One of the very first things we often learn about dogs is the essential nature of the daily walk. For many dogs, daily walks are something they really enjoy. For those dogs and their humans, the hours spent out exploring together are a perfect way to spend time together.
For other dogs and the humans who live with them, the daily walk can be an anxiety-inducing, tense, and stressful experience. Never able to truly relax, constantly scanning the environment. Worrying about what might be coming around the next corner to cause upset and stress.
What if I told you that you don’t have to walk your reactive dog? If walks are a permanent balancing act between exercise and apprehension, that daily walk can be causing more harm than good for both you and your dog. Especially if each time you encounter things that cause stress to the dog, even if not to a level where they react.
Without time to recover from that stress, trigger stacking can occur. The dog can react, even to something that doesn’t usually cause much reaction from them. For this reason the best idea after a reaction or an encounter that we know causes our dogs stress is to have a break from walks.
I know that goes against everything we’re told about bringing a dog into our lives, but it’s absolutely the best thing, both for the dogs and for us. Our reactive dogs still need exercise, so how do we find an alternative to walks so our reactive dogs can burn off energy and get the stimulation they require?
Secure Dog Fields
These are fully enclosed fields, some including buildings, agility equipment and other facilities, that are available for private hire. This means we can take our reactive dogs there, let them off lead for a good run around, and explore together.
Secure fencing means having the confidence to relax and let your dog enjoy themselves. They can’t escape to get into trouble anywhere, and there is no chance of coming across anyone unexpectedly.
These fields are often very popular and can require booking some time in advance. Prices that I have seen typically sit around £10 per hour, which feels like a small price for that kind of peace of mind.
One thing to watch out for, however, is the parking available. In some locations, dogs must be on lead to walk from the car park to the field. That may not be ideal for some reactive dogs if there is a chance of encountering people or animals that could trigger a reaction.
Find a secure field near you (in the UK)
Training Sessions at Home
When a reactive dog needs to recover from a stressful experience, it’s time to take a break from the regular. There isn’t even a need to leave the house to provide mental and physical exercise. Working on training sessions instead of potentially stressful walks for a reactive dog can also strengthen the canine-human bond, which is an added advantage!
Work on coaching useful cues for when you step back out into the wider world for walks again. A good well-reinforced focus cue (for example ‘Watch me,’) can be very handy for getting your dogs attention on you to turn away from a potential trigger. Equally, a cue for a quick direction change is also great. An enthusiastic ‘Let’s go!’ and change of direction can avoid a whole heap of trouble on future walks.
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| Focus is a great thing to coach in any dog |
Don’t feel you have to stick to 'useful' things. If your dog enjoys doing fun tricks, go ahead and boost their repertoire.
My dog has a whole range of things we can string together. He’ll spin one way and then the other. Drop down to the floor with his entire body and chin in contact with the ground. He’ll work out how to do a nose touch on my hand wherever I hold it. He opens cupboard doors (I did have to change where the treats lived after that one!). He’ll even help me with getting laundry out of the basket or the washing machine. We've learned many of these cues while taking breaks from walks as he is a reactive dog.
Work on some proprioception exercises, which improve the dog’s balance and body awareness. Paws up is a great example as you can vary the object the paws go on, the number of paws, front or back paws.
Enrichment sessions
Enrichment is one of the greatest things we can provide for our dogs, whether they are reactive or not. Every dog benefits from enrichment and it can be incredibly easy to set up for them.
The most commonly known enrichment for dog is food based. Many food toys and puzzles are available and homemade versions can use cardboard and paper packing materials before they go into the recycling bin. A quick internet search will throw up thousands of options to buy or try.
Other forms of enrichment include play, either in the form of new toys or interactive play sessions like a fun game of tug with their humans. Finding games that everyone enjoys are great for bond strengthening.
In hot weather, many dogs enjoy a refreshing paddle and play in a paddling pool. We can add in balls and water toys, and even throw in some suitable food items for them to go bobbing for treats. Recipes are available for dog friendly ice-lollies too, and they have the added benefit of helping to make sure the dog is getting extra hydration.
One form of enrichment that can have massive benefits for reactive dogs is free work. Sarah Fisher developed free work as part of Animal Centred Education, “an integrated approach to animal wellbeing and education.”
ACE free work involves allowing the dog to experience a range of different objects at different heights, different surfaces, and different texture. Put varying kinds of treats around the area for the dog to find and eat/lick depending on the type used – use a combination of things to smear over surfaces so the dog can lick them, and solid treats for the dog to find and enjoy. Softer choices may work better than hard, as they tend to give off more scent, meaning the dog finds them more easily.
The dog explores all of these as they wish. Don’t force them to interact with anything that they don’t seem to wish to, as this will introduce stress. Free work is a great opportunity to step back and really observe our dogs without us influencing them. With practice and learning, these free work sessions can allow us to see how our dogs move, and see any irregularities in their gait and movements.
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To find more information on ways that we can help our reactive dogs to decompress after a stressful experience, have a look at my book ‘Understanding Reactive Dogs: Why Dogs React & How to Help’. Another great book that can help in understanding how to enrich our dogs’ lives and give them the best life possible is ‘Canine Contentment – The Essential Guide’ by the lovely Charlotte Garner.
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