The Language of Space

When most people first hear of the concept of “space” it sounds a little confusing and most people misinterpret it. However, space is one of the most influential tools for communication with dogs. The ability to control space allows you the ability to set rules and boundaries. This also gives you the ability to communicate when the dog is doing something that is not wanted. When you think of the concept of space, first think about your own personal bubble; this is your “space”, and dogs have their own space, too. When someone invades your personal space, you get an awkward feeling in your gut, and you may ask them to move or you yourself move. Dogs will do the same thing but in more subtle ways that most people miss. In an example, when the dog moves its head away from you, they are trying to create more space. Now, think larger picture. A room is space, your house is space, the yard is space, the woods are space...etc. The more that you start to understand the concept of space, the more you will realize that dogs are communicating all the time. Dogs that become pushy for their owner’s space typically don’t have the best social skills with other dogs. However, once you start to practice their language (space) with them, their social skills increase and they become more confident. So, how do we learn the language of space? Welcome to the “place” exercise.

The concept of “place” is space control. The exercise will be to keep your dog on a bed using nothing but body language (pressure on/off). We want to see the dog move into relaxation through this exercise. Once this is accomplished, we want to reinforce with massage work and then invite them off the bed. This exercise teaches dogs to selfcalm, which can be very important for dogs that don’t have an “off switch”.