In this live chat, I’m joined by Camille Personne (our go-to behavior guru at Pawsitive Futures) to talk through how I think about dog-dog interactions in the real world—especially when size, arousal, and “unknown dogs” make everything feel stressful. We break down what healthy play actually looks like (loose, wiggly, bouncy bodies) and what makes me step in fast (stiffness, tension, one-sided “bully” play, and intensity that keeps escalating). One of my biggest takeaways: I’d rather interrupt play too often than wait for a scuffle. Quick resets can be as simple as walking around the yard so the dogs follow and decompress. We also dig into how I choose good dog friends: I start with size, then energy level, then play style (chase vs wrestle vs “I want to be chased”). I’m cautious about random leash greetings and I’m not a fan of busy dog parks because you can’t control the environment, and dogs often rehearse rude, over-aroused behavior. If you do use a dog park, I prefer off-hours and more interesting terrain (trees, hills, obstacles) instead of a flat “open season” field. For small dogs with big dogs, we talk safety—especially predatory drift—and why I want the big dog calm and often playing low to the ground. And if your dog doesn’t love play, I still want them to have social time: dog hikes and parallel walks are one of my favorite low-pressure ways to build confident, polite dog-dog skills.