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Who doesn't like to be petted? Everyone likes it, but especially dogs. One of the things that most fascinate our furry friends is a good moment of affection, hugs and kisses, even more if they are eternal. The longer they last, the better for them. Dogs never get tired of receiving love.
pet a dog it has many benefits, including for the person who gives the affection. It lowers blood pressure and reduces stress in both, and it only takes a few minutes a day. The most important is that it creates a special bond between the dog and the person who caresses. In addition, the caresses are an excellent way to calm a nervous dog, stressed or anxious. In this sense, learning to give your puppy a relaxing massage is easy. Keep reading this PeritoAnimal article and find out how to relax a dog with care.
relaxing caresses
Dogs also get stressed. A relaxing caress can help relieve all sorts of tensions, control your anxiety and hyperactivity, and give you a dose of happiness, the most basic medicine of all. In just 10 minutes a day you can give your puppy a "maintenance" of relaxing caresses.
Recent studies show that although puppies enjoy physical contact with us, it can happen that the way we pet them is not correct and for them it is a little aggressive and yet we believe that we are being as subtle as possible. If you want to relax a dog, avoid tickling, spanking or squeezing.
If you like to pet your puppy, it will be good to learn the best way to do it and help him to relax after a long journey or, on the other hand, to start the day right. Many people prefer to do it before going to bed, while others do it first thing in the morning. The result is the same, and for dogs it is the same.
First steps
Start petting your dog to relax him overall. Use the fingers and palm of your hand, relaxed but firm, to touch your puppy's entire body very slowly. Run from head to tail. Make sure you put all your attention and energy into it and focus on all the layers, from the hair, through the skin, to the muscle and finally to the bone.
Stop and make a circular motion as you pass through the ear areas, under the chin, neck, armpits and chest. You can do this while your dog catches the sun or after a good walk, the effect will be better. You can do it in the park but as mentioned before, after the game and walk. Otherwise, he won't pay attention. However, it all depends on the dog and the time you have. Others people prefer to do it before you leave home, while enjoying breakfast. The dog slept through the night and despite being awake, he was still not stimulated. With this, we help the puppy to learn that he can be relaxed even when he is not tired.
Pet your dog to calm his nerves
If you're really nervous about something that's happened, a relaxing caress can help reduce your stress and distract your attention. In this case, what we do is relax the nervous system with our approach. Rest your palm lightly on your puppy's head or neck. As we explained earlier, but this time without stopping in a particular area, make long, slow passes along the spine. Repeat several times and if you notice that your dog is comfortable with this type of contact, gradually increase the pressure. Avoid putting pressure on your lower back.
Your attitude while performing these caresses to calm your puppy should be waking up with what you want to achieve, ie, a relaxed and neutral position. As a final touch, rest one hand on the base of your dog's head for a few minutes and the other on the pelvis area. These two zones control the body's relaxation responses and other important functions in the body such as digestion, sleep and tissue repair. With this imposition we want reactivate the positive flow of spinal cord actions.
Relaxation on the paws
There's nothing better than stretching to relax. The paw area is an area we tend to neglect, however it is one of the keys to a dog's relaxation. Remember that like all creatures, a dog maintains all its weight and movement on its four legs, so these they are often full of tension, getting to tire the dog.
Start stroking your puppy to relax his paws and don't forget the buttocks and thighs area, rub them before stretching any area. Then start by stretching your legs, picking them up from behind and then moving your joints. Move every inch of your feet up and down and, hold with your hand, apply light pressure, then relax and continue. remember not to be aggressive, firm but smooth. Less is more. Dogs' paws are strong but not invincible.
Finally, hold your puppy by the hips and raise his legs behind him, this will benefit the stretching and relaxation of his spine.
try it pet your dog to relax following all our indications and tell us the result.