Tips for an enjoyable dog walk are plentiful online, and there are a lot of great trainers
out there who can help you get that dialed in.
But one thing about being out with your dog that I wish was discussed more is situational
awareness.
Well, we are going talk about that right now.
Ian here with Simpawtico Dog Training.
Situational awareness.
Now, that's a mindset and skill most frequently taught in tactical training.
Military and law enforcement organizations put a lot of time and effort into instruction
and development in that area.
There is a TON of material out there that goes into great detail.
Even though we're not stalking bad guys or taking a zodiac raft across a moonlit bay
behind enemy lines, situational awareness is a really useful habit to cultivate no matter
where you are or what you do.
In fact, Driver's Ed teaches situational awareness...they call it "Defensive Driving."
Athletes need situational awareness on the field, on the ice, on the court, or in the
ring.
Healthcare providers, executives, and organizations of all kinds encourage situational awareness
to lower stress and increase performance.
Workers in factories, warehouses, or on busy job sites must use good situational awareness
to keep themselves safe.
Scuba divers have to practice situational awareness watching depth, tank pressure, their
environment, their dive buddy.
In aviation, it's a tremendously important skill that pilots use to process many complex
and dynamic events happening simultaneously during a flight, and they use that information
to guide their actions.
There are vast quantities of sensor data available in the modern cockpit, and pilots have to
be able to make sense of it and make decisions "on the fly."
Look, it's all about widening your attention span, learning to look, to communicate, and
to understand the potential consequences of not paying attention.
This why we teach children to look both ways before crossing the street.
Those principles apply completely to being out in public with our dogs.
Situational Awareness is the first, crucial step to good decision making.
Like I said, a lot has been written about situational awareness, and if you're interested
there are some introductory resources down in the description.
There are lessons and classes out there to help you get that Jason Bourne level of hyper-awareness.
And that's cool if you want to do that.
It's a very interesting and useful discipline even if you're not an assassin.
However, I'm not suggesting it necessarily needs to be that extreme.
Neither am I advocating a kind of paranoia by any means.
In fact, mindfulness has been shown to lower stress and anxiety.
I mean look: if you're paying good attention you're instantly much better at predicting
and managing problems rather than trying to do damage control when you're surprised.
The underlying theme here is Look - Think - Act.
So, I've put together five EASY ways we can incorporate this mindset into excursions with
our dogs: # 1) Keep your head on a swivel.
When you're out walking, stay cognizant of your surroundings.
Look around.
Look behind you now and then.
Just keep your wits about you and know what's going on around you by periodically scanning
the environment.
# 2) Mind the space.
I've said it before, I'll say it again: do not let your dog get away with something you
wouldn't let a toddler do.
Move your dog out of the way of joggers and bicycles.
Don't let them just run up to anyone and everyone.
Lock that bloody retractable leash in public places.
# 3) Resist focus lock.
Focus Lock describes our tendency to focus on one thing while all the other things around
us fall away.
This is why it's illegal to text and drive in almost every state!
Cell phones have become the single biggest focus lock in our lives today.
Besides cell phones, I see people all the time in pet friendly stores so engrossed in
whatever they're looking at in the aisle that they're completely unaware that their dog
is tearing apart a stuffed toy, or intimidating another dog, or wandering around a blind corner.
It's madness!
Don't allow yourself to get tunnel vision.
Keep one eye on everything.
# 4) Beware normalcy bias.
Normalcy bias is a well-documented mental state people enter when facing a bad situation.
It causes people to underestimate both the possibility of situations and the possible
effects.
People tend to assume that since something bad never has happened, it never will happen.
It can result in the inability to cope and react when a situation does occur.
Folks also tend to interpret warnings in the most optimistic way possible, seizing on any
ambiguity to suggest a less serious situation.
Normalcy Bias manifests as the "Ahhh I'm sure it'll be fine" attitude.
Famous last words.
Don't be complacent, don't be lazy.
Don't assume because your dog is friendly, that all dogs are friendly.
Just because you've never encountered someone on a particular walking path, doesn't mean
you never will.
Just because your last two dogs were easy to train, don't assume your next one automatically
will be.
# 5) Educate Yourself on Dog Body Language.
Not every wagging tail means a happy dog; sometimes it means trouble.
Not every curled lip with teeth showing means aggression; sometimes it means friendship
(we call this a submissive grin).
Use your developing awareness to watch your dog and figure out where they're at in a given
moment.
Sometimes just giving them a minute away from everything to catch their breath makes all
the difference.
But you won't know they're getting stressed, if you're not paying attention.
Likewise, you can even get a better read on a strange dog, especially if THAT owner isn't
paying attention or suffers from normalcy bias.
When you can Look-Think-and Act, you can avoid a ton of potentially sticky situations.
Now there is a lot of info out there on dog body language, so I will put a list of resources
I recommend down in the description for you.
Does this seem a little overwhelming?
Here's an easy step: one small move to get your started off on the right paw: look behind
you every so often.
Even just that one thing will make a tremendous difference.
You can always build habits from there.
Keep your wits about you, be aware of your surroundings and who's in it, both human and
canine, and keep your dog under your control.
We can avoid a lot of silly mix ups if we just preemptively avoid trouble.
And we do that, by paying attention.
Situational awareness is not an innate skill.
Just like anything, it takes practice and repetition to cultivate the habit.
But keep at it and you'll save yourself, your dog, and other people a lot of trouble.
So what do you think guys?
Do you have stories and anecdotes related to situational awareness and dogs?
Do you have questions?
Please start the discussion in the comments.
If you learned something please subscribe to my channel.
Again check the description below for resources and links about things we talked about, and
shoot on over to the Simpawtico website for more tips and tidbits.
Until next time, keep learning, keep practicing, and I'll see you soon.
Cheers.