19/10/2022
In my 15 years of experience as a dog trainer the majority of problems I have dealt with involved issues outside the home, and “on the walk”. It seems that for many dogs, crossing that threshold between indoors and outside creates a major psychological-emotional change in them.
Why? In simple terms the reason is the level of perceptual threat increases greatly. In the home, things can feel relatively secure. Apart from visitors, and the postman, all is well! However step outside that front door and “boom” everything changes!
People, dogs, bicycles, cars…lots of potential dangers suddenly appear. Of course for many dogs the walk is not a problem, it’s perceived as a wonderful adventure. But for other dogs it creates fear and anxiety and this leads to what is called reactivity.
How do you deal with this kind of problem? Essentially you need to do three key things:
(1) Detach from the past. We only know we have a “dog problem” due to that wonderful human gift of memory. Our memory can be our greatest treasure or it can be a major cause of many of our problems. If you lost your memory about your dogs reactivity you would not get anxious and/or fearful about walking your dog! You would simply put the collar and lead on, and go for a walk.
However because we can’t create amnesia at will we must find a good alternative…and that’s “mental detachment”. In my 1-1 sessions with clients, we spend time on creating an inner space between the past and the future. It’s in this psychological space that the dog changes it’s psycho-emotional state.
(2) Expect success. First we detach from the past, then we build an expectation and a belief that the walk will be fine! We create a mental scenario where our dog behaves in accordance with our wishes. This positive expectation is vital to creating a successful outcome.
(3) Calm-assertive. Next we enter a calm-assertive state of mind and body. It’s this calm-assertive state that allows our dog to feel relaxed and at ease when out walking with us. It’s the calm-assertive state that your dog needs to feel in order for your dog to feel secure. From that security…reactivity simply disappears, without doing anything!
The “art of dog training, without dog training”…
Simon Boyd
Unleashed
