Somet imes a dog’s aggressive looking behavior may actually be based in frustration for not getting to greet another dog.
Author’s note: the information in this article on modifying a dog’s reactive behavior is a simple explanation of a well-known protocol. The best chance for success is to work with a reward-based trainer to implement the protocol as needed for the individual dog. Reactive dogs—they look scary when they lunge and bark. But many reactive dogs act like this because they are frightened or uncertain. They have learned if they act fiercely, the thing that scares them may move farther away.
There can be many reasons why a dog may bark and lunge at a dog or person. Fear is the most common reason for the behavior. That fear may exist because the dog was not properly socialized, has a genetic predisposition to the aroused behavior, or had a bad experience with another dog at some point in its life. Some dogs react badly to specific people or dogs, maybe only to men, or dogs of a certain size or color.
Sometimes the reactive behavior is also frustration at being leashed and not being able to reach other dogs. But the frustrated behavior still looks like aggression.
Reactivity may look like aggression but in most cases the behavior is fear-based.
A reactive dog is not necessarily an aggressive dog, even though it appears to be. However, if put in the right situation, it could become aggressive.
If you are the owner of a reactive dog, emotions can run high. You may feel embarrassed, frustrated, or angry. Living with a reactive dog requires some understanding and adjustments. Your goal is to prevent this behavior. Every time your dog practices this behavior, it becomes more deeply ingrained, especially if it is successful in getting the scary person or dog to move away. The longer you wait to seek help, the harder it will be to modify the behavior.
Before we review some principles of working with this behavior, let’s talk about what you should NOT do. You should NOT punish your dog for this behavior. It’s tempting to do that to make your dog stop, but your dog won’t understand why he is being punished. In his mind, he is doing naturally what he should do to make the scary thing go away. He does not understand that his behavior is not acceptable. The punishment may stop your dog from barking and lunging, but it will not change how he feels about the situation. Additionally, your dog will trust you less if you punish him for a behavior he considers natural and needed.
Your first step in helping your dog is to evaluate the situation. What upsets your dog, what are the triggers for his behavior? How far away from the trigger can he be before he barks and lunges? Keep in mind that there are many factors that may affect your dog’s reaction to the trigger: whether the trigger is still or moving, moving towards him or crossways, or how long your dog stares at the trigger. Your dog may be more likely to react sooner to his trigger if something stressful has happened to him during the day and his stress hormones are already high. Even something as simple as the garbage truck stopping by or noisy contractors working on the neighbor’s house can put your dog in a stressful state.
If your dog is shy, fearful or anxious about the environment, sounds or life in general, this will need to be addressed as well as the reactive behavior. Consult your veterinarian in addition to a reward-based trainer.
Put preventive measures in place. One of your goals for teaching your dog not to react is to prevent your dog from practicing the unwanted behaviors. If your dog spends time watching out windows and barking, close the shutters or shut off the room that has access to the windows. If this is not possible, get window film to blur the view.
Walk your reactive dog at times when it is unlikely that there will be other dogs around. Or walk your dog in a location where you are unlikely to see other dogs. This may mean that you drive to an alternative, quiet location. You don’t have to take your dog for a walk every day. If your dog has had a reaction, skip the walk and let him relax at home for a few days. Substitute play in the backyard or positive training at home.
Teach your dog skills that are incompatible with barking and lunging. Teach your dog to give you eye contact when walking, a hand target ( Touch), an emergency U-turn (to quickly put distance between your dog and his trigger), and Find It (scattering treats on the ground to break your dog’s focus on the trigger and relax him by sniffing for the treats).
To begin to modify the behavior you are going to change the way your dog perceives the trigger, the scary thing. You will pair the sight of the trigger with very good treats like pieces of chicken, hot dogs or cheese. Start at a distance from the trigger far enough away that your dog can see the trigger but is not reacting. As soon as your dog sees the trigger, give him one of the good treats. When he looks again, treat again. Continue to treat him every time he looks at the trigger and stop the treats as soon as the trigger is gone. Work in very short sessions, no more than about 15 minutes. You will know you are making progress when your dog looks to you for a treat when he sees a trigger.
These behavior modification steps should be taken slowly. Each dog is different and it is impossible to tell how long it will take to help your dog feel comfortable in the presence of a trigger. Remember, you are not teaching a simple skill, you are rewiring your dog’s brain to change the way it thinks. An excellent website explaining this process is CARE for Reactive Dogs, careforreactivedogs.com.
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