The Commonsense Dog

People are sometimes confused when I say this, but reactivity is a trained behavior. Through the best intentions, we often create reactivity in our dogs by overwhelming them in an attempt to socialize.

Most dogs with reactivity didn’t start out that way. It is a behavior that grew over time, and unfortunately, the misconceptions about socialization are usually to blame for the development of reactivity and even aggression.

Each of our dogs has his/her own personality. Some are social butterflies and others are not. The first step to socialization is understanding what personality type we are dealing with. If I am training a social butterfly, I can set up socialization exercises that allow them to be social, but also discipline and advocate for them. By doing so, I can bring out the best in a social dog and keep them social.

If I’m dealing with a much more reserved dog, I won’t set things up in such a way that I expect the dog to be social. I will set things up in such a way that the dog can observe social behavior and be part of social energy without having any pressure put on them. Reactivity and, sometimes, aggression are often created when we overwhelm our dogs.

Let me give you an example.

A few years ago, I witnessed an incident and the image has been burned in my memory. A young German Shepherd puppy (Maybe 5 or 6 months old) was at the park with its owners. The dog had been doing well with other dogs and people all day, playing, accepting pets, and cuddling. People would call the puppy very social. But as the day went on, the constant pressure from passing strangers and dogs entering the puppy’s space made the puppy anxious. It was too much stimulation over too long a period of time. Rather than advocating for the puppy and giving it space, the owners allowed the strange people and dogs to continue to pressure him.

Toward the end of the day, the puppy growled and snapped at a child riding by on a scooter. This response was not aggression. It was an overwhelmed dog begging for space. When the owners saw the dog snap, they grabbed the puppy, held its mouth closed, and asked the child on the scooter to come back and pet the puppy so the dog could learn to be more social. In that very instance, the owners created reactivity toward children, and possibly aggression.

I don’t write this to point fingers at owners or make people feel ashamed. I write this to raise awareness about the advice about socialization that is out there. I have read online articles and heard trainers recommend the exact methods that these folks used, and it boggles my mind.

When it comes to socialization, we need to ask some very valuable questions.

Am I in complete control of the outcome of this socialization exercise?

Am I in a position to advocate for my dog and all other parties involved?

Have I set the exercise up to fit the level my dog is at (social or shy)?

Socialization should always be quality over quantity. If you want to socialize your dog, set up exercises with small groups of people or dogs you know in an environment you can control (public settings are much harder to control than private), advocate for your dog by creating space when necessary, and let your dog bloom in their own time. With these simple steps you can hopefully avoid reactivity and aggression in the future.

Happy training!

Stephanie Vichinsky is the owner/head trainer of Method K9 in Post Falls.