Settling on a mat is an essential part of your dog’s relaxation protocol in or outside the house! When attending a brewery or patio, it is so helpful to have a mat your dog knows as a cue to get ready to settle and relax. Their mat is telling them - hey we might be here a while - and that they will get rewarded for being placed calmly on their mat.
Once they have the basics down for settling on a mat, you can add distractions. This is important as there will be many things happening around you and your dog when out and about, and you want your dog to be prepared to observe them while still being able to stay on their mat. First, practice drinking out of a glass. We want to generalize this human action so that our dog doesn’t think this is a cue to get up.
Then, recruit a friend and practice having conversations while your dog remains settled. Don’t forget to reward your dog intermittently so they know they are doing a good job! If they pop up out of their settle behavior, you may have pushed the time between rewards too far. Go back to rewarding every 3-5 seconds and work your way up from there.
See you next week for the next skill in our Brewery Manners series!
