Dealing with a Highly Reactive Dog

A friend of mine who has a highly reactive dog has had a bad experience recently regarding going out to a dog event recently. I admire her determination on not giving up on her dog. The dog's name is Bella, by the way.

Bella is owner aggressive and can snap when introduced in a social environment. But her owner never gave up on her. They tried correcting the behavior, attending obedience classes and providing her doggy needs like exercise, training and discipline, but it wasn't enough. But they still didn't give up on her.

Fortunately for them, they were able to find out what made Bella "tick". They entered her in "Highly Reactive" Agility training and Bella was doing well at it. Some of her tendencies were lessened. So for those who have highly reactive dogs, don't give up.

 

So, uh, I was skimming titles and I thought this said "Dealing with a Highly RADIOACTIVE Dog" at first, lol!

I've never heard of a class specifically like that. I'm glad it helped your friend's dog and lessened some of the issues. I wonder how many training schools offer something specifically for this?

 

I'm not sure what the term highly reactive means, haopee. Does it mean this dog is overly sensitive to stimuli? It's a new term to me.

After watching so many Dog Whisperer episodes, I've come to the conclusion that 99.9% of dog problems can be fixed. The problem is finding which solution will work with your dog. It is never a one size fits all solution. I know what your friends must have gone through because I have now done it twice with dogs. It takes perseverance and being able to say one thing has failed but being willing to try another.

I am so happy that they have found something that works! Your friend must be so happy.

 

I'm not familiar with this term either but I'm pretty sure my sweet Homer is highly reactive . I'd never give up on him, he is my little treasure I love him even when he is annoying

 

LOL.

Not a lot of schools, that's for sure.

It's something like that, Mel. The dog can be very sensitive and highly agitated when presented with different kinds of uncontrollable environments such as a social gathering, meeting a new dog or an old acquaintance. It can root from anything. Often times, they are nice but there are times that they will snap or bark excessively when they haven't done something like that in the past.

The Dog Whisperer was an eye opener for me and one thing I've learned from it is that no one solution will work for all dogs.

I am also glad you've overcome that obstacle in your life too, Mel.

 

Haopee, thanks for the explanation. I had never heard of the term. Is the dog terribly frightened or aggressive in these new, strange situations? Or, is it more that she is unpredictable? I would think the agility training would burn off a lot of excess energy, which always makes for a more calm dog.

Yes, I have learned from the Dog Whisperer. Now, if I could only apply these lessons to my own life.

 

Our terrier was somewhat like this, she would get really excited when we took her for a walk and would bolt towards people and/or moving vehicles. The later resulted in her getting hit by a truck when she was a puppy (she survived, but got knocked around pretty bad by it). Usually what would help calm her down was if the person sat down on the floor and extended their hand and sat still and just let her sniff around. Towering over her and staring at her would just make her agitated.

 

That dog seems similar to my dog. He does much better in situations where he has a task to complete. Glad things are goin gwell for bella.