Maya’s barking mad probs
OK so what exactly is a reactive dog? Well ( much like a reactive human) a reactive dog is one which reacts by rote to a given situation without any thought.
Reactive dogs can display all kinds of behaviours including but not limited to: ■ Growling ■ Guarding ■ Being spooked ■ Refusing to walk on leash ■ Barking/ Howling/ Crying If the dog is at puppy stage then this behaviour can be nipped in the bud but so often it is allowed to continue because it’s ‘ cute’ to see the puppy guarding the door when the doorbell rings or yelping at passersby and other dogs and it’s ‘ really funny’ to watch him try to bite with his cute little puppy jaws when you make a move towards his bowl when he’s eating.
However give him a month or so and his behaviour won’t be so cute, a few more months or a year and it may well be downright threatening.
By this point if you try to engage him away from this behaviour he’s not going to listen.
Why should he? He sees someone walking past the house he barks – because that’s what he does. Why? Because that’s what he has always done. He has become a reactive dog.
So whether he’s a puppy, mature, elderly or rescue dog your reactive dog needs a little guidance in choosing different behaviours; behaviours which will help build his confidence and allow him to be the happy and fun companion he actually wants to be.
All that is involved here is observing your dog and when you see a behaviour you would like him to ‘ swap’ the reactive for then you can draw his attention to it and reward that new behaviour so helping him to choose it over the old pattern which is more agreeable to you and more rewarding for him.
One of the most effective ways to do this is by clicker training.
There is so much information available on this type of training if you don’t already know, but basically it works by using a small hand held clicker device ( inexpensive to buy) which makes a click noise which you use to let your dog know he has give you the preferred behaviour and whenever he offers this new behaviour only then you click and treat. The Thereasonforreason for using the clicker is that you can click more quickly than you can get the treat out so the dog knows that when he hears that click a treat is coming but when you click you must treat straightaway or the lesson is lost.
That being said I do have one amazing black Lab client ( you know who you are!) who loves the sound of the clicker so much he will present himself like a soldier to the clicker simply for the joy of the sound which, for him, is reward enough.
Here is a very simple illustration:
To make this exercise work enlist the help of a ‘ dummy guest’ so your dog gets the idea of it.
Guest rings doorbell ( only once).once) Dog barks.barks
Move to door. Dog is probably going through his reactive repertoire.
Do not open door until dog is quiet.
( Guest has been cued to wait patiently of course).
When the dog gives you a calm behaviour and sits then ask him to Sit and accompany the word with a palm- down hand signal so the dog can connect the word and the hand signal together then click once and reward ( immediately) with a tasty treat which you will have secreted about your person in readiness for this moment. Open door. Admit guest. When dog goes into reactive repertoire again ( as he surely will) guest must ignore dog at this point.
Refocus dog’s attention on you wait for desired behaviour; ask him to Sit accompanied by the hand signal then click and treat.
Guest can then interact with dog when dog is calm.
* Please don’t allow this to turn into a game for the dog though. It must remain a serious training exercise or the lesson is wasted*
Clicker training is a simple but effective tool for training all kinds of behaviours but remember once you click you must treat straightaway or the lesson is lost.
Also use especially yummy treats for this type of training to keep your dog interested.
Remember that no two dogs are the same and this example is generically written to encourage dog owners to go ahead and try some training methods for themselves.
How long a dog takes to respond to any method depends on the dog, his age, his mental and physical health and of course you as the owner, how much time and commitment you are willing to put in but in general terms it is fair to say that with patience, time, good humour and a pocketful of smelly treats a whole lot of training and improved behaviour is possible.
For more information or to book an appointment please visit my website at www.mayacaninebehaviourist.com.
Help build his confidence and allow him to be the happy, fun companion he wants to be