It is not the dog who has to say whether So-and-so can enter or not. It’s up to you ! Unless you want a real watchdog. In this case, it must first be educated and then trained.
The guests
When people ring your doorbell, it is not up to the dog to receive them or to stand in the way. Let’s take the example of dominants / dominated in the wild. Only the dominant can authorize or not the entry to another animal in a territory. In case, facing this charming little ball of fur, you forget it, we remind you that the dominant is you!
Conclusion: you are the only one who knows who to let into your home. The animal must therefore be in its corner when someone comes, and must not leave it unless you allow it. It can possibly approach the door but must not show any feeling, neither good nor bad. The only place in the house he can claim is its basket.
To let out
It is not uncommon to hear owners take great pride in their dog not letting anyone – not even them. It is inadmissible for an animal to play the customs officer in your home in this way. In this case too, the dog must take its place and let the handler accompany the persons previously entered.
No admittance
Your animal must respect prohibited places, even during your absence. You should not be required to close all the doors of the house before you leave. It is the hardest learning. You cannot scold them on your return: we have seen that deferred punishments are very harmful.
Your dog will not do this stupid thing in your presence. You must then be away for very short moments, for example to take down the trash, and ask the dog to stay in its basket. If it is still there when you return, congratulate it profusely. Otherwise, ignore it and try the experiment again later .
The guard
Even if you do not want a pure watchdog, it is obvious that some owners want their dog to play a bit of this role in their absence. Especially if they have chosen a dog of 40 kg or more. The problem is of course not the same with a poodle .
Know that if your dog is well aware of its limits, the permitted zones and the prohibited areas of its territory, it will have no difficulty in assuming a role of “supervisor” in your absence, and that without you having to first started training in this direction.
It is not necessarily essential to train a dog to attack so that it understands that it must keep the house when it is alone. Many dogs bark at the slightest suspicious noise in the absence of their master and remain perfectly silent when it is there.
If the dog, thanks to a correct and regularly conducted training, has fully assimilated the notion of territory, it will understand on its own that it can and must defend the house of its masters. Now we have to visit the wide world! And do not do anything just under the pretext that it is not at home!