Achieve and maintain group harmony

When another dog enters the household, status and roles within the group must be redistributed. Dogs need our guidance and help for this. For example, a dog that has been an only dog for many years is not necessarily happy to have a young dog placed alongside it. An established group would also not have needed another member at its side. The adolescent, on the other hand, is delighted to welcome a puppy: finally, someone who is up for his "antics."

Keeping multiple dogs does not automatically mean that a healthy and harmonious group will form. The more dogs you keep, the greater the dynamic becomes. To prevent the group from becoming uncontrolled and independent, it is important to shape and steer it. The aim is a community in which everyone, the shy as well as the daredevil, finds their place.

The task of the "lead human" is to shape the community (group) and create a basis for harmonious coexistence. Understandable communication is built through the use of body language (gestures, facial expressions, voice, touch). This is because different types of dogs require different approaches; a Labrador, for example, wants to be addressed differently than a Sighthound, and a senior needs different input than a puppy.

Among other things, we will discuss the following tasks:

• how to form a group (socializing different characters or dog types)
• moderating a group.
• managing a group.
• many photos and videos.

Our speaker

Ursula Löckenhoff is the founder of the animal welfare organization Galgo-Hilfe e.V. The trained canine physiotherapist runs a dog hotel in Düsseldorf and shares her everyday life with well-socialized dogs as well as dogs less accustomed to humans. She is a regular guest on television as a dog and animal welfare expert.

More about the speaker: www.bene-bello.de and www.dog-media-team.de/

Photo credit: Anna Auerbach/ Kosmos