I have recently had to call in to my home a plumber, and while we can understand that when any bathroom equipment needs to be replaced, or repaired, we must call on a qualified tradesperson to come to our home to remove the broken equipment or replace it with a new part,  the resulting  invasion of our “den” will prove to be a confusing, and even a frightening, experience for our dogs. There will not only be a stranger moving freely around the home (our den) but there will be very unfamiliar sounds and smells because it is impossible to do the work without a lot of noise and disruption.

To ensure we make all of this disruption as easy as possible on our dogs we start by creating and area where they can move freely and be with just us, whilst blocking them from the work area and the person carrying out the work.

There is no need to ask the plumber to ‘make friends’ with the dogs, just as there is no need to expect the dogs to ‘make friends’ with the plumber, so we simply ask the plumber to ignore the dogs, knowing that the dogs will then naturally understand that they have no ongoing relationship with the intruder, whilst allowing the plumber to get on with the job, without interruption.

If it is necessary to rearrange access to the different rooms of the home temporarily, once the job is completed you will be free to reinstate everything as it was. This will also help the dogs to settle as quickly as possible and re-assure them.

It is impossible to force a dog to relax but it is easy to create the environment to help them calm themselves.

Sincerely,

Jan