Why Are So Many Dogs Reactive?
Lately I’ve been thinking that there are SO many reactive dogs. It seems the number of reactive dogs just grows and grows every year. I’ve asked around, and I’m not the only trainer to notice this disturbing trend. And it got me wondering… why? Why do we have so many reactive dogs now? Why is this problem worse than ever?
Young puppies MUST be socialized. If not, they're at significantly higher risk of reactivity.
INADEQUATE SOCIALIZATION
Put simply, people are no longer socializing puppies. At all. And as a trainer, that is terrifying. It’s why we trainers see so many anxious, aggressive, and reactive dogs. Utter lack of socialization.
The primary socialization period is between 3-12 weeks, so roughly half of that time the breeder will have the puppy, and the other half of the time the owner will. And frankly, both are dropping the ball.
I believe it’s a mix of ignorance on the owner and breeder’s part and vets spreading bad information to new puppy owners. Vets have puppy owners terrified of doing anything at all with their puppy for fear of instant parvo death, and as a result, puppies are living in isolation when they should be getting out and exploring the world we expect them to live in.
Puppy owners tend to sit idly by as puppyhood and the critical socialization period pass by, and then spring into action far too late in adolescence, usually once problems have already begun. Owners and breeders alike need to be doing their homework and doing the right thing for the puppy or puppies in their care. This goes for shelters and rescue groups, too.
Dogs need to run free, get plenty of exercise, and do dog things. They shouldn't be spending day after day cooped up in a crate or small backyard.
BREEDING DOGS OF UNSOUND TEMPERAMENT
Dogs who are reactive should NOT be bred. Period. They are more likely to have anxious/reactive/defensive puppies who will grow up to have the same behavior struggles. This is where ethical breeding and smart puppy buying comes into play. If you’re buying from a breeder, ask questions. Are the parents reactive or were they ever? Any dog in the house reactive? How have the puppies been socialized? To what? How many new dogs have they met or seen?
NOT MEETING THE NEEDS OF OUR DOGS
Most dogs are not getting their needs met. We force dogs to spend the day in isolation in a crate for 8-12 hours a day. If they're lucky they get a leashed walk around the block.
They don't get enough exercise, don't get enough to do, don't get enough play, don't get healthy food, and don't get enough social time with new people and dogs. They live wholly unfulfilled lives without ever truly getting their needs met. They are not infants or goldfish. They don't want to spend their lives being coddled and pampered or living in confinement. They want to do dog things: run, play, roll in grass, meet new people and dog friends. They want to do what they were bred to do: chase, herd, retrieve, guard, etc.
Don't get a working-line dog if what you actually want is a pet.
NOT UNDERSTANDING YOUR DOG’S BREED AND LINEAGE
Or getting working-line dogs as pets. Do not get a Great Pyrenees or an Anatolian from working stock to be a pet in your suburban home. They are bred to be defensive and chase away predators, and they WILL bark at other dogs.
Don't get a working-stock border collie or cattle dog and keep them cooped up all day and expect them to not be frustrated and barky. They are bred to be triggered by and intensely react to movement and are likely to be reactive.
Don't get a German shepherd from PSA lines to be a backyard pet dog. Again, they are bred to be defensive and vigilant and to react defensively to movement.
Choose your breed and your breeder wisely. Working dogs are bred to work - and sometimes that job entails being reactive, which is perfect for a guard dog - less perfect for a pet dog.
Teaching good manners and behavior early on pays off in spades down the line. Dogs should be able to handle being told no and not always getting their way.
NOT TRAINING PROPERLY
I see this in several ways: owners who don't train at all (or try to train themselves by watching social media videos) and owners who do train but are so overly permissive that little to no training is actually happening.
So many owners are petrified of traumatizing their dog by setting boundaries, by saying no, by not being positive enough, that they create dogs who are spoiled and feel entitled to do whatever they want, whenever they want.
A classic example of this is a Golden retriever I once worked with. I’ll call him Ernie for the sake of this story. Even as a puppy, Ernie was quite pushy and bossy. He called all the shots. He wanted to go sniff that tree? He’d just drag his mom over. He wanted to go say hi to that dog or that person? He’d drag his mom over. Everything he wanted, he got. (Except for exercise and training and enrichment.)
Ernie’s mom would never tell him no. She’d allow him to pull her around to wherever he wanted to go. It was cute! He was just so happy and loved everyone!
The occasional times when Ernie wasn’t allowed to go greet someone, like in the middle of class, he would just bark and lunge explosively (in frustration). And even then, instead of telling Ernie to knock it off, his mom would THEN ALLOW HIM TO GO SAY HI! This blatant tantrum-throwing was massively rewarded, and his reactivity continued to grow until it got to the point they could barely walk him or make it through class because as soon as he saw a person or dog he would go ballistic, knowing it usually worked to get him a greeting.
I wish this story had a happy ending, but truthfully I don’t know. Ernie’s mom stopped training with me, frustrated that I kept explaining she would need to set boundaries and stop allowing Ernie to do whatever he wanted. And sadly, I see this scenario, or a variation of it, play out pretty regularly. Dogs need boundaries. They need rules. They need training. These things help them live successfully in our world, and when they can’t live successfully in our world they end up in shelters.
It’s our responsibility to do right by our dogs: to socialize them, train them, meet their needs, and if we can’t - it’s our dogs who pay the price.