs need 12-18 hours of sleep per day. Dogs that require amounts on the higher end of the scale include: • Puppies • Senior dogs • Giant and large breeds • Dogs in active households or with extreme exercise routines • Dogs that attend dog daycare multiple days per week or are staying away from home for long periods of time • Dogs participating in sports like agility, fly ball, or rally-o

Sleep habits of dogs also differ from The varying dog sleep positions provide humans. Napping on and off during the clues to the sleep level they have achieved. day is a normal pattern for all dogs • Stomach sleepers are in very light sleep, studied. Formal rest periods are offered ready to jump up at the slightest during play visits to mirror this normal disturbance pattern and to allow dogs to reach deeper • Curling up is also a light sleep stage as sleep levels. Providing a private, quiet the dog is conserving body heat and area for rest periods allow dogs to reach protecting themselves the restful deep sleep levels they need to • Side sleepers do reach a deep restful level stay healthy and happy. of sleep • Back sleepers also reach a deep and Dogs may take natural rest breaks during restful sleep level and reflect a secure and playgroups, but it is the rare dog that will confident dog

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 78 relax and enter a deep sleep. Most dogs napping in the playgroup are in light sleep, but very alert so they can jump up whenever something exciting happens. They do not reach the restful sleep stages needed to keep their brain healthy. Nineteenth century sleep deprivation studies performed on dogs confirmed degenerative changes in their brains resulted from lack of rest.

We recommend including formal rest periods as a part of any play sessions to help ensure the long-term health and mental well being of your dog. Your happy and healthy dog is the most important measure of success.

For members of The Dog Gurus, we have created this document as a special handout you can give to your clients. To get your free copy, visit the member resource page (check in the “Explaining Off-Leash Play to Your Clients” section). If you are not a member of The Dog Gurus, consider joining today!

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 79 How Long Has Than Been Going On?

If I had a dollar for every time that question was asked during my days managing dog daycare playgroups my pups would be getting monthly bark boxes for life! Communication and tracking dog behavior changes in playgroups was one of our biggest internal challenges. We all dislike dismissing a dog from our playgroups, so how can we become proactive in monitoring behavior change before it escalates?

This month we are highlighting an Existing Dog Assessment Checklist and Instructions (available at www.SafeOffLeashDogPlay.com). The checklist provides objective scoring of dogs currently attending your playgroups. When you work through the questions a color score will be obtained for each dog. • Green dogs are the best fit for off-leash playgroups, • Yellow dogs require more management and experienced staff members to keep safe during play • Red dogs are not considered an appropriate fit for off-leash play

Keep in mind that The Dog Gurus’ definition of the off-leash play environment is for dogs that have good social skills to spend time playing with other social dogs. We understand that some centers offer niche services for dogs that need behavior modification to play appropriately with other dogs. This assessment tool can still be utilized, but you may find a higher percentage of difficult dogs for those providing behavior modification rather than general dog daycare.

Each pet center must determine their own target ratio and we recommend starting with a goal of 80% green and 20% yellow dogs.

Maintaining this ratio sets your playgroups up for safety and ease of management for your staff. Most importantly dogs attending your groups will relax and have fun. It’s important to remember that the red and low scoring yellow dogs negatively impact the play experience for the green dogs in the group. Just as we wanted to avoid the bullies and out-of-control kids on the playground so do our dogs.

Don’t be overwhelmed with the task of evaluating all the dogs in your playgroups. The task does take time, but is an important investment in the safety or your groups. It will also help you be proactive in communicating behavior issues with clients before they escalate. This may allow you to work together to find a solution so you avoid having a more difficult conversation later or ultimately lose a client.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 80 We recommend setting a goal to assess all individual dogs in your center every year. Yellow dogs should have more frequent evaluations to ensure their behavior is trending in the right direction

Implementation Tips • Involve your experienced staff to assess dogs • Plan to evaluate dogs every quarter • Prioritize initial assessments o Dogs that are challenging to manage assess first o Dogs involved in incident reports the previous quarter o Red and yellow breeds (see pages 48-50 in Off-Leash Dog Play) o Dogs 3 – 7 years of age o Reassess dogs that scored yellow in their initial evaluation the prior quarter o Other dogs that have been in program for one year or more that quarter (see next bullet) • Create a system to assess dogs annually (on their anniversary date as a client or the dog’s birthday month/quarter)

These documents complete a set of three dog behavior assessment tools that classify dogs according to the traffic signal colors of green, yellow and red. (The Off-Leash Play Checklist and Instructions is a dog evaluation form for new dogs entering your program and was a member gift in August 2013, and Dog Incident Checklist and Assessment Instructions for dogs involved in inappropriate behavior incidents’ was a member gift in October 2013. If you were not a member when those documents were released, you can still purchase them in our store). Using the complete set will help ensure your playgroups are comprised of the “right dogs” to keep play safe and fun!

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 81 An Ounce of Prevention

The Dog Gurus recently presented a two-day workshop for Puppyworks. We covered a wide range of topics dealing with off-leash play, including managing playgroups, dealing with problem behaviors, and responding to bites and fights. The common thread that started all of these sessions was prevention. The two most important factors in preventing problem behavior include properly training staff and properly screening dogs. But what happens once you’ve screened a dog. Do they need routine re-assessments? The Dog Gurus would say, “Yes!”

Having the right dogs is critical to safe off-leash play. And just because a dog is a good fit on the day you meet him, doesn’t mean he will continue to be a good fit. Using The Dog Gurus Existing Dog Assessment Checklist (available at www.SafeOffLeashDogPlay.com) or a checklist you create on your own will allow you to objectively evaluate your current daycare dogs to identify any changes in the dogs since they were first evaluated.

There are a wide range of reasons for a continuing assessment process.

• As dogs mature, their behavior can change. Older dogs may be less inclined to play, and may become less tolerant of the high-energy groups that they once enjoyed. A recurring assessment can identify when it’s time for a dog to change to a lower energy group.

• As dogs get used to the daycare environment, some can become bullies. A recurring assessment can help identify when this bullying behavior is becoming a trend that might warrant a discussion with the owner and/or possible dismissal from playgroup.

• Dogs can become overly protective of the staff or other dogs. A recurring assessment can help to objectively score a dog as green, yellow, or red, and make good decisions on whether the dog is still a good fit in off-leash play based on his current behavior.

• Once a dog has been attending daycare, the staff can have a hard time being objective about a dog’s behavior. The saying, “Love is blind” can certainly be true of the staff who come to love the dogs in their care. An assessment can help the staff be more objective.

• If staff members have an ongoing problem with certain dogs, an assessment can identify specific areas of concern and help you decide if the problem is something that can be resolved by the staff or if the dog needs a better energy outlet.

Begin using an existing dog checklist and plan to assess a few dogs each quarter. Then continue to monitor your ratio of green and yellow dogs. You want to aim for no more than 20% yellow.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 82 Before you pull your hair out because your staff can’t manage the dogs, make sure you have dogs that actually belong in off-leash play. Having the right dogs can make all the difference between an easy, well-run group and a group that is harder to manage. Make your job easier with this checklist!

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 83 Are Bully Breeds Right for Playgroups?

One of the most often asked question about off-leash play includes the question of whether or not certain breeds should be excluded from playgroups. Often this comes up as a discussion about pitbulls, but The Dog Gurus tend to classify this as a discussion about bully breeds. Keep reading to see how we respond to this discussion.

Bully breeds include any of the breeds that trace their heritage to bull-baiting. This can include the commonly named American Staffordshire Terrier, as well as the dogs referred to as Pitbulls. But it also includes boxers, French bulldogs, Boston terriers, and many others.

Naturally, safety is a top concern for operators and some centers decide their playgroups are safer if they don’t allow bully breeds (the discussion of whether or not this is true we will leave to another time!). Others receive feedback from customers that they don’t want their dogs to play with bully breeds. Pet care facility owners are then faced with keeping current clients happy or educating them on the safety measures in place that would keep the play safe. Depending on the make up of your clients, this may be a battle you don’t want to fight.

As a general breed tendency these dogs are strong, powerful and can be independent thinkers. However, should that cause you to screen them out of your playgroup? As with so many questions in this industry, our answer is “It depends.”

The Dog Gurus believe everyone who operates an off-leash playgroup needs to establish their own policy for dealing with bully breeds.

What works for one facility may not work for another. There is no “one-size fits all” to this discussion because you have to factor in the geographic location, training and ability of the staff, laws in your community, size of the play area, make-up of your playgroups and many other issues.

Here are a few questions to ask yourself as you assess your policy: • Is your staff well-trained in understanding canine body language? This is, of course, true for watching any dogs and not just the bully breeds. • Does your staff desire to work with larger, more powerful breeds? Some facilities choose to work with small dogs only.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 84 • Do you have the proper set up? Bully breeds like to body slam and run. Larger rooms and play areas often work best for these breeds. • Are there laws in your state that prohibit you from accepting any bully breeds? As a business owner, you should abide by any legal constraints.

Based on your answers to the questions above, here are a few options for dealing with bully breeds. • All dogs are accepted based on evaluation. This option would allow anyone to bring their dog based on passing the normal evaluation process. Bully breeds would be no different. • Bully breeds accepted if they pass the evaluation and have a high degree of obedience skill. There is a link between more easily managed dogs and dogs that have good obedience skills. Some facilities will demand a higher degree of obedience skill in the bully breeds before accepting them into play. • Limit the number of bully breeds that are playing together. Some centers like to limit the number of bully breeds in a playgroup at any given time. This can be especially useful if your play area is smaller and you want to reduce the high-energy activities that go on in the center. • Don’t accept bully breeds. This is an option for centers who desire to cater to a different group of dogs or possibly for centers that don’t have many bully breeds in their community.

There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to allowing bully breeds to play. So long as the overall policy is established, the staff is well-trained, and the dogs are properly assessed, any of these options is viable to a business owner.

Regardless of your policy, The Dog Gurus would recommend moving the discussion of acceptance to one of behavior versus breed. Document the appropriate behaviors you want to see in your center along with the inappropriate behaviors. Then, whenever this controversial topic comes up, move from talking about breeds to talking about the good or bad behaviors you see in any dog that will cause them to be a poor fit for your off-leash play environment.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 85 Specialized Daycare

We’ve discussed assessing the dogs periodically to make sure you have the right dogs in your center. But what if a dog who initially loved to play, now seems unhappy in group play? How can you keep the client happy and also give the dog an activity that is healthy and beneficial? Specialized daycare just might be the answer you need. Every center providing off-leash dog play can increase their revenue stream by offering some form of specialized daycare without adding space or new staff members.

First review your current services and look for new ways to cater to specific groups of dogs. For instance senior dogs might benefit from a day out of the house where they can interact with other dogs and people in a low-key manner. Another option is to start serving a group of dogs that you currently don’t accept due to safety concerns, such as puppies, tiny dogs or dogs that don’t have great social skills. Dog groups to target successfully for specialized daycare options include:

• Puppies younger than 5-6 months • Tiny dogs weighing less than 10 pounds with a small body frame/structure • Senior dogs • Dogs with disabilities or health issues • Dogs with poor socials skills as a result of fear or lack of self-control • Shy dogs that need a smaller group of dogs • Dogs that prefer human interactions to dog interactions

Second, determine the structure for your specialized daycare. Focus on providing a short time period of high quality engaging social experiences with a well-trained staff member. Rather than just letting dogs hang out together with no structure to their playtime, spend quality time with the dogs engaging them in games, obedience, and other interactive activities as described in March’s bonus item.

Third, determine the days and times you will offer specialized daycare. When targeting a narrow niche like puppies, tiny dogs or seniors it maybe be most cost effective to offer a limited schedule of days the specialized care is offered. You may also consider offering specialized daycare during times when the regular daycare dogs are napping.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 86 Case Study: At Urban Tails, we started by offering Tiny Tail Tuesdays, Puppy Tail Wednesdays and Senior Tail Thursdays. We also focused on offering a shorter daily schedule of actual play activities. The schedule included two hours in the morning and afternoon that started after peak morning drop-off period and ended before peak of afternoon pick-ups. Mid-week days helped our business by bringing more clients in on slow days, plus we could use open lodging space to house dogs when they were not participating in social play. During peak periods of lodging activity we posted a notice that specialized daycare was on break and would resume after the holiday or peak rush is over. –Dog Guru Susan

Fourth determine the space you will use. The good thing about the niche of puppies, tiny dogs and seniors is that they don’t require much space. Consider using a large enclosure for the activity time. Mid-week you may have an exercise yard that is available or a hallway in a section of building that is not occupied. You should also consider rotating dogs into your main dog play areas when the daycare dogs are napping. Any space that can be made dog safe can be used for short periods of quality social interaction.

Case Study: In my center, Cocoa was a cocker spaniel who was going to be dismissed from daycare because he no longer played well with the dogs in regular daycare. However, after talking with the owners who really wanted Cocoa to continue to come to daycare, the staff agreed to try a specialized daycare approach. Cocoa was crated during the peak periods of activity. However during the two- hour afternoon naptime when most of the other dogs were resting, Cocoa was brought out to play with a small group of selected dogs. This smaller, calmer environment was perfect for Cocoa. Eventually we had a room full of “Cocoas” – dogs that enjoyed a smaller group experience and were happy to rest for the remainder of the day. –Dog Guru Robin

Although we generally believe daycare is best suited to dogs who are well-socialized and enjoy the company of other dogs, there are some dogs who, with a little specialized daycare, can benefit from the services you are offering. By maximizing the staff you already have, and using space already available you can help increase your revenue and create great experiences for dogs that might not otherwise attend your facility.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 87 Is Daycare Counselor The Right Role For You?

Do you have the right staff leading your playgroups? Does your team have and use the key skills required to keep dogs safe? Our consulting experience has consistently shown that a pattern of dog injuries indicate one of two root problems:

1. Wrong dogs in playgroup or 2. Staff are not viewed as leaders by the dogs in playgroup

Managing off-leash dog playgroups is a unique role in professional pet care. The job requires specific dog behavior knowledge and skill application to keep off- leash play safe and fun. In earlier articles we shared an assessment tool to determine if you have the right dogs in your groups. You’ll also want a checklist to determine if you have the right staff leading your playgroups.

Off-Leash Dog Play and Knowing Dogs were created to help train staff to keep dogs safe during off-leash play. The initial training is usually easy to accomplish with your staff. The challenge after training is monitoring staff and coaching them to consistently use their knowledge and skills as they work with the dogs. This month’s bonus item: Daycare Counselor Performance Checklist and Guidelines for Experienced Employees (available at www.SafeOffLeashDogPlay.com) is a tool to assist you in objectively scoring the job effectiveness of your staff.

The checklist assesses the application of dog behavior knowledge and leadership skills by your daycare staff. This format highlights the specific knowledge or skill areas where a staff member needs to focus to improve their overall score and job performance.

Your staff management just got a lot easier as the checklist translates job performance into objective measurable traits.

The objective scoring makes it easy to prepare a job performance improvement plan that includes specific action steps and goals. You can serve as a coach helping your staff improve skills and reach the goals you set together.

You may find that refresher training or setting stretch goals for key skills will challenge a counselor to improve. The checklist also facilitates making the tough decision that daycare counselor job is not the right fit for some staff members.

In the end everyone benefits when you have the right staff leading your off-leash playgroups. Dogs are safer and everyone has more fun!

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 88 Does the Staff Drama Ever Stop?

Are you tired of staff drama? Does all your time seem to be spent as a referee between “he said, she said”? If your answer is yes, then this post is for you. It’s time you changed your role from referee to coach and these five steps will help you make the transition.

1. Set new rules for your team: No drama and No negativity

It’s time you assert your own leader role and create the company culture that you want for your business. You must lead by example so if you expect no drama or negativity from your staff you must be positive and hold staff accountable when drama starts to creep into a situation. Key to this approach is to act quickly so issues don’t fester and to be consistent in your approach with all staff members. You must also be prepared to let employees go that keep violating your new culture requirements. It can seem difficult at the time, but every employee can be replaced.

In our center, we minimized drama by changing the way we managed employee disputes. The supervisor would have a short meeting with each employee involved to hear each side of the story. Then all three would meet together and the supervisor would recap the story, get clarification and all issues on the table. Resolution focused on business goals, treating each other with respect at work and steps each would take going forward. –Dog Guru Susan

2. Document job expectations

Detailed job descriptions that specify responsibilities and expectations of each job are an important tool in holding staff accountable for their job performance. When hired each employee should read and sign their job description as evidence they know and understand what is expected. Equally important is documented policies and procedures that are required as a condition of employment and in completing their assigned job tasks. Two products from our store can help you set job expectations; check out our Leadership Exercises and Staff Schedule products.

3. Formalize your staff training program

A formal staff training program provides consistency in preparing each employee to perform their roles to your expectations. A good training program includes checks to confirm that staff apply the knowledge and skills learned appropriately on the job. The goal of new hire training is to provide timely feedback and to keep bad habits from developing. Knowing Dogs staff training program teaches technical dog knowledge and management skills and also includes tools to aid retention and application to job duties.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 89 4. Evaluate performance

Provide regular feedback to employees on their job performance. In a positive work environment you will want to focus on recognizing and rewarding each time they exceed your expectations or achieve a new skill level goal. Focus on the results you want to achieve and involve your staff in deciding how they will be accomplished. The Dog Gurus detailed employee performance checklist might help (availabel at www.SafeOffLeashDogPlay.com). This tool makes it easy to coach staff on specific areas of their performance that need improvement.

Once you’ve implemented the first three steps staff have clear expectations so discussions change tone to coaching to improve versus correcting unwanted behaviors. Staff that have repeated violations are probably not in a good job fit so it’s best for everyone to end the relationship.

5. Hire for soft skills

With a solid staff training program you have the tools to teach new hires the technical dog knowledge required for the job. What is very difficult is trying to teach soft skills like dependability, positive outlook, teamwork, communication and dispute resolution. Focus your hiring process on identifying candidates that have these skills and are eager to learn the dog knowledge.

We recommend you always take applications and when you find candidates with the perfect set of soft skills you hire them.

Coaching discussions are energizing and a fun approach to management. Implement the five steps outlined and eliminate the drama from your team.

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 90 Positive Reinforcement: It’s Not Just For Dogs

I’m a crossover trainer which means I started out training using choke collars, prong collars and other aversive measures, but eventually “crossed over” to a new method training most commonly known as positive reinforcement training. You can learn more about my story on my blog. The premise of positive reinforcement training is simply this: What gets rewarded, gets repeated. It works great for dogs. Keep reading to learn how this could be applied with people too.

While I want to avoid creating the impression that we can train people exactly the way we train dogs, the fact of the matter is that people enjoy positive reinforcement just as much as dogs do. Genuine recognition and rewards make people happy. More importantly, studies show that happy employees are more productive employees! Overall, I think there is far too little positive reinforcement for all species in the world. So let’s see how you might be able to increase the positivity in your work place.

Positive reinforcement is in the eye of the beholder. One person might love Starbucks (like me, for instance!) while someone else might prefer Dunkin Donuts. One person might love a gift card to a restaurant, while another person would prefer a gift certificate for a massage. The secret is…talk to you staff and find out what they like to do. Then, when you find an opportunity to reward them, try to give them something that you know appeals to them.

Here are just a few ideas: • Gift certificates (restaurant, massage, pedicure/Manicure, Amazon, Etsy, local store they enjoy in your community, etc) • Gift basket (think outside the box..it could be a wine theme, movie theme, picnic theme, spa theme, sports theme, etc – make it personal) • Give an “experience” and not just money (i.e. tickets to a show or some event rather than $25 dollars) • Personal recognition – for some employees this means more to them than anything you could give them. Post their good deeds on Facebook, in your newsletter, and on your website! • Time off with pay

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 91 This is just a starter list. For more information on finding fun ideas to reward your staff check out 1501 Ways to Reward Your Employees by Bob Nelson.

Lastly, don’t underestimate the power of a public celebration. Catch your staff doing something right and let everyone know! Have a celebration with cookies, cupcakes, veggies or other snacks. (and yes…I would create a budget line for these types of celebrations. You bottom line will improve if your staff’s moral is better!)

Start today and make a commitment to increasing your positivity. If you want a fun challenge, purchase A Complaint Free World by Will Bowan and take the 30 day challenge of no complaining!

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 92 Don’t I Just Play With Dog All Day?

Employees new to off-leash play often envision an easy job playing with dogs all day. It can be challenging to communicate the detailed requirements of the daycare counselor role to new employees. Try using our employee assessment which is modified for new employees in training.

The New Employee In-Training Performance Checklist and Guideline (available at www.safeoffleashdogplay.com) has been designed to help you set expectations during the new hire training process. A couple of ideas on using this tool:

• Give your new hire a copy of the checklist as a detailed outline of the requirements to succeed in their new job. • Use the checklist to provide timely feedback that highlights their strengths and specific areas for improvement during the training period.

You may consider motivating new employees to learn and apply new skills by linking compensation increases to achieving master level scores by end of their probationary period.

Focus on assessing staff performance and ensuring your staff has the tools needed to manage playgroups effectively. Providing clarity on job expectations and providing regular feedback is an important part of staff retention. Be sure to focus on coaching for improvement and rewarding staff that meet and exceed your expectations. When staff master their leader role, the job may just feel like playing with dogs all day!

www.safeoffleashdogplay.com 93

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