The best way to boost your dog’s confidence and happiness is through socialization. Sometimes, dogs can be sensitive to new environments and people. Exposing them to other dogs and different places, people, sights and scents can help them better adapt to their environment. If you’re wondering how exactly to socialize your dog, check out these simple tips.

Take Them for Walks

Taking your dog outdoors will not only help them exercise, but it will also socialize them with people and other dogs. Walking your dog in a public place allows them to meet the world and learn how to be comfortable in different settings. Drive your dog down the street and let them sniff around and interact with the environment. Maintain a short leash, and go to different places that give your pet a chance to run into other dogs. Also, take them to new routes and expose them to various sights. Besides socialization, walking your dogs can help in mental stimulation and keeping them healthy.

Go to a Dog Park

Your dog needs to play, and a dog's park is the best place to get this experience. Letting them have fun with other dogs boosts their social skills as well as their health. However, make sure to take appropriate precautions while at the park. Ensure that your dog is vaccinated. According to Jacoby & Meyers, you should keep your smaller dogs away from large dogs at a dog park. If you find another dog that your dog gets along with, try to coordinate the time you both come to the dog park. Like children, your dogs need friends!

Take Your Dog to a Training

Unlike the traditional belief that dog training was meant to administer obedience commands by anyone, today, you can engage a professional to help train your dog. You can discuss with the trainer the things you need your dog to be trained on. It's also an excellent opportunity for your dog to interact with new people and mingle with other dogs. According to Precious Petcare, training boosts your dog’s confidence and makes them aware of the environment.

A dog can make a good companion. Boosting your dog's socializing skills can be a great way to build their confidence. However, it would help if you remained positive throughout to avoid scaring them away. Provide a friendly environment and ensure the other dogs are friendly too. Praise and correct your dog in a positive way to allow them to adapt to new situations better.

5 Ways Pets Make Life Happier and Healthier

(Family Features) More than 84 million U.S. homes have a pet, according to the National Pet Owners Survey, and in many of those homes, pets are a big part of the family. However, there are several barriers that can prevent people from spending time with their furry friends, including outdated housing rules and limited green space in communities.

To help create a more pet-friendly world, Mars Petcare introduced the “BETTER CITY FOR PETS” certification, as an extension of its BETTER CITIES FOR PETS program. The certification celebrates cities that have made progress toward becoming more pet-friendly by evaluating them across four categories: shelters, homes, parks and businesses.

“The presence of pets can help make people healthier – both physically and mentally,” said Mark Johnson, president of Mars Petcare North America. “We hope to inspire more cities to take real action that leads to a better quality of life for people and pets in their communities.”

Consider these benefits of pets, along with research from the Waltham Centre for Pet Nutrition that shows a number of ways pets make people and communities happier and healthier, and visit BetterCitiesForPets.com to learn more and to find out how to help make your city more pet-friendly.

1. Ease Kids’ Minds – Pets are beneficial to people of all ages, but especially young children. Kids with pets tend to have less anxiety and loneliness, as well as greater self-esteem and social skills. Kids have also reported feeling more positive when completing a task if their dog is with them.

2. Provide Stress Relief – As people get older, pets continue to be there for them. Even in the face of significant stressors – such as the loss of a loved one – pets are by their owners’ sides to help them through times of grief.

3. Offer Therapy in Times of Need – Disasters can take many forms, and people need ways to cope and make sense of it all. That’s where the healing power of pets comes in. After tragedies, communities have brought in therapy pets to be a source of healing for people coping with hardships.

4. Encourage Socialization for Pets and Owners – Pets help people connect. In fact, dog owners are five times more likely to know their neighbors than non-dog owners. While dogs socialize with people and other furry friends at the dog park, their owners have a chance to build relationships with other local dog owners. People also tend to feel safer in their neighborhood when walking their dog.

5. Encourage Owners to Be Active – People who walk their dog tend to get more physical activity more days a week than those who don’t. Pet ownership can even make a difference in the survival rate for heart attacks. In a Waltham study, 94 percent of heart patients with pets survived serious heart attacks for at least a year, compared to 72 percent without pets.

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