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6 Tips for Walking a Reactive Dog

By Alina Jumabhoy

6 Tips for Walking a Reactive Dog

Photo by Show 131/ CC

Is your dog reactive when the two of you are out and about?

Whether this reactivity may be triggered by other dogs, people, cars, or anything else, here are six tips to keep in mind when walking a reactive dog:

1. Set Off With a Calm Frame of Mind

Do you often feel stressed and tense before you even begin walking your reactive dog?

Well, this is something that your dog will be able to pick up on. This will put your dog on guard, making him worried that there is something around him that is concerning.

Beginning your walk in a calm and positive frame of mind can really make a difference. This may seem easier said than done, but this just means that you will need to spend some time finding a few ways to instantly de-stress. For some, this may be listening to music while others may find deep breathing exercises helpful.

Of course, the calm frame of mind applies to your dog as well as to you...

Make sure that your dog is calm before the two of you set off.

If your dog is over-excited or showing signs of anxiety, work with your dog to deal with these issues before you begin your walk.

2. Avoid Triggers When Walking a Reactive Dog

Yes, you do need to teach your dog how to overcome the obstacles that trigger his reactivity, but you need to do this gradually, in your own time.

In the meantime, avoid those triggers as much as possible.

If your dog is dog-reactive, try to walk your dog in places where other dogs don't frequent. This may also require you to adjust the times at which you walk your dog in order to avoid others.

Of course, completely avoiding all triggers is near impossible...

So, what do you do if you unintentionally come across a trigger when walking your reactive dog?

You put as much distance between that trigger and your dog as possible.

Try to block your dog's view of the trigger, whether this means turning around and walking the other way, or even darting behind a tree for a minute or two.

3. Turn Triggers Into Positive Experiences

Turning a trigger into a positive experience takes quite a bit of time and effort, but it really does pay off.

The key is to take things very slowly, beginning with a large distance between your dog and the trigger. Practice teaching your dog to focus on you, rather than on the trigger ahead.

How?

You can do this in a number of ways. Treats are great for food-motivated dogs, while a squeaky toy is a great distraction for toy-motivated dogs. You could also teach your dog to target your hand or another object, as this can be a very effective method for diverting their attention.

As soon as your dog focuses on you, provide plenty of praise and rewards.

Work on this for a few more sessions, before gradually decreasing the distance between your dog and the trigger.

What happens if your dog starts reacting again?

Then this means that you are moving too quickly in your training. Take a step back, putting more distance between your dog and the trigger, and work from this distance again for a while.

4. Enlist the Help of a Friend

If walking your reactive dog is something that you usually do on your own, it will surprise you how much of a difference it can make when you have another person with you.

So long as you choose the right person, they will likely have quite a calming influence over both you and your dog, while also instilling a greater sense of confidence in yourself.

Try walking your reactive dog in between you and your friend, so that you are both on-hand to reassure or distract your dog when you see an approaching trigger.

5. Keep Walks Fun and Interesting

Since your dog's reactivity will likely limit you when it comes to your choice of walks, you need to make sure that your walks are still fun, exciting and relatively unpredictable for your pooch.

How?

There are a number of ways you can do this, even if you can't take your dog to many new places.

Try simply switching up your pace on your walk, sometimes going slower and sometimes going faster. Changing directions at random times will also keep your dog guessing. Don't forget to shower your dog with plenty of praise whenever he follows your lead.

You could also try bringing a new toy on your walk with you. Stop at a random point for a quick play session.

Treats are also great, especially if you use a mix of both high value and low value treats. These are pretty much a necessity anyway when walking a reactive dog, but you could also stop mid-walk for a quick training session, using the treats as motivation.

6. Don't Be Afraid to Stand Up For Your Dog

When walking a reactive dog, there will be certain situations in which you will need to stand up for your dog.

For example, if your dog hates strangers touching him, you may need to be quite firm when it comes to well-meaning dog lovers reaching out to stroke your dog. In the heat of the moment, this could even come across as you being rude, especially if you need to raise your voice to get your point across. However, don't be afraid to do so – you are the only person who can really advocate for your dog.

The same applies with dogs who are dog-reactive, and are being approached by an off-lead, out of control dog. Even if you need to shout across a long distance at that other dog's owner, do what you need to do to keep your own dog safe and protected.

Walking a reactive dog is rarely easy, but, so long as you take things slowly, there will be plenty of small victories along the way. Make sure that you celebrate these as a reminder of how far you and your pooch have come, as these moments will provide motivation for all of your future walks.

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Put a Stop to Puppy Mouthing

By Alina Jumabhoy

Put a Stop to Puppy Mouthing

Photo by Show 131/ CC

Image courtesy of congerdesign @ Pixabay

When a puppy is still young, puppy mouthing is completely normal behavior. After all, this is how a puppy explores the world, interacting with different objects.

However, while puppy mouthing may be necessary during the earliest stages of your pup's life, this isn't something that should continue on into adulthood.

Why?

Because an adult dog is much stronger and heavier. What used to be gentle puppy mouthing can unintentionally cause injury as a dog grows up. Plus, puppy teeth themselves can be quite sharp, especially if they come into contact with a child's skin. This is why it is so important to put a stop to puppy mouthing once your pup is a couple of months old.

Bite Inhibition

Bite inhibition is the ability that a dog has to control how hard he mouths and nips. This is usually something that a pup will learn from his mother, as well as his littermates.

How?

Well, when a puppy bites another pup too hard, that other pup will usually let out a yelp and immediately stop playing. This causes the first puppy to stop playing too, teaching him that biting too hard puts an end to the fun.

This is a method that you can copy when teaching bite inhibition to your puppy...

When your puppy mouths you, yelp in the same way that a pup would. Make sure that you immediately stop playing too, leaving your hand to go limp.

Your dog will likely stop too, if only for a second. Make sure that you quickly praise your dog as soon as he has stopped, and then immediately carry on playing.

It will take quite a bit of repetition, but it won't be long before your puppy soon learns not to mouth.

Already tried this method with no success?

Instead of letting your hand go limp, try putting a stop to the play altogether. Walk away from your puppy after you have yelped. Then, wait for your pup to remain calm for about half a minute or so, before returning to play.

This will help to reinforce the idea that mouthing is bad, but playing in a gentle way is good.

Provide a Safe Alternative

While many puppies mouth while playing, others do this simply because its an instinctive behavior. Puppies have a natural urge to chew and bite.

If you don't want this urge to be carried out on you, or any of your belongings, then you will need to provide your pup with a safe alternative.

What sort of things should you give your pup to gnaw on?

Try some of the following:

Don't forget, every puppy is different when it comes to the things he enjoys chewing on. Make sure that you try a few different chews and toys until you have found some that you know your puppy genuinely enjoys.

Remove the Temptation

Many puppies only mouth when they are playing certain games.

So, to prevent puppy mouthing, simply stop playing those games. For most pups, these involve rough play games, such as wrestling.

There are many other non-tactile games that you can substitute this with. Try playing tug of war, or a game of fetch. Introducing your dog to other pups his age will also help your pup to release all of that energy, making him less likely to mouth you when you get home.

Make sure that you also never tease your puppy with your fingers or your hands. Even using an item of clothing can only end up encouraging the mouthing.

Is your puppy mouthing your belongings as well as your skin?

This is another temptation that you should remove.

Make sure that all of your belongings are well out of your puppy's reach, in the same way that you would baby-proof a house if you were bringing a new baby into it. Baby gates and other types of barriers can also be useful to limit your pup's access to certain parts of the house until you have the puppy mouthing under control.

Basic Obedience Training

Giving your pup a treat or a toy as a distraction is always a good idea, but what happens when you don't have a treat or a toy around?

This is where basic obedience training comes in...

This will give you an extra tool when it comes to distracting your pup. By teaching your puppy various commands and tricks, you will be able to use these to encourage your pup to control his impulsive behaviors.

Wondering what basic obedience training involves?

Teach your puppy the following commands:

  • Sit

  • Stay

  • Lie down

  • Recall

  • Leave it

When it comes to puppy mouthing, the two most-useful do tend to be “sit” and “leave it”.

Once you have these commands cemented into your pup's brain, your puppy should automatically listen to you each time you say one of them, even if they happen to be mouthing at the time.

Don't forget, each time your puppy stops mouthing to listen to your command, make sure that you provide plenty of praise, and even a treat. This will really help to reinforce that good behavior.

Don't Punish Puppy Mouthing

As mentioned earlier, mouthing is an instinctive behavior.

Your puppy isn't doing this on purpose, meaning that puppy mouthing isn't something that can be stopped immediately.

For some pups, it takes quite a bit of time to ease away from the mouthing. Punishing your puppy for not learning this fast enough will definitely not help the situation. Instead, it is likely to just make your puppy fearful of you, especially when your hands are near your pup's mouth. This could make certain situations quite tricky in the future, from vet visits to being able to remove a dangerous food item from your dog.

Rather than punishing your puppy for unwanted behavior, focus on rewarding your puppy for positive behavior instead. This will give you so much more success in the long run.

Although puppy mouthing is a natural behavior, this is something that you need to take control of quite early on. Fortunately, with plenty of consistency, it doesn't take long at all to put a stop to puppy mouthing, even for the more playful pups out there!

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How to Teach Your Dog to Play Fetch

By Hope Hammond

How to Teach Your Dog to Play Fetch

Photo by Show 131/ CC

Courtesy: Pexels @ Pixabay

Do you feel jealous when other dog owners throw a frisbee and their pets go running after it? Have you tried to engage your dog in a similar game of fetch and he or she just stares at you? Sure, your dog might not be interested in the game. It's much more likely that there is a miscommunication going on. Your dog simply might not know how to play fetch. So, it's up to you to figure out how to teach your pet to play.

Finding the Right Toy

Almost every dog is interested in some kind of play object. This could be:

  • Knotted Rope
  • A Frisbee
  • A Ball
  • A Stick

First, you'll need to figure out what kind of toy your pet loves the best. It's important that Fido likes chasing and tugging on the toy. Buy a few different things and try them out with your pet to see which one they like chewing on the most. If you already know what kind of toy they like best, great! The next step is starting with the basics.

Tug-Of-War

Once you have figured out what kind of toy the dog is highly focused on and interested in, you can initiate a game of Tug-Of-War. This is an instinctive form of play for many dogs and they really enjoy fighting with you over that play object. Do your best to get them interested in the toy by placing it in front of them or waving it enticingly. Most dogs will want to grab and pull it to try and get it away from you.
Don't let go of the toy. This helps keep the dog engaged and focused on getting that object. Plus, as soon as they get it your dog will be less likely to want to let go, and may even run away from you. The game of tug should be ongoing, and you might even do your darndest to keep the object away from your pet. If it looks like the dog is starting to lose interest, slowdown, and place the object in front of them again to get their attention. Try to keep the game going as long as possible.

The Art Of Letting Go!

You'll want to start incorporating the "Let Go" command into your Tug-Of-War games. A good round of fetch can't happen unless the dog knows to release once he's brought the toy to you. One way you can start incorporating the idea of letting go of the toy is to just hold onto it firmly and not move or encourage your pet. You may even want to make eye contact and stare him or her down until they let go and back off a little.
You won't be making the dog upset. This just forces him or her to refocus their attention to you to see what's going on because you're no longer playing tug. As soon as the dog does this, you'll start waving the toy again and try to your pet back into Tug-Of-War.
Repeat this process a few times until your dog understands and is willing to let go at the signal. You might want to start saying, "let go" or, "release" when you want the dog to stop biting the toy. Eventually, your pet will associate the words with your desire to stop playing tug.

The Throw

Once the dog is familiar with playing Tug-Of-War over the play object, you can start to add the element of throwing the object into the game. Don't throw the toy very far, because that may confuse your dog. Instead, just toss the play object a few feet away and see if your pet goes for it. Your pet should be very focused on the toy before you proceed to this step.
If you have a frisbee, try rolling it on the ground. That kind of movement helps catch a dog's attention, so they'll be inclined to chase it. Continue doing this until your dog is so engaged that he's willing to run after the toy and pick it up.

The Return!

Gradually increase the distance you throw the object as the dog gets better at chasing after it. Do your best to resist the urge to chase after your pet too. Instead, start calling to your pet as soon as he or she picks up the object. Make the calls positive, light, and encouraging. Your dog might come to you right away.
However, this isn't always the case. Once your dog has gotten the highly valued play object, he may want to keep hold of it or may even run off and try to initiate a game of chase with you. Thankfully, there are a few ways to deal with this behavior.

#1 Backing Up

If your dog comes to you, but stops a few feet away, try backing up while encouraging your pet. When your dog reaches the spot where you were initially, you can come back to meet your pet with lots of praise. Soon, he will figure out that you want him to come all the way up to you.

#2 Leash Method

If you own a dog who likes to run off with that toy and doesn't seem to hear you when you call, you might consider using a training leash. These are extra long leashes that give dogs plenty of room to roam, but not get away from you. Keep your dog on a leash and throw the object to a distance that's within his or her range. When your pet picks up the toy, slowly pull the leash in while calling out in a positive way.

#3 Alternative Treats

Should your pet continue resisting your call, add some other type of positive reinforcement. Bring along a to a second toy that your dog really likes and keep it hidden behind your back until your pet picks up the first toy. Show your dog the second toy, while encouraging him or her to come towards you.
Food is also a good potential reward for a pet who comes all the way back. Just keep in mind that if you use treats often your pet may start to expect them as a reward for a trick, rather than learning how to play a game with you.
With time and plenty of practice, your pet will understand the basics of fetch. But, the first method you try doesn't always click. When the game isn't happening, you might have more success using the RAPT method of dog training. It will help you learn how to build a better bond and start Playing Games With Your Dog today!

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