Reactivity Isn’t Forever - It’s A Training Problem You Can Fix
Reactivity is a Behavior, Not an Identity
Somewhere along the line, “reactive” became a personality type.
People talk about it like their dog’s zodiac sign — “He’s just a little reactive,” like it’s baked into his DNA forever.
It’s not.
Reactivity isn’t who your dog is. It’s a learned pattern, one that can be unlearned. Dogs aren’t born reactive. They become reactive because their environment, routines, genetics, and responses taught them to be.
If a dog barks, lunges, or explodes every time they see another dog, it’s not because they’re irreparably broken. It’s because no one has made it clear that behavior isn't appropriate.
Every time the dog rehearses that outburst, the brain gets better at it. The more it happens, the faster it happens, and the more satisfying that behavior becomes... until it’s hardwired.
And that’s why “managing it” forever doesn’t fix anything.
The Isolation Spiral
Reactivity doesn’t just change your dog’s behavior; it changes yours, too.
It starts small. You stop walking at busy times, cross the street to avoid dogs, skip the park altogether.
Pretty soon, both you and your dog are living in a bubble.
Your dog gets less exercise, less exposure, and fewer chances to learn how to cope, which makes the problem worse.
And then the story starts to feel permanent: “He’s just reactive, this is just the way he is,” but it doesn’t have to be a self-fulfilling prophecy.
The less a dog experiences the world, the harder it becomes for them to handle it.
The less they can handle it, the more you avoid it.
You can’t improve a dog’s reactions by shrinking their world.
Why ‘Just Avoid It’ Doesn’t Work
Management masquerading as training is everywhere right now.
“Stay under threshold.”
“Avoid walks.”
“Find a quiet route without other dogs.”
That might keep the peace for the moment, but it doesn’t create change. If your dog only looks calm because they never see triggers, they’re not trained.
Real progress means your dog can handle life as it is, not just life with all the hard parts removed.
Training That Changes Behavior
The fix isn’t endless redirection or another high-value treat. It’s structured, consistent work that actually teaches your dog how to exist in the world.
That means:
Clear expectations on walks
Accountability when they make the wrong choice
Exposure at a level that builds real-world stability
Learning how to appropriately interact with other dogs (not just avoiding them)
When that’s done correctly, the reactivity disappears.
The Bottom Line
Your dog isn’t a reactive dog. They’re a dog with reactive habits.
Habits can change… with the right training.
If you’re tired of stressing over every walk, stop accepting reactivity as your dog’s identity. It’s not a personality trait. It’s a solvable problem.
And once you start treating it that way, everything changes. Too many force-free trainers will have you believing that reactivity is a life sentence. With the right training and socialization, it's 100% fixable.
A Case Study
“I just never thought it was possible,” Sara told me. “I never thought Cody could get over his reactivity.” As she said this, Cody ran off leash with my dog, behaving himself nicely. Sara had worked with multiple trainers who had done the usual routine of throw treats every time a dog appears, working hard to keep him under threshold (at a huge distance), but it just never got them far. After years of struggling, she reached out to me, out of hope and sure she was just wasting more money. But within a few sessions the reactivity was gone. Then we started letting him play with other dogs and building his recall so he could be off leash. He is now a normal dog, has dog friends, and the reactivity is firmly in the past.
Reactivity is not a life sentence.