The human end of the lead

Dogs are expected to tolerate so much unwanted behaviour from humans and other dogs these days! Society has high expectations of our dogs and their behaviour. However, our dogs are entitled to have preferences about who they socialise with, and when and where yet suddenly they are expected to behave as polite citizens and “put up with” unwanted behaviour from others (humans and other dogs).

When we have a dog that displays unwanted behaviours, especially out on walks it can affect us as well as our dog. We can also become reactive. Our breathing may become faster as our heart rate increases, we may tighten our grip on the lead, pull it in short – after all, we know what is coming! We may start to dread walks and feel totally helpless, judged, embarrassed and ashamed of how our dog behaves. These feelings will no doubt affect how we feel about our dog and the relationship between us.

While there is no “quick fix” for reactivity, there IS hope and we can be the beginning of that change.

Stress affects every part of our bodies including the cardiovascular system, nervous system, respiration, digestion, endocrine system, muscles, and even our reproductive system. Emotional contagion, the mirroring of emotional or arousal states between individuals, is commonly seen among species living together. Not only does emotional contagion occur within a species, but it has also been shown to occur between species, for example between dogs and humans. Short-term stress appears to be contagious between dogs and their caregivers.

As humans, we tend to focus on what could go wrong and what did go wrong. There is a reason for this - the human brain has a faster response to negative things, quickly transferring to our long-term memory much faster than positives. How often do we remember one negative comment about us and quickly forget a number of positive comments?

By changing our response to our dog’s reactivity, we can help our dogs change their behaviour. While we may not be the cause of our dogs emotional state, very often we do contribute to it.