Everyday Is A Party With A Dog!

We live in a very busy household. We have ~75 people in and out of our house every week. There are also the doorbell ringings of delivery people and fundraising kids. It can be a lot of work for a dog. The alert barking, the open door and guest greeting manners, the dance of being close by, but not underfoot - these all require skill to employ. We work on and refresh these skills daily. When there is going to be a party at the house, these skills need to be perfected.

I won't say we like "to entertain" necessarily because I'm not really sure what that means when you hear it on a home improvement or buying and selling show. I give three or four large parties each year with guests in the 20-30 people range, and I have a few people over for dinner 10-12 times each year. I don't even think about "what to do with" my dogs during a party, but I do know some people who feel they can't have anyone over for any reason due to their inability to predict or control their dogs' behavior.

So how do I prepare my dogs for a party? It starts LONG before the party. I'm not going to tell you how to train your dogs for every social instance, but I will highlight this week the situations that I think need your attention, and how having a group of people over may affect your dog, and your relationship with him or her.