Cali was a 10.5 year old spayed female Labrador mix. At approximately 8 years old, Cali was attacked by an off leash dog during a walk and needed extensive medical care as a result. Two years later, Cali was attacked again at a dog park which sent her back to the emergency vet. Between the two incidents, Cali became proactively defensive around dogs and bit a family member while on a walk. The family member was trying to get Cali away from other dogs. At this point I was called in to help the family be able to safely resume walks and try to get Cali over her fear of other dogs.
Although sometimes referred to as aggression, reactivity is a term dog trainers use to refer to the explosive behavior display that many dogs perform on leash when they see another dog. Reactivity often stems from fear or bad experiences, and Cali was a classic example of that. Our training sessions began by utilizing a stuffed dog we call Rufus set several houses away from Cali’s home. At first we just wanted to pair the sight of Rufus at a safe distance with Cali receiving food (at this distance, most dogs don’t realize that Rufus is not real).
Initially Cali had explosive reactions every time Rufus was in view, but these became less and less pronounced as we progressed. Once Cali had graduated through all the phases of desensitization of Rufus, and her family members were all relatively confident with their roles in the process, we progressed to using real, dog-friendly dogs at a distance. Cali’s family was taught how to manage situations to make sure Cali was never put in a situation again where she felt unsafe.
Throughout the process, Cali’s family were taught techniques to read dog body language and how to alleviate stress for Cali so that she did not escalate situations anymore. The earlier that we can spot anxiety, the faster and easier it can be resolved. Although Cali’s behavior stemmed from dog attacks, a dog does not have to have a similar history to be able to respond to these same techniques. Whether your dog has a history of trauma or is just what we call a “frustrated greeter,” this same approach will work to make walks much more pleasant for you and your dog.
Cali was incredibly sweet and a fantastic student. Her family did a wonderful job of following through with their homework and saw great improvements — so much so that Cali was able to enjoy play dates with other dogs again, and side-by-side walks.
Sadly Cali has passed away, but we’re so proud of how well she and her family overcame her trauma. Old dogs can always learn new things!