How to adjust your dog to city life

[zd262]

We spent the summer (all of bubbas life so far) living in a beach town, but yesterday I moved back up to where I normally live, in San Francisco. His first day went great, so many smells and people to meet. He seemed a little stressed, sort of like where am I, but it was pretty minimal considering the big life change. Today I took him for a quick walk up the street and he started out fine but then a skateboard went by and he totally freaked out. Screaming and whining, pulling full throttle on his leash in any direction. Even once we got home he wouldn't stop whining incessantly. He's normally a very quiet dog.

Any advice for how to make this transition better for him? I really hope that interaction didn't scar him for life

[rochie427]

When we got our Rosie one of the things that I did was play on You Tube every day sounds that she would hear when outside ( Sirens, garbage trucks, cars rushing by, things like that ) so when I was able to take her on walks she wasn't that freaked out. Introduce these new sights and sounds to him a little at a time and let him know that he is safe and all is ok.

[Labradorks]

Take treats with you and go slow. Try to start with a quiet(er) spot and work your way up to more noise. Also, time, work your way up there, too. And, if he is stressed, leave. There's not point in forcing the dog to acclimate. In fact, it doesn't work. It will all work out eventually, just give it time. Also, don't freak out on your end. Be matter of fact, upbeat to neutral and be calm and confident. Dogs are pretty adaptable.

[zd262]

Thanks for the tips! I'll do my best to not freak out and remain calm. He was totally socialized where we used to live, but I think the amount of things here at once is really overwhelming. We came here for one day 2 weeks ago and he was great so I expected too much.

The playing videos sounds like a really good idea, I might do that with the skateboards, which seems to be particularly bad for him. I was trying to treat him a lot when we were out today but he was too upset to take anything. Now that I know he has regressed a little bit I'll sort of move back to square one and expect less out of him, and praise him more.

[zd262]

Hi labradorks and rochie427! I wanted to thank you again for your help. We've spent the last 2 weeks eating a lot of treats as we walked around the outskirts of the busiest areas, and exposing him to all of the different sounds and people. It's been going great and today we walked back down the street where he first had the bad interaction and everything went well!! Bubba is well on his way to becoming a city pup.

[Maxx&Emma]

That is awesome news! Labs are so adaptable, I didn't think it would take him much time to figure out more activity = more people = more attention!

[Moby and Barley's Mom]

Good luck with a lab in the city!! I lived in San Francisco as a child and as an adult right after college. It is wonderful! Although - obviously moving from the country in Napa to the "town" in Napa is a different experience - I would agree that loud noises (such as garbage trucks and cars and people unloading food from trucks into restaurants) and different terrain (corregated metal down to the dock and grates covering the Napa river) has been "fun" for Barley. He is getting braver every day. I don't force anything and leave it to him to make a move - and leave the area when he is scared or uncomfortable. But he is pretty tough and always interested in going back - which I do not think would be the case if I was not patient and understanding of his fears. In San Francisco - I would just suggest plenty of running time at Crissy Field and jaunts across the bay to the dog park near the Costco in Berkeley! Good luck!

[zd262]

Thanks Moby and Barley's mom! Luckily I live at the intersection of golden gate park and the panhandle so there are lots of non city areas for him to explore. Plus I spent last week interviewing dog walkers for when I go back to the office soon (I could fill a whole other post with my sadness at that!) and the one I chose goes down to fort funston every day so that should be great for him!