Let Focus Replace Reactivity, Pt. 1

On our social media today, I posted a video of me walking Bugatti, an 11 month old Italian Mastiff female, up to a neighbor’s fence with barking dogs. For those struggling with reactivity, pulling, and barking on the walk, such an feat would not seem possible.

I’m here to tell you that it can be, and it starts with shifting your concept of the bad behaviors.

For many dogs, the reactivity starts as an uncontrolled prey drive, a lack of clear expectations, or too much freedom on the walk (sometimes, its a combination of all three). Most people try to combat this by using tools that are meant to reduce pulling, by telling their dogs “No!”, or sometimes even by walking late at night or early in the morning when no one else is around.

But none of these really work to solve the problem of the reactivity. So the behavior continues. It becomes patterned. Soon enough, its not just prey drive or expectations that lend to the reactivity; the behavior has now become a full-on bad habit. For those of you who haven’t dealt with bad habits in the past, they are very difficult to break.

With the fact in mind that you are most likely dealing with a bad habit, addressing the reactivity must be combined with de-patterning the bad habit. Wait for Part 2 to read one of the ways we can accomplish this.