Facilitating a proper greeting lays the foundation for your dog to have strong relationships not only with other dogs, but with you, their owner, as well. It is another opportunity for your dog to know that you’ve got things under control, which builds trust.
If your dog has a history of biting or aggression, your situation is beyond the scope of this post.
Last but not least, the three second rule is particularly important for the first greeting, but a very good practice for all dog greetings, even for dogs that already know each other. Give them their three seconds, walk away and if all goes well, take it from there. There will most likely come a time when you can eliminate the three second rule but it’s always a good idea to work up to it.
Three seconds is the maximum amount of time the initial greeting should last. Now, if there’s barking or growling that happens before that, walk away sooner. We don’t want it to escalate.
It’s common for dogs to part ways after a short greeting. Dr. Camille Ward, PhD, studied greetings at a dog park amongst 52 dogs and found that they were surprisingly brief — typically six to eight seconds, with dogs going their separate ways after this fleeting interaction. The shortness of the greetings was not the only surprise in the study; Dr. Ward also found that only 12 percent of greetings progressed to play. This suggests that (a) when dogs are free to choose, they greet and move on quickly and (b) play is not nearly as likely an outcome of greetings as you might think.
Some dogs don’t engage in greeting behaviour at all — and that’s okay. Dr. Ward, who saw no aggression during this study, found that more than 80 percent of the greetings were unreciprocated. (When dogs were of similar weight, it was more likely that the greeting would be reciprocal.)
Socialising with dogs and people helps to keep them balanced and fulfilled, so by no means do I want to discourage you from having your dog acquire new playmates. All I ask is that you set yourself up for success by having your eyes wide open and your attention on the dog.
As with any of these tips, if you have questions or are nervous, get a professional involved. It’s always better to be safe than sorry.