Training a Reactive Dog at the Animal Shelter!

Do you want to know how to fix a reactive dog? Training a reactive dog isn't just teaching them to heel. Fixing reactivity requires the heel command, but it also requires a plan for how to keep your dog under threshold while slowly exposing him or her to other dogs.
In this video Matt Covey goes to West Suburban Humane Society in Downers Grove, IL to work with one of their dogs. His name is Rennie and he is a Pit Bull mix. He is very friendly with people, but unfortunately he is reactive and aggressive when he meets other dogs. Matt spent time working with Jim, one of WSHS's incredible volunteers. Jim spends a ton of time at the shelter and is one of the many unsung heroes at WSHS.
West Suburban is one of our favorite humane societies because of how much effort they put into caring for and training their dogs. They have a large group of awesome volunteers that are willing to work extremely hard to make sure each of their dogs gets a shot at a great life. If you are interested in adopting Rennie or any other dog please check out their website: www.wshs-dg.org/
If your dog is reactive on leash you need to start by teaching them the heel command. Once they can heel properly you can start exposing them to other dogs at a far enough distance that they aren't over threshold. The goal is to prevent them from every completely losing their cool. Practice passing by the other dog while keeping yours in the heel command. If it is too hard, you may be too close. In that case, give yourself some more space and then practice heeling by the other dog again. If your dog is showing small amounts of reactivity and your are able to calm them down then you are probably doing fine. What you want to avoid is having your dog show large amounts of aggression.
As your dog becomes less and less reactive you can get closer and closer. While you are doing this think about the turns that you are making. Many reactive dogs will redirect on their handler out of frustration. When you make an about turn in front of your dog you stand a much higher chance of getting bit since they may be trying to get past you to get to the other dog. If your dog is extremely reactive then making turns away from them is generally going to be much safer until your dog calms down.
Remember that some reactive dogs are friendly with other dogs while others are extremely aggressive. The training will be similar for an aggressive dog and a reactive dog who is just excitable or frustrated, but there are definitely differences. In this video you may notice that the dog has on two collars and two leashes. This is done for an extra level of safety. If one leash or collar were to pop off or fail, the dog would still be safely under control.
If you have any questions on training please don't hesitate to reach out to us.
#dogtraining #reactivedog #leashtraining #dogtrainer

[@hollywengerski6119]

I love West Suburban and Rennie is such a hunk! He is going to crush it with Jim!

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

For sure!

[@karacovey9582]

Renny looks like he is super sweet with people! Hopefully he gets better with dogs!

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

Yeah! He seems to love all new people so the only real training focus for him is learning to be better with dogs!

[@nelsonmedrano6157]

What an interesting concept to keep going after some success.

[@KitsuneGrl]

What a gorgeous dog. Glad you could work with him.

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

He is handsome isn't he?!? We would love to see him overcome this issue and get adopted 🤞

[@plastikloser]

You can never get a dog to like dogs who doesnt. Breed and personality play a big role. You can get him to tolerate other dogs in certain situations.

[@SuburbanK9DogTraining]

Hey! The trainer in this video has been working on aggression cases since 2006. Many times the dog can learn to like other dogs. That being said, totally agree that breed, personality and genetics play a role. Some dogs that were bred from a fighting line of dogs can definitely be "unfixable" in the sense that you may never fully trust them with new dogs. Thanks for the comment!