So you adopted a reactive dog…
Congrats on your new best friend… now what?!
Congratulations on your new addition - your new pup is going to bring you so much love, happiness, and probably a lot of stress!
When I was looking to bring a dog into my life, I was daydreaming of long relaxing walks while sipping Starbucks on a sunny autumn day follow by cuddles on the couch. I wasn't expecting to have to deal with any behaviour issues or the stress that would come with that. I was definitely very naive, and when I picked up Roxie from the shelter 2 days after seeing her picture online I was definitely in over my head. I was living Downtown Toronto with minimal green space, tight sidewalks, and no car. I didn't think any of that mattered because all I would need to do was take her for a walk on a leash a couple times a day!
The first couple weeks were such a honeymoon phase, and Roxie was in shell-shock after coming from rural northern Manitoba reserve to downtown Toronto. I remember the first walk I took her on I was sweating like crazy because she would pull me so hard and it was so busy down there I had to keep her in close. A few minutes into the walk she exploded at another dog across the street - it was scary, stressful, and embarrassing. I didn't think much about it because the other dog had barked at her first so I figured it was ‘fair’ for her to bark back… I was however worried about the pulling - she was 55lbs and I felt like I had no control, I couldn't imagine what would happen if the leash fell out of my hand and she ran into the busy downtown streets!
So I took to my computer and typed in ‘dog training’ on youtube. I spent hours and hours watching Zak George Videos… I even purchased his ‘book’, needless to say, it was very unhelpful.
I continued to do the complete opposite of what I would advise anyone now… I attempted to ‘socialize’ her through on leash greetings and dog parks. As you can imagine, it continued to get worse until about 5 months in when we finally reached out to a more ‘balanced’ trainer. From there, we worked with a few different trainers (who all incorporate a variety of helpful techniques).
Over the next few months we saw significant progress, we could easy pass by other dogs on the tight Toronto sidewalks, her obedience improved quickly, and she was so much more engaged with us.
Fast forward a year, I met three-legged Prescott and fell in love. He had been in foster care for 1.5 years, and had been returned 3 times. He had a bite history, a traumatic past, and I decided I needed to adopt him. With my experience training Roxie, I figured training Prescott would be no problem! Boy, was I wrong. Prescott is so different than Roxie in every way, and things he struggled with were the total opposite of what Roxie struggled with. Once again, I felt lost, stressed, and confused. Why wasn’t the training approach I used with Roxie working with Prescott?
We worked with a few trainers, I attended seminars, educated myself even more and over time we saw success again. I remember taking him to a park near my place on a long line and having a terrible training session with him, thinking he would never be able to be off leash here. He now goes to that park every day off leash and has never had an issue. His recall is near perfect and he is very easy to live with day to day, although he will always struggle with some aggression issues, its very manageable.
Looking back, its crazy to think how stressed out and anxious I was about this. I would have to psyche myself up for our walks, and I was super anxious heading out the door. Every time she had a reaction I felt like a failure. I was so embarrassed and felt totally overwhelmed.
Throughout this the biggest thing I learned is that training in not linear, and training will not always give you this perfect dream dog in your head. You have to accept your dog for who they are adjust your expectations. Some dogs will always be prone to a certain level of reactivity and aggression in some situations. You cant change who your dog is, but you can work with your dog to have a more manageable and enjoyable life together.
The moral of the story is that everything is going to be okay! If you are reading this right now, you are on the right track. With the help of a good trainer, you will be seeing results in very little time, and eventually you will look back and realize this stressful period was so small in comparison to the years you will spend with your pup enjoying life together. Remember, behaviour issues are just one small part of who your pup is, don't forget to appreciate all the amazing qualities you love about your dog instead of stressing about the few issues you are currently working through.
You’ve got this!!!