A 101 on walking your reactive dog
Walking a reactive dog can be overwhelming, especially when you’re trying to manage their emotions, keep everyone safe, and figure out what to do in the moment.
Reactivity can look like lots of different things! Some dogs react because they’re fearful or anxious, while others may be frustrated, over-excited, highly social, predatory, defensive, or experiencing a mixture of emotions at once.
Reactive behaviour might look like:
Barking or growling
Lunging
Freezing or staring
Whining or squealing
Pulling intensely towards something
Trying to chase
Trying to run away
Becoming extremely excited
Refusing to move
Tail wagging
Body stiffening
Little Sabby and Cedrick decompressing with me after passing a dog.
Reactivity is a very general term and does not automatically equal aggression; instead it can describe a dog consistently having a disproportionate response to something in their environment.
The most important thing is to work out what the behaviour is communicating for that individual dog. Two dogs might both bark and lunge at another dog, but one may desperately want to get closer and greet them, while the other may be frightened and trying to make them go away. The behaviour can look similar even when the underlying emotion is completely different.
Whatever the cause, reactive behaviour usually tells us that something in the environment has become difficult for the dog to cope with. Our aim as guardians of these dogs isn’t to punish or suppress these behaviours. It’s to understand what the dog is telling us and help them feel safer.
When walks might be hurting, not helping
I want to first point out that if your dog’s reactivity is severe, getting worse, suddenly appears out of nowhere, or seems unusual for them, please head to a vet first to rule out pain or other medical causes.
It’s also worth keeping in mind that walks aren’t always appropriate for every dog, especially if they’re becoming overwhelmed every time they leave the house. If your dog is spending most of the walk barking, lunging, freezing, scanning for triggers, refusing to move or struggling to recover, the walk may be adding more stress than it’s worth.
Sometimes the environment itself is simply too much. In those cases, shorter toilet trips, quieter locations, long-line exploration, scent games, play and other forms of enrichment may be more appropriate while you work on the underlying issue. At this stage I’d highly encourage enlisting the support of a qualified, force-free trainer or behaviour professional like myself.
Watch them like a hawk
Check out the canine fear, anxiety and stress scale (FAS scale): https://www.fearfreehappyhomes.com/topics/handout-spectrum-of-fas-for-dogs/
This is a really useful tool for recognising when a dog is becoming stressed before they reach the point of barking, growling or lunging.
Early stress signs can include:
Lip licking
Averting their eyes
Yawning or sneezing
Ears pinned back
Moderate stress signs can include:
Holding their head low
Tail low or tucked
Turning their body away
Hesitating or stalling
Body becoming stiff or still
Signs they may have gone over threshold can include:
Fixed gaze
Raised hackles
Vocalising, including whining, growling or barking
Lunging
Refusing treats they would normally take
Once they’re over threshold, they’re often too stressed to learn effectively. Your first priority should be to calmly create distance and get them somewhere quieter. Cross the road, turn around, or use your body or surroundings as a visual barrier.
If absolutely necessary for safety, some small dogs may also be picked up and physically moved away from a situation, provided they are comfortable being handled that way.
Allow time to decompress before continuing. I like to think about FAS behaviours a little bit like a pressure valve. For some dogs, becoming more still can mean their stress is escalating, like lifting a front paw and holding it there, fixing their gaze, or perking their ears towards a trigger.
On the other hand, behaviours such as shaking off, sneezing, kicking up grass, lip licking, yawning, sniffing or rolling in the grass can sometimes happen as a dog is attempting to release stress.
The important thing is to watch the whole dog and learn what these behaviours mean for them individually.
Common triggers can include:
Dogs
Unexpected stimuli
Harnesses, leashes, clothes or jackets
Being separated from a familiar person or animal
Being scolded
The sight, scent or sound of other dogs
People
Traffic or loud noises
Things that resemble another animal from a distance
Busy or unpredictable environments
The wonderful Grisha Stewart’s dog reactivity chart. Illustration by the equally wonderful Lili Chin
In the early stages, try to avoid stressors and reaction triggers as much as possible
Watch your surroundings and keep a good distance from triggers. If unavoidable, at least try not to interact triggers: advocate for your dog, and be firm with others!
If someone is approaching, saying “not friendly”, “no thank you!” or “they need some space” can let them know you aren’t interested in interacting. Don’t be afraid to be more stern if someone ignores you.
Other people and their dogs can be unpredictable or out of control. Keep your dog close when needed and focus on creating space. If another dog approaches unexpectedly, your priority is simply getting your dog safely away.
When big stressors do occur, it can be frustrating! Try not to feel too defeated. Keep things light and focus on reducing your dog’s stress. If they or you make a mistake, acknowledge it and move on. Remember that it’s never a dog’s fault for being stressed or fearful.
Keep your dog close when you can
Physically position yourself between them and the trigger
Interrupt fixation by using your body or surroundings as a visual block
Feed treats directly or scatter treats on the ground
Increase distance as soon as you safely can
Take your time!
Wait until their stress has reduced, or the trigger has passed, before decompressing and continuing the walk
Help your dog decompress
Releasing the stress of triggers is crucial in beginning to help your dog (and you!) feel safer. Behaviours and activities that may help a dog self-soothe and release stress can include:
Shaking off
Sighing or taking deeper breaths
Licking
Eating treats
Sniffing
Taking quick stops along the walk to take in the environment
Doing simple training exercises for easy wins
Having long-line exploration time in a safe area
Play
Quiet time after a stressful interaction
You don’t always have to keep moving. Sometimes the best thing to do is simply stop somewhere quiet and let your dog settle.
This is what a successful walk with your reactive dog may eventually look like. In this clip, the lovely Maple and I are on a walk. She notices a dog across the road, and I play the Disengage game with her to reinforce her breaking fixation.
Use reinforcers!
A reinforcer is something given to a dog after they do a behaviour we like, encouraging them to repeat that behaviour. Common reinforcers include treats (usually the easiest and most effective option for many dogs) toys, play, access to sniffing or exploring, and touch.
Regarding that last one, I’d like to give a very important note: touch is not always reinforcing. Lots of animals dislike certain kinds of touch and may simply tolerate unwanted touching from humans, which can actually make touch a more negative experience over time.
Please always try to let an animal choose whether they receive touch. Most people feel that pets are always down for scritches simply because we love and care for them and vice versa, but that isn’t necessarily true!
Don’t reach towards, pat, pick up or crowd a dog unless needed for safety. Respecting when an animal doesn’t want to be touched builds trust, strengthens your relationship, and shows them that we’re safe to interact with.
When touch is necessary, try to make it as positive as possible while doing what you need to do, eg. adjusting a harness or untangling leads.
Try a consent test! offer your hand or briefly pat or scratch the dog, then stop. If they move closer or ask for more, keep going. If they move away, turn their head, become still or show other stress signs, give them space.
Back to reinforcers…treats are a great tool for helping reactive dogs feel safer and less stressed on walks. We aren’t necessarily expecting them to do formal or structured training when they’re already finding the environment difficult.
Instead, treats can be used to interrupt fixation before it escalates into growling, barking or lunging. The aim isn’t to have to distract them forever or rely on treats unnecessarily. Once they gradually begin feeling safer, we can often reduce how frequently treats are needed.
We want to create positive associations with things that stress them out. Pair it with some verbal encouragement that comes naturally to you. Linking those nice words with receiving treats can set us up for success later when we want to begin reducing how frequently food is needed.
I’d highly encourage using treats to reward:
Responding when you speak to them
Checking in with you by looking at you/toward you
Walking calmly without pulling
Following you across a road
Turning around or moving away from a trigger
Calmly noticing another dog or person without reacting
Calm sniffing
Settling
Other signs they’re trying to relax or release stress
Always try to offer treats early, before they become too overwhelmed to eat or respond. Treats can be fed directly or scattered on the ground to interrupt fixation and encourage sniffing. Some dogs may be too stressed to take treats directly from a hand but will still eat them from the ground. If a dog who normally loves food suddenly refuses it, they’re probably already becoming overwhelmed….next time try earlier.
Keep your expectations reasonable
Our overall goal is to keep stress levels minimal so walks can be an enjoyable physical and mental outlet for the dog. Working on reactivity takes a lot of patience but is absolutely worth it.
Keep trigger stacking in mind. Stress only properly reduces when the dog is actually given the opportunity to relax. Small stressful experiences build on top of one another, even if each one seems manageable by itself. A dog might cope with one barking dog, then they hear a truck, then someone approaches them, then another dog appears…by the fourth trigger, they may react far more strongly than they normally would.
At first, we’re usually just trying to keep stress at a manageable level. When training or conditioning any animal, we never want to increase the challenge until they’re comfortable and successful with an easier version.
Don’t expect too much from them, and quit while you’re ahead! Just try to aim to keep them under threshold and nothing more. A successful walk doesn’t have to mean walking a huge distance, passing another dog up close, or doing lots of obedience. A huge success in these early stages can look like noticing a dog across the road, eating some treats, turning around and going home. <3
