Dog Reactivity. It can ruin your walk and sour your relationship with your dog, stress other people and their dogs, make us all a bit tense and impatient. But if your dog is reactive, do not despair, it is not insurmountable, you can do things to manage and minimise it. I have had to manage my own dogs with reactivity and minimised it and have worked to help other dogs with this problem. To do this I have learnt about why it is happening in the first place and tried out techniques, training and tools meant to help. So for anyone else with this problem, I thought I’d share what has worked for us..
My 2 Border Collie dogs are very different in character, one is so chilled and the other can be still occasionally be reactive.
Bobby – The calm boy is so chilled that I sometime use him as a ‘nanny’ dog to walk other nervous dogs.
Ollie – The occasionally reactive dog has got 100X better through lots of work and being thoughtful of how he is managed, but of course, reactivity will still sometimes rear its ugly head, (albeit much MUCH less often now). Over the years, he has become good with other dogs walking with him on and off lead, he has always been good with dogs staying with us, but he can still react to other dogs passing him from the opposite direction and to strangers coming to the door. Both are now fine with traffic.
For years before I started boarding dogs officially, I looked after loads of dogs for people I knew, so I have worked with a lot of dogs. And I have had dogs rehomed to us, some with traumatic backgrounds. I believe if you have an easy, non reactive dog, you are lucky, you have had a good canvas to work on. *In my experience you can have 2 dogs that have had the same training and have the same current environment, but one is reactive and one is not. I believe this is due to their past experiences, breeding or underlying pain… So going forward –
I thought I’d share what has worked for us to minimise and sooth the reactivity, so that it might help another owner with a reactive dog.
Firstly, know both these dogs were rehomed to us and have given us challenges, we love them dearly, but Bobby was so hyperactive and destructive he wrecked one of our cars, making it an MOT fail, as he chewed through the seatbelts, chewed the break lights, the stereo speaker and the ceiling in one in of our cars. Ollie had extra claws which were surgically removed, has had to have more surgery to remove an odd, mystery, painful lump and is just an anxious sole. Both were horrendously reactive to passing vehicles.
The other thing to know is we are very calm, chilled and experienced with our dogs here at Spogan, they get plenty exercise, stimulation, structure, security and relaxing chill time. As I’m sure you know, the absence of these things can lead to a problem dog.
Once Ollie had his lump removed, his pathology was cleared and he was okayed medically, I started looking into dog behaviour, learning as much as I could, going through training on the subject and learned about tools and techniques to try with him. So from my own experience of having and minimising dog reactivity, I’d tell anyone this is what worked for me..
- Get your dog checked by the vet in case underlying pain is the cause of their reactivity. But don’t put anyone in danger. We still muzzle at the vet with Ollie in case he is overwhelmed or sore and snaps. It has never been needed but we do it just in case and out of respect for the vet staff.
- Structure/ boundaries – You should be a kind, empathetic leader for your dog, they should not be the emotive dictator of your actions. This should involve zero bullying your dog, no aggression, just being kind, firm and consistent. * If you mollycoddle and treat your dog like a baby, your dog boundaries are probably off kilter and this is adding to their behavioural issues.. There are several techniques to correct this dynamic, which would need a whole other post.. I will say, since we tightened up on these things, our dogs have got soo much better with everything.
- Keep calm and carry on. Dogs pick up our energy, so walk with a chilled and quietly confident friend if you can. If you are really nervous and if your friend is amenable, ask them to take over walking your dog.
- Walk your reactive dog with another calm non reactive dog. Even better, with a calm non reactive dog in front and another to the side. I find this works best for my dog and when we do this, he doesn’t even look at any passing dog. *This is where I find this subject similar to horse training. I have had horses for over 30 years, including spooky, skittish ones. If you have a spooky horse you would nanny it with a calm non reactive one on its outside and have it handled by a calm person.
- THIS IS JUST A WEE TIP I THINK HELPS – Give them space. I use dog gates in my house to break up the utility room, kitchen and the hall, so dogs all have their own space. They really seem to love this and it gives them peace and security.
Bobby and I go out weekly with a lady who has a lovely, but big and powerful German Shepherd with strong dog reactivity. Although we have only been walking together 3 weeks, the doggy is so much better. The wee set backs have come from dogs being walked off lead and running towards her. Thank goodness we have my super Bobby to intercept and divert loose dogs. In fact, this dog’s issue with reactivity started when another off lead dog attacked her..
Like a lot of other dogs, my own two dogs are great off lead and are mostly pretty obedient, however, I only intentionally let them run loose if we are on our own or a friend’s property or on a shore with no one else around. So yes. Most of us know if you have a reactive dog and it was off lead and had space and freedom, they would probably not be reactive in that instance. However, I have seen up close how terrified some people are of loose dogs. I have also seen how scared and reactive some other dogs are to loose dogs. And also, an off lead dog WILL one day run for a rabbit/get a fright when there is clap of thunder. So – I believe it is better to help your dog cope with the situation on lead, and do not believe walking your dog off lead is the pinnacle of training at all, not in the slightest.
So please, please, please, if you see another dog approaching, use a lead on your dog and be patient as the passing dog may be undergoing training or be injured and be aware that an off lead dog running around may set that dog way back in their training or rehab.
The most important thing here is..
Be calm and kind with you dog, other owners and to yourself. x
