Although your dog may never be 100% comfortable with being petted, it is possible through positive reinforcement to help your dog to get used to human touch.
Six Steps to Get My Dog to Like Petting
- Determine which parts of petting your dog dislikes the most and which he minds the least.
- Find a treat that your dog loves (preferably a small treat)
- Use a training clicker for maximum effectiveness.
- Start at a place on your dog’s body where they are completely comfortable with being petted.
- Over time move to other areas of your dog’s body.
- When doing this, distract your dog with the treat clicker.
Tips for Being More Effective
- Invite your dog to initiate contact first
- Squat down to your dog’s level
- If your dog is more reserved, turn your body to the side to make yourself less threatening
- Avoid hovering over the dog when greeting it
- Pet the dog slowly and in a calm manner
Things to Avoid
When training your dog to like petting, it’s vital that you don’t insist, even if you can see your dog is uncomfortable. Unfortunately, when trying to train your dog to like petting, many people insist on petting the dog more.
This won’t work and just shows your dog that you’re not receptive to its behavior.
If you are aware of what your dog wants, you’ll be able to learn more quickly what actually makes your dog happy.
If your dog doesn’t like to be petted, it’s essential not to overstep your boundaries. Chasing your dog around in order to pet them will just teach your dog that you’re annoying. This could lead to your dog avoiding you in the future.
How to Get the Behavior to the Last Long-term
In order to get this behavior to last long-term, you must be consistent with your training. If you only practice a few times or sporadically, it will be much harder for your dog to learn to like being petted.
You should also accept that you might have to provide reminder practice sessions with your dog throughout its life.
Final Thoughts on Training Dogs to Like Petting
Through consistent training, using a treat as an incentive, you can train your dog to like being petted. Of course, this will be easier the younger your dog is.
It’s important to remember, though, that even with regular training, some dogs will never be 100% happy being petted.