Why A Reactive Dog Might Look Like They're Having Fun!

"I don't want to punish my dog but see no other way to stop them lunging and barking."

We spend a lot of time worrying about how we can stop our dogs doing something unhelpful, don't we? It's in our nature you see.

We are 'designed' to move away from any type of discomfort and towards any kind of pleasure, dopamine helps.

We also don't want to put anyone out, to get people barked at or to be judged by strangers. This is why the quick fix dog trainers are so popular.

And why we are seeing dogs in prong collars instead of taking the time to understand them.

Quick fixing all the way. But dogs are living beings. Their feelings matter. Their lives matter.

The comfort of their neck matters!

They are not an enigma, truly not. Dogs are not such a mystery that we have to run along to someone and their daft theory on wolf packs, with a remote in one hand and a prong in the other.

Dogs, like humans, just want to be safe, to be seen and to enjoy life (at least once in a while).

And they like us deserve that, wouldn't you say?

Let's reframe that a little bit, shall we?

Your dog has something going on inside them which causes overreaction to certain things. Whatever is going on inside them needs to be looked at first.

Reactive dog behaviour is directly related to their nervous system, including their brain.

When it's initially shown it's all out fear. When it's practised it can become habitual and rewarding.

Oh believe me the fear is still there, right at the centre of everything. Underneath the layers and layers of coping strategies.

"The fear is still there, right at the centre of everything—underneath the layers and layers of coping strategies."

Coping strategies that can become a release in themselves. Even feel pretty good to your dog.

I have a Chihuahua who is reactive, scared and confident. Meet Foxy Gutteridge.

She's scared of new things without a doubt. But she also loves chasing them off (smiling all over her face).

Because of course it works, they leave. 

It creates a cascade of chemical release for her. An intrinsic reward.

Saying that. She's delicate, timid, sweet, vulnerable, bold, has lots of opinions and can be a bit of a pain in the arse.

Aren't we all? Can't we all?

I guess what I'm trying to say here is that even when our dogs look bold, brave and like they are making a choice to be reactive, we are just looking at a very well-formed layer of an onion.

A coping strategy.

And to really stop the behaviour we need to get to the core of it and help them feel safe. The centre point, where it all started.

Right at the centre of the onion, that's where we put the work in. Directly at their ability to cope, to feel safe and to stay calm.

Why Surface-Level Training Doesn't Work

Because if we did just work on the coping strategies, the dog will just keep creating more strategies right?

"If we work on the safeness, the strategies become redundant."

But if we work on the safeness, the strategies become redundant. And that's what we do in my books.

The real work isn't stopping the barking, it's helping your dog's nervous system feel safe enough that they don't need to bark in the first place.

Because if we did just work on the coping strategies, the dog will just keep creating more strategies right? But if we work on the safeness, the strategies become redundant. 

And that's what we do in my books and community.

Understanding why reactive dogs bark and lunge is just the beginning. Finding support while you do the deeper work makes all the difference.

Join Sally's community on Skool, a compassionate space where you'll find practical advice and encouragement from fellow guardians who understand exactly what you're dealing with.