Dog Behaviour: Habituation

Let’s talk about HABITUATION in dogs.

What is habituation? Why does habituation matter for my dog? Is habituation different to socialisation? We'll help to explain...

People so often get socialisation confused with habituation so here’s a brief definition for both:

SOCIALISATION is teaching your dog how to interact socially with other living beings, such as humans, dogs, cats etc

HABITUATION is showing your dog new things, new experiences and them becoming accustomed to these new environmental factors - this could be them seeing a vacuum cleaner or walking past a loud lawn mower, for example.

So why is habituation so important?

Every time your dog has a new sensory experience, they learn how to become resilient to new things. This will help to build a more confident dog overall.

Habituation also helps to stop your dog reacting to certain stimuli, simply through being repeatedly exposed to it. For example, your puppy may be worried about the vacuum cleaner the first time that they see it, but if they see if every day, they eventually learn that the vacuum cleaner won't hurt them, simply through repeated exposure to it, and their anxiety levels will naturally decrease around it.

Habituation should ideally be done when your dog is young, during the critical learning period, to set them up for success - but it is never too late! You can do this by taking your dog to a brand new place, playing them loud or unusual noises while you train them or simply by placing new, random objects around your home once in a while. This can also be very important with rescue dogs, exposing them to new items that they may never have experienced, such as a vacuum cleaner, a sweeping brush or other new items. By simply seeing these items every day, you are helping your dog with habituation.

Let's take a look at this picture. We have labelled all of the stimuli that are present.

All of these new stimuli are in addition to stimuli such as wind, grass, picnic benches and more that this dog is already accustomed to, but hasn't always been.

If this dog were worried about one of the present stimuli, such as the flags flying above him, I would likely bring him here every day for a few days, practising behaviours he already knows such as lead walking and settling, until he didn't appear worried.

If you're not sure how to get started or need help with your dog, get in contact to help start your training.