Sharing your experience

Notable in our Welcome Message is the importance of engaging in a community to enhance and solidify our lessons. Feel free to share your observations and experiences in any way you like. If you are like me and sometimes have trouble getting started writing a post, here are some questions to answers that would be interesting to hear your answers.

1. Tell us about what you observed about your dog’s physical response in stressful situations and how this insight influences your approach to calming your dog?
2. Can you share a recent instance where you misunderstood your dog's signals? How did you resolve the miscommunication, or did you?
3. Reflecting on this challenge, can you identify a pattern in the triggers that lead your dog down the Red Pathway? What steps have you considered to modify these triggers?

My name is Anne, I am not sure if this is an appropriate post but here it goes, if not I am sure someone will let me know. I have a 4 yr old standard poodle. She is a very reactive dog to multiple triggers. I have seen Sparky initially for Gracie's issues which has helped but we continue to struggle. One example of her reactivity to seeing other dogs is she pulls, barks and whines and sometimes growls upon seeing the other dogs or (animals). When I see this I turn around and go in the opposite direction, if able. At times I am not able to do this because another dog may be approaching from a different direction. In which case I ask Gracie to sit, tell her that it is ok, she is safe and try to refocus her attention on me by feeding her treats. My success with this is limited, I must try to keep myself between her and the other dogs. There doesn't seem to be a consistent trigger, dog on leash?, different colored dogs? Small or large dogs? Etc….I could go on at length about her multiple issues but this is a good start. Any insight or advice would be welcome.

Hello Anne,

Firstly, thank you for sharing your experience; this is exactly the kind of post that enriches our community. It’s clear that you’re committed to supporting Gracie through her challenges, and your detailed observation of her reactions is a crucial step in understanding her behaviour.

Reflecting on your description, it seems you’re tackling this situation with great thoughtfulness. You mentioned that turning away and refocusing Gracie's attention sometimes helps, but not always. This variability in success can indeed be puzzling and might hint at deeper, underlying triggers/issues.

In the workshop and lessons on Day One we discussed Sensory Inputs the the lower-brain uses to determine if there is a threat, yes? This is where you should begin to explore Gracie's reaction. You mentioned that you've started to notice that Gracie's reactions may not be consistent across different situations. This observation is particularly insightful and applicable to the teachings. Let’s delve deeper into this:

Identify All Sensory Triggers: Beyond the visual presence of other dogs, consider what other senses might be affecting Gracie. Could there be specific sounds, like the jingle of dog collars, or environmental smells that trigger her anxiety? Sometimes what they hear or smell could be just as influential as what they see.

Questions for Further Reflection
Reflect on Patterns: While it might seem random, there might be patterns that are not immediately obvious. Could the size, colour, or type of the other dogs play a role? Or perhaps it’s related to the environment itself — are there more reactions in crowded, noisy places, or in quiet, secluded areas?

Document and Analyze: Try to keep a detailed journal of Gracie’s reactions for a week or two. Note down everything about the situation: the time of day, location, type and number of dogs nearby, sounds, and even weather conditions. This detailed logging could help you discern patterns that were not apparent before.

Constructive Practices

Training Focus: When you’re unable to turn away from an approaching dog, and you ask Gracie to sit and focus on you, consider gradually increasing the duration of her focus on you before giving treats. This might help in strengthening her impulse control. Kathie has a method she may mention here to Distract, Diffuse and Refocus.

Safety and Positive Associations: Pairing high-value treats to a dog in the Red Pathway is fraught with challenges. It may distract but it can also reward, thus the importance of the Diffuse state - bring the dog from Red to the Green Pathway. As we continue on with our challenges, especially Day Two, you will learn other methods and supports to be able to do this more easily.

Engaging with Gracie and Empathetic Connections: It’s crucial that Gracie feels supported and understood throughout her recovery process. Your calmness, reassurance, and consistent response are key. How do you feel during these encounters? We will focus on 'you' in the Day Two Challenge. Reflecting on your own reactions might also provide insights into how she perceives these interactions.

Anne, your proactive approach and willingness to understand and adapt to Gracie’s needs are commendable. I encourage you to use these reflections and observations as a way to further customize your interventions with her. Let’s continue this conversation—what have you noticed about her reactions in different environments? Any observations would be invaluable.

Looking forward to hearing more from you.

Reflecting on the challenges Pico faces, it’s evident that the door and outside noises really seem to bother him. When he's feeling stressed during these moments, he isn't too keen on being touched, which is understandable. To help shift his focus from the door, I like to engage him with toys or treat-filled puzzles, which seem to catch his interest. Since he's only here a few times a year, establishing a consistent routine for desensitization can be tricky, but we make the most of our time together to ensure he feels as comfortable and loved as possible.

Jeanne it is great to have these insights, excellent. As a transient dog in your care, you are correct in establishing positive experiences that are sensory in nature such as taste. If you spoke to him in a soft voice, while he was enjoying it, or play an audio book, this will enhance his positive experience. If he hears something, he would have signals of hearing, like tipping his head, or he may just quickly lift his head up. If he can see you, you too can pretend to listen, and say "yes, I hear that, and its okay". Then refocus him on a toy. Something like that. You are doing great. Nice work.

Leigh posted: I found today’s lesson very instructive. I’m curious about scents that could potentially signal harm for the dog - we have a lot of coyotes in our neighborhood, and they frequent our yard on and off (it seems to come in waves). Our small doodle (Cheddar) can often smell them and is on high alert (understandably so). I know that I am generally supposed to project an aura of being calm and in control. If I suspect he smells a coyote do I go through the same exercise described in the lesson? Is there any difference if the scent is thought to be a potentially harmful threat? We also frequently hear them howling right outside our house - I assume the correct action here is to just follow the protocol for naming the sound, as outlined in today’s lesson…

Leigh: What a great question!!! Yes even in the case of coyotes you are Cheddar's protector outside. Smell the air and let her know "you got her" by vocalising calmly. Incorporating the "Leave it" cue stated "gently" here would be good too. I am not sure if Jonah taught you Leave it - or Something Better - we use the latter if Leave-it is stated harshly. We don't command, but ask. Either phrase, Leave-it or Somthing-better, taught as a request if good. Then, I would refocus her elsewhere. If you do see a coyote of course you do everything you can to save your dog. As for hearing, yes, show her you are hearing it too and that you've got her and not to worry, then re-focus her with a positive experience she's done in the past, like a licky mat. Does that answer your question? If not, please just let me know. :)

It does, thank you!

Hi everyone,
Lovely to see you in the community, and your questions and insights of your dogs is so good. I am looking forward to this journey with you all.

Here's the Distract, Diffuse, and Refocus strategy.

We can use this strategy in many different contexts and situations to help our dog manage their emotions and arousal level. The concept is this.

Distract
We suggest alternative things to do.
We give our dog an alternative to look at, listen to, smell, or move to. This interrupts the attention on what they were focusing on. It also helps interrupt the escalation of the mind.

Diffuse
We talk our dog through the alternative we have guided them to or they have chosen depending on their skills at the time. This helps them become interested in this alternative. It also takes their mind off what they were focusing on and thinking about, which diffuses the escalation of that particular emotion.

Refocus
As our dog becomes interested in the alternative, they refocus their attention, and therefore their mind. This stops them continuing to think about what caused the escalation in the first place. It also takes the emphasis off it, so what our dog was initially focusing on and finding problematic it is not so important.

Supporting this strategy is the following;
Using language
To teach our dog the names of things, the movements they do, what you do, where you are. Putting this into context gives them understanding which you can use to suggest alternatives to that original focus. Our dog may not know what options are available to start with, so once language is in place, we can use conversations to suggest things to our dog.

Being in front of behaviour rather than behind
If you are behind, your dog has already focused on something and is less capable of listening and moving their focus away, making it more difficult to get their attention or distract them. We need to be in front, and anticipate what our dog is going to focus on, or be ready to guide them as they start to over focus on something that is not good. However, being over vigilant in this will have a detrimental effect, so approach it in an easy going manner.

Let me know if you have any questions, and please do tell us how you get on if you use this.

I wonder if the Distract, Diffuse, and Refocus strategy would be the right thing to do in this case. My friend, who is also a pet sitter, has three sweet dogs: two rescued Shih-Tzus and a Golden Retriever. One of the Shih-Tzus, Miss Charlotte, is truly endearing, but she tends to chase and bark non-stop and at any new dog that enters the house for the first 24 hours. This was also the case when my friend spent a week at my place while I had a few clients' dogs over. What should we do?

I think I would like to know more about the reasons behind why Miss Charlotte does what she does first, as this will inform how we approach a strategy and tailor it to her.

I misunderstand my dog's signals and the combination of them everyday, every walk. He is predictably dog reactive so we avoid every dog at this point (except for two of his best friends). His reactions consists of lunging, snarling, barking, and the cherry on top. Whimpering. He whimpers as the other dog is moving away or in extreme instances, as I am dragging him for everyone's safety. Note: we don't let strange dogs get close anymore.

I do understand some of his reactions and why they occur. A dog that advances too quickly doesn't allow Copper to learn who this individual is. He is a scent hound and smells are his life. The whimpering is probably because he misses fellow canine interaction. Unfortunately his criteria for friend narrows down candidates, and pretty much requires me to interview the owners regarding their dog's behavior and physical traits.

Male? X
unfixed? XX
Larger than Copper? X
Golden retriever XXX (Except Sunny. Copper loved sunny.)
Female? ✓
Calm? ✓
Generally submissive ✓

James, I just wanted to express my support. You are not alone as a fellow dog owner of a very reactive dog to a multitude of triggers, I feel your frustration! Be kind to yourself, it takes practice to read the signals. I often don't see the signals until too late or in reflection. Progress is not linear.

Hi James: Thanks for sharing about Copper. One thing you can do is to use your phone to video tape Copper and use the slo-mo feature. Perhaps L. could video tape it when you are working with him??? When I was learning signals the slo-mo was invaluable. For you and the entire community, I want to share a playlist from our client library to help you with signals. This is Blue - a reactive german shepherd and Blue was learning to 'stand-down' when another dog is around. I am sharing this not as a 'how-to' because there was a lot of work, weeks really, of laying down a foundation. I am sharing because it is a good study subject of the red-pathway and the signals being shown. I found Blue to be a very good signal-giver. Also, James, some of us will have an easier time seeing signals than others just because of cognitive differences and strengths. Just like some are better than math than others. https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9MMJaFo-5ys2_5cYDs7Zj5neR11GDnOK&si=drMont1EgU75TLmB

Epic failure on my part to advocate for Gracie. Went for our normal evening walk when my husband gets home from work. Right off the bat just outside the driveway Gracie sees a neighborhood dog about 1/2 block away. No where to turn as there is construction and a dead end road. We walk behind a building and waited for the other dog to pass. Once gone we venture out again. Her nose is done , sniffing and pulling on leash to smell the trail of the other dog. Distract, diffuse and reficus, etc…. not very effective. Turn the corner, she sees another dog walker ahead, we change directions again. Gracie is still on alert but seems a little better. Not 2 minutes later she spots a cat and totally loses it. At this point we have to practically drag her away as quickly as possible. As we move her away from the other dog and cat, another dog comes rushing out to the edge of his fenced yard barking at us. We continue past as fast and as best we can. Turn in another direction as I spot another dog walker further up 2 blocks away. At this point Gracie is way beyond threshold, her head is on a swivel and she is hyper vigilant, a robin, a leaf anything that moves she gets worse. We have decided there is no use proceeding any where as stopping, reassuring etc… won't work. She sees a couple people 3 blocks away and continues to escalate. A tough lesson learned. Once she has reached threshold and not had a chance to come back to baseline, her hypervigilance, agitation will only get worse. But not always possible to find a safe place to retreat. Not sure what anyone thinks of a set blinders like a horse but in that recent situation it would have helped to alleviate some anxiety until we could get her home. We totally missed all the subtle signals and neglected to do what was best for her, to go home and wait until the streets cleared.

Hi Anne: Although this sounds like a really rough experience you took a lot of good lessons from it. You recognized that Gracie’s reactions (hypervigilance, agitation) correlate with being over aroused, which is the Red Pathway and bottom-up, meaning instinctual. Your empathy is commendable with understanding Gracie would have no control here as her brain only perceived threats. Yes, Gracie does need a planned route at less busy times to minimize encounters until she has more positive experiences and other coping strategies to draw upon. Day 2's lesson and challenge will be very valuable to help further on this - it will be published this Saturday at 9 a.m EST. Big hugs to you and scratches for Gracie.

Thanks everyone! and Sparky for sharing the videos. A recording/review of Copper is a great idea. Going to put this into practice and analyze them.

Thank you for sharing, I have been though all of these experiences and know how impossible and hard it feels in the moment. As Sparky puts it so well: it is always a lesson that allows us to learn more and move forward with more knowledge. Love the videos as well, great resource.