As a dog parent, many of us have had encounters with leash reactivity whether our own dog was the culprit, or a neighbourhood dog. Leash reactivity manifests itself in undesirable behaviours that causes stress on both ends of the leash. We have helped countless clients find resolution & enjoy walks with their dog again, and are excited to share our most valuable tips and tricks in this post. This blog post will help you not only find better understanding for leash reactivity, but feel more equipped with management and training techniques you can start at home today with your dog. Let's begin by reviewing the most common types of leash reactivity : Frustration Based Your dog REALLY wants access to the other dog or person, and tries their best to get to them. This may display as whining, overexcitability, frantic barking and pulling etc. Their body language will be more loose, bouncy and excitable compared to ... Fear Based Your dog feels unsure of another dog, and since they are confined on leash they are resorting to fight or flight mode. They may display different attempts to create space between themselves and the trigger (barking, lunging, growling, snapping, freezing or fleeing) Their body language will be more tense, perhaps their hackles will be raised and their eyes may be fixating or avoidant. You my also see hyper scanning of the environment, as they are worried a trigger may appear. Knowing which type of leash reactivity your dog is struggling with is crucial in choosing your training approach. For frustration based reactivity, your training focus may be to teach alternatively calm behaviours to access that resource they are desperately trying to approach. An example of this would be teaching a default sit and "Go Say Hi" cue. For fear based reactivity, we need to FIRST change the negative perspective your dog has of the trigger to a positive one (or at least neutral). Either way, we emphasize teaching what we would like our dog to do INSTEAD so we can replace those undesirable reactions with something that works for both you and your dog. How do we do this? We are glad you asked. Let's dive in. 1. It's All in the Mechanics - Leash Skills & Equipment Let's begin by reviewing leash skills and equipment. We recommend clients consider a Y-Shaped, front clip harness. This is because if your dog lunges, their chest power is mitigated and the harness turns them towards you, making it much easier to guide them away from triggers. The Y-Shape allows for minimal pressure on their joints. You may be surprised to hear that in regards to leash tips, we actually recommend a longer than standard leash length (we love an 8ft leash!). The justification here is that shorter leash and tighter tension can actually cause your dog to be more on edge and ready to react. Be mindful of your own body tension to as your dog can feel it on the other end of the leash, and it may become a predictor of the trigger coming. ie. 'my human tensed up the leash - there must be a dog coming!' Practicing general loose leash skills (eye contact, walk with me, focus around distractions) is always a useful to incorporate when working through leash reactivity. Longer leashes allow for more movement and decompression time, which is a benefit for leash reactive dogs who may feel confined and vulnerable on leash. * Looking for a new harness? We highly recommend the Freedom Harness, or Ruffwear Front Range Harness Ruff Wear Harness : https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B082FNBTBW/ref=cm_sw_r_as_gl_api_gl_i_877GW8852WXQS6AFYYHQ?linkCode=ml1&tag=gabrielle00a-20 2. Counter Conditioning, Decompression, Repeat ! DISTANCE is fundamental in working through leash reactivity. To have success, we need to find a distance your dog can view the trigger but remain below threshold (still calm, able to take food and respond to you). We decrease the distance gradually as we progress. A key component for resolving leash reactivity is counter conditioning, a science based approach on changing the perspective of a trigger to positive by repeatedly pairing its presence with something awesome. For example, if you were afraid of spiders, but each time you saw one you were given your favourite dessert, overtime the spiders would instead become a predictor of something delicious. When practicing this with our dog, timing is important. We want them to see the trigger first, then receive the awesome thing. A clicker is a useful tool in being able to mark exactly when they see their trigger, followed by reinforcement. This allows our dog to process the trigger & avoids mistakenly reversing the association (cookie, uh oh that means a dog is coming!). With consistency, we can teach our dogs to look at us in anticipation for their reward when they see their trigger. We recommend using high value food reserved for encountering triggers on walks, pea-sized and pre loaded into a special compartment in your treat pouch so you are well equipped. Decompression time is also important to factor in when working with a reactive dog. Leash reactivity is often practiced routinely, which makes the habit harder to break and may lead to a constant state of arousal & stress for your dog. To reset them back to baseline, we recommend opportunities for long line sniff walks in a quiet green space. Sniff Spot is a great resource for solo green space access, especially for city dwellers. Additionally, we want to emphasize that if your dog is practicing reactive behaviour every walk (scanning the environment, barking & lunging, frantically sniffing or barely sniffing, or simply not engaging in normal dog behaviours), it is valid to consider a hiatus on walks & find other outlets that are more suitable. Walks should not be consistently stressful for both ends of the leash!
Engage Disengage Game PDF here for a visual on how to use it with your dog.
Demonstration video with Buckeye
*High value treat ideas : shredded chicken, hot dogs, pepperettes, chicken morsels, freeze dried salmon, beef jerky (think smelly and irresistable!)
3. The Importance of Mental Enrichment
A mentally stimulated dog is a happy dog! Mental enrichment offers many benefits for our dogs, such as boredom relief, confidence building, improves problem solving ability, and relieves stress and anxiety. When our dog is mentally enriched, they are in a better place to absorb training sessions and are in a more calm head space. We are huge advocates for providing these outlets for dogs, especially city dogs who face intense & potentially stressful stimuli on a daily basis. Here are some examples of ways to incorporate this into your dog's life : nosework, hide and seek with toys or treats, food puzzles, snuffle mats/balls, food dispensing toys, flirt pole, lick mats, frozen bowls or Kongs, sandbox digging. Get creative and test different options to see what your dog benefits from the most.
DIY Mental Enrichment for Dogs Ideas :
https://www.pinterest.ca/rompingdogs/diy-dog-enrichment/
Amazon Enrichment Products :
Flirt Pole https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B09R7XPPJ2/ref=cm_sw_r_as_gl_api_gl_i_SXYP2G6T1FGKF6PZ4GR8?linkCode=ml1&tag=gabrielle00a-20
Kong Wobbler
https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B004NSVIRY/ref=cm_sw_r_as_gl_api_gl_i_JDJ97D4HW0FV6CN6PSVB?linkCode=ml1&tag=gabrielle00a-20
Snuffle Mat
https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B09QYH8887/ref=cm_sw_r_as_gl_api_gl_i_VE51EA7MX64MA60V3HA2?linkCode=ml1&tag=gabrielle00a-20
Thank you for reading! We hope you found this blog post interesting & helpful. If you are seeking professional guidance on how to implement these training techniques & tips in real life, don't hesitate to contact us for private training sessions. We offer a Walk & Train package which specializes in leash reactivity and finding resolution for dogs and their humans.
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