What makes dogs in Manhattan so well behaved?

That's amazing.  And you're probably right - Manhattan dogs have to learn to deal with traffic, loud noises, crowds, lots of other dogs, etc. from day #1 so they adjust early. Max goes nuts when he sees one other dog coming toward him on the bike path.

Joyce

I noticed the same thing when we were there in April. I was amazed at these dogs. I think you're probably right, though. They get a lot of exercise and socialization.
 
We walked the trails in Central Park and I was really wishing our boys could've been there. What a great area for dogs! And we stopped in Washington Square Park and watched the dogs play at the dog park.

Yep!  I'm always trying to explain to people who've never been here - this is a GREAT place to have a dog!  It's pretty much all of the above in terms of why.  All of my dogs have been virtually bomb-proof.  It's just as you said, we actually walk our dogs here.  We walk and we walk and we walk.  Any dog that is going to live here gets desensitized pretty quickly.  In any given day Slick's exposed to:  crazy-busy streets, countless people, horns, sirens, huge buses and trucks, motorcycles, horses and carriages, birds, squirrels, LOTS of other dogs, children, elevators, revolving doors, escalators and general mayhem!  We also bring our dogs with us everywhere.  For example, yesterday I ran errands with Slick.  We went to the dry cleaner, the video store, the bank, shoe repair and the liquor store - oh and lunch at a cafe.  The only store he ever misbehaves in, is the drug store.  He occassionally tries to steal a candy bar or tic-tacs (the eye level stuff by the register).  

Anyway, Central Park is our backyard (literally) and if you go before 9AM you will find almost all the dogs are offleash.  These are our legal off-leash hours and Slick and I are there every single morning!  The rest of the time, it  would be HIGHLY unlikely to see a dog off leash in the park.  The ticket is $100.. hardly worth it.   During the day, Slick goes to the local dog run with his dog walker and plays with all his friends.  Then after work we're just out walking around the neighborhood, saying hi to more friends, running errands, etc.  He even has an indoor swimming pool to go to in the winter.   Life is very good here for NYC doggies!   

I'm always a little shocked when people ask "how can you have a dog in Manhattan???? It's SO unfair".    It seems that MANY people have a misconception that our dogs are locked up in dark, tiny apartments all day and are woefully neglected and dangerous. 

I'm not in NYC, but I am in a city, like right in a city neighborhood, and I also see a lot of misconceptions about having a city dog from folks who live in suburbs or rural areas. My dogs are out and about constantly, meeting people and other dogs every single day, twice a day. This morning on our walk, Marlowe almost got on a school bus with some kids that were petting him!
 
Even so, I wish I was in a bigger city like NYC because with big cities come major dog ammenities! Having a dogwalker here is still a little unusual (most people at least have a postage-stamp sized yard) and we don't have all the dog daycares and spas that NYC has. Hence, the dog ammenities we do have are expensive as all heck because they are so rare and considered "pampering". I do see that changing, however, as everything here gets more dog-friendly. And I can't wait for that because I hate having to walk the dogs, then put the dogs away at home, and then go run my errands, which chances are I just walked right by with the dogs! But people are still a little uptight about dogs in stores here and my boys still haven't mastered the art of waiting patiently while tied to a parking meter.
 
Last time DH and I were in NYC we seriously spent an entire afternoon at the Washington Sq. dog park, just watching the dogs. The Met? The Statue of Liberty? The Empire State Building? Yeah, not so much. But we saw lots of Manhatten dogs!

ORIGINAL: houndlove I'm not in NYC, but I am in a city, like right in a city neighborhood, and I also see a lot of misconceptions about having a city dog from folks who live in suburbs or rural areas.

I was one of those people!!!! Lately, I have been bringing Dodger into the busiest parts of the city with me (we live in the suburbs and have greenbelts surrounding us so Dodger's normal exercise is either hiking off-leash or driving to agility). 
But the last month, we've spent the time dowtown and Dodger has loved it! He seems to love getting attention from all the people and sniffing concrete for a change[:-]!!!!  It's crazy, he was just as tired with a on-leash walk in the crowded steets, a few zoomies at the small dog run and crashed in a friend's 200sq ft apartment!! I'm still in shock and can now see that living in the city can be just as great as somewhere with open spaces!!  Vacation to the city seems to be all that Dodger wants!  Fields and prey are only so exciting (apparently!)[]

You know, every time I see a dog that's advertised as "needs room to run" I think about all the country dogs I know and just shake my head. The problem with having a dog in the country is that people hardly ever have a fenced back yard,,,so the dog ends up on a chain or small run and contrary to popular belief they dont really get any more exercise than a city dog (in fact for most I think it's less). Of course there are always exceptions, but this is what I have seen in my area at least. I"m fostering a bc/husky and I can't tell you how many people tell me "o, we live in the country and she'd have so much room to run!!" and I always think, ya she'd run away is what she'd do.

I noticed this when I was in Manhattan too.  I have to agree that it must be related to socialisation.  The thought also occurred to me that (excuse me for generalising here) most people who can afford to live there and own a dog can afford dog walkers/doggy daycares etc.  That means the dog is exposed to situations where it not only has to be well-behaved in different situations, but ALSO under the command of different people.  I feel that this MUST help with a dog's generalising skills, that there is potentially less room for a dog appearing to think that they can misbehave because the person walking them is not "their person" and therefore not "the boss".  They are exposed to so much, and by different people that they almost learn to behave well by default. 
 
That's not to say that there aren't opportunities for the dogs to run around and act like crazy dogs.  I was in Central Park at off-leash time - and it was wonderful to see.  The dogs just learn quickly when and where it is appropriate.
 
Kate

I feel that this MUST help with a dog's generalising skills, that there is potentially less room for a dog appearing to think that they can misbehave because the person walking them is not "their person" and therefore not "the boss". 

 
Kate, sorry for being a bit thick here - but I'm not exactly sure what you're saying.  Is it that they accept that all people who walk them are "the boss"? 
 

They are exposed to so much, and by different people that they almost learn to behave well by default. 

 
"learn to behave well by default" - totally.  In fact, I hope nobody finds this offensive - but the CGC test/title is kind of a joke here.  We regularly have doggie events in the park and there is almost always a CGC testing station set up.  You just get in line and take the test.  I know people (myself included) that just take it for something fun to do with their dog!  The first time I did it with Slick he was under 6 months old (yes, he passed) and we've probably done it about 3 times since.  I honestly never realized that it meant anything to anyone until I came to i-dog.  

Christine - Sorry, I probably didn't express that clearly. Everything I have read has indicated that dogs don't generalise well, unless socialised to a point where they are able to do so.  A dog might view it's owner/person as being "in charge" and therefore to be obeyed, but are less likely to obey the command of a stranger.  A dog who is raised being looked after by not only it's owner(s) but dog walkers, doggy daycare workers and others are pehaps more likely to form the generalised view that ALL humans are "above them" in pack status, and are therefore in a position to command the dog's behaviour.  I don't mean that dogs who aren't walked by dog walkers are inherently not as well behaved as the ones that are, only that to the ones that are it may be an advantage. 
 
As an example, Ben acts differently when my dad walks him than when I do.  It's not *worse* - Ben sees my dad often and is used to having him around, but my dad and Ben have a different relationship than Ben and I do.  Even though the body language, voice and general demeanor of the person (my dad) walking Ben is different, he has still learned he has to behave for him.   Ben is not so focussed on whether or not it is ME giving the command that he forgets the command altogether, despite the fact that I am Ben's alpha/pack leader/call it what you will.
 
Hope that made more sense!  It's only a theory, anyway. []
 
P.S. If I come to NYC again (which I want to, I LOVE it) can I meet Slick?  Something about him just makes me want to give him belly rubs. LOL.
 
Kate
 

Ah, okay - this is true, or at least it's true for all the dogs I've had here in the past 15 years. For example, whenever Slick's regular walker can't make it, they send a replacement. The replacement just walks in, leashes him up and they're off! No worries or complaints from Slick, he's happy to go with whomever. The generalisation must be easier to make with so much exposure and situations as the one I've described. In regards to people who can afford to live here, can also afford walkers and daycare... that one is not necessarily true. Keep in mind that many NY'ers do not have typical 9-5 jobs. There are tons of actors, musicians, students, writers, etc. who keep odd hours and walk their dogs accordingly. In a past life, when I was married to a musician, we never had a dog-walker (and definitely couldn't have afforded one). He was home during the day and walked the dog, while I did the morning duties at the park. But yes, dog-walking is BIG business here, as is daycare. I know people who can't afford it every day, but do the daycare thing once or twice a week. We do love our dogs, I will say that. The only exception (and it's a big one) to the well socialised Manhattan dog rule, is the dog who's feet never touch the ground. The pocketbook pooches who travel exclusively in a handbag and snarl at passerby's because, well.. they're just a mess. These dogs, and unfortunately there are MANY of them, do not have a good life.

Kate, absolutely yes! The next time you come to NYC, PM me and we'll meet up. Slicky would LOVE a belly rub and you could get a little "Black Lab fix" whilst away from home!

Part of it is socialization, I think- people socialize their dogs all the time, even in advertantly, because no one potty trains in their own (non-existant) yard.

I'm glad you had fun- I *do* think NY has it's fair share of nasty dogs- Summer (Cardigan Welsh Corgi - my show girl that I petted out after she was spayed) got attacked at the dog run while we were visiting a cousin there!

Cait  

Thank you New Yorkers (and those who have visited the area) for your insight into this. It sounds strange but I certainly was very puzzled by the dog#%92s fantastic behavior! I am so glad to hear that it wasn#%92t just a “fluke” that the week I was there the dogs were well behaved.  

I do think that the exposure to so much NOISE, people, etc. every single day plays a big part.   Also the walking thing I also think is “key”. . . the whole city has a different attitude about walking. . .it is JUST WHAT YOU DO! I was also surprised to find so few people that were significantly overweight. Because walking is a way of life there, I think people are less likely to be obese. Living in Southern California (the land of blondes and skinny people), you would think we would have less obesity but honestly folks don#%92t walk. . .they figure that is what a car is for! 
  Darn. . .I wish I had gotten to central park in time to see the pups play off leash! I went on 3 different days and one of the days we took the subway to 110th and walked the park from top to bottom over about 4 hours. It was truly magnificent!  Labcrab-you and your pup are soooo lucky to live in that area and walk that park every day. If we could afford it I would love to do it! DH and I both would love to live in West Central park area. I did notice a ton of dog walkers and also that many stores allow your pets in. .  .love it!  

I did notice a really neat dog park on our way to the world trade center. I am not sure the area but I think it was fairly close to Tribeca somewhere North West of the trade center. It looked like it had all sorts of little hills and such that had been built into the dog park. I saw a newfie and a dane jumping into the car after playing at the dog park. For the most part though I saw small to medium sized dogs, and not large dogs (and no greyhounds. Are there any greyhound owners that you have seen in the area?)   I truly believe that many dogs do great in apartment living, as long as they are exercised.  Most people won#%92t consider greyhounds if they don#%92t have a big yard, but they don#%92t need a lot of exercise and huge places to run. It is one of the big “greyhound myths”.  All the greys I have ever owned have been perfectly happy in a condo because once I am off work, it is “their time”.  So we get in the car and go to a different place to walk for an hour or more every night. They also get 30 a minute walk in the morning before DH and I go to work and they get a couple short “potty runs” throughout the day. Couple that with lots of petting and attention, every other week they go with 30 other greyhounds on a greyhound walk and a few times a month we go to an enclosed ball field and let them run. Within 5 minutes they are pooped and ready to go back home.  

 My very favorite thing I saw regarding a dog when I was sitting in an outdoor patio on 48th street having a drink and a late night dinner and it was about 11:45 p.m. and I saw a woman walking her dogs in her PJ bottoms, slippers and a coat!  Ahhhh. . . the joys of dog ownership! I worry that my neighbors will see me in my PJ bottoms, slippers and a coat, yet this woman didn#%92t care at all and no one even gave her a second glance. It was great! I will always have that memory.

My cousin wants me to come visit him in NYC. I keep telling him that I can't, because I can't leave my dogs. He says that I should bring them, they'd have a blast. We can take them all over the city, and to the dog parks.

Hahaha! He obviously hasn't met my dogs. It sounds like a fantastic place to raise a dog, but my two would have a heart attack. Teenie would turn into a ball of snarling mush (which is what she does when she's overstimulated) and Emma would be so excited, she'd seizure. My poor dogs have NEVER seen that many people, LOL.

I wish all the rescues in NJ/PA/CT that denied us simply b/c we lived in the city could see this thread. "No yard? Nope, sorry." Heard that so many times even though we live literally half a block from Central Park! Grr. Sorry, I'm still bitter []

I actually remember reading an article about a woman taking a trip to Manhattan w/ her 2 Aussies. I forgot the details, but I do remember they went to Bloomingdale's! All the more reasons for all the i-doggers to come visit...

"Pocket dogs" can be quite nasty. Good point, Christine!