Reactive dog? Look at the bigger picture

When I go to a Behaviour Consult for dog reactivity I often feel that the owners want to know "How do I stop my dog when he is barking at other dogs?" or "How do I stop my dog from lunging at others?"

My answer is always the same: YOU DON'T

What we should be asking instead is: How do I help the dog feel better whenever he sees a trigger so that they don't feel the need to react in the first place?

Its not about “When my dog is reacting, what should I do?” But rather, “How can I help my dog to NOT react in the first place?”

We shouldn't be punishing a dog for communicating to us that they feel scared or anxious but we CAN help to change their emotional response so that the reactivity doesn't happen and we can help them to cope better when they do see a trigger.

The first thing to look at is what else might be going on in that dogs world that is causing the stress levels to build.

This diagram is based on my own dog. She has a whole lot of things that bother her and I need to carefully manage her environment on a daily basis. Some of the things on this list are nothing at all to do with other dogs but I need to remember that these things cause her stress and so they must be taken in to consideration.

How many times do we hear "But he's fine some days, walks straight past other dogs without issue but on other days he really reacts & lunges at everything"

The answer could be hidden in the bigger picture …. If your dog is barking out of the window at people / barking at the postman / barking at birds in the garden / hiding from their harness AND THEN going out for a walk (full of stress!!) then its highly likely they may be more reactive on that day.

If you can help to reduce the barking around the house and train your dog to love the harness then when you go out for a walk they are not ready to snap & not full of stress.

*I don't walk my dog every day.

She can't cope with it. Too many things bother her in the big, wide, world and its almost impossible to train her when she becomes so unsettled so I keep her home and we do enrichment activities / scent work / training around the home.

*I rarely let her greet visitors to the house - It would take me hours to settle her afterwards.

*I don't let her have access to the front of the house so that she can't bark at everyone walking past.

*I never walk her without a muzzle.

*I keep her routine as strict as I can day after day.

All of these things play a part in how she reacts to other dogs / humans in the street. If I didn't manage her home environment so strictly then she would be far more reactive outside because her stress levels would be overflowing - make sense??

What would be on YOUR dogs list around the home?

What changes can you make at home to help reduce your dogs stress levels?

Have a think. Its a real thing! When we get stressed our behaviour goes pear-shaped and when we get stressed CONTIONIOUSLY, day after day after day it becomes really difficult to control your emotions