A “reactive” dog generally barks, snaps, growls, or lunges at another dog, person, or cars. While it can be scary, some of these dogs are quite friendly off-leash.
Getting Started with Reactive Dog Training
The best approach to deal with reactivity is to focus on mental and physical exercise and impulse control.
The three components to deal with dog reactivity are:
- An Emergency U-Turn: This activity is indoor friendly. After putting your dog on a leash, you can walk a few steps and say “oops,” or “this way!” to change your direction. When your dog follows, give her some treats. This method can be very useful when you are walking on the streets and see another person or dog. Dogs will follow a trick better if they are given tons of treats. You do not need to do this only when there is a dog or a person, do it randomly as well.
- A Find-It Game: This game of asking your dog to find a treat that you toss in front of her can come in handy when your dog sees another dog. It can also be effective if you train your dog with the command “’ Find it!” to search for those treats. That way, she will understand what you want her to do. While sniffing can be very calming for dogs, it also breaks their attention from the other dog to the treat on the ground. Try this without a dog around as well.
- Look at That! Game: This game can require a little more effort and patience from your side. To give you a better idea of how to train your dog, you can opt for some online dog training lessons. In this game, you can train your dog to look at something and not react. You can first toss something near the dog. If your dog looks at the thing, give her a treat. If she focuses on it more than the treat, you will have to try this again. You can do this repeatedly. This way, if your dog looks at another dog, she will instead look at you for treats. It will control her from getting angry when she sees other people or dogs.
The best way to make these games effective is to keep your dog as far away as possible from anything that can trigger a reaction. If your dog isn’t interested in eating or is already lunging to another dog or person, make sure you introduce tasty treats like hot dogs, turkey, or meat. You can also use your dog’s favorite food to divert her attention. It’s also important to keep in mind that if your dog isn’t acting as they normally do, it may just be because they are ill. Things like a dog sinus infection are not uncommon and need to be treated accordingly first.
Although this is only a basic course in controlling or helping your reactive dog, there is a lot more to consider when training your dog. Since some dogs react differently to different things, you can also change your approach, or use online training plans if whatever you are doing does not work. There are some incredible tips to get from dog reactivity training courses in Spirit dog training that can completely change your dog’s way of dealing with stressful situations. When done right, and with time and patience, the best online training can divert your dog’s attention from a stressful situation.
