How to stop your dog from reacting - advice from an expert dog trainer
- Rachel
- Apr 24
- 7 min read
Expert dog trainer Rachel Burn, owner of Poppets Dog Training, explains how you can help your dog if they react to people and other dogs.
Let’s talk about the best dog training to support you and your dog. The right approach will help if you’re worried about your dog reacting with barking, growling, lunging, and even biting. That’s what I answered when I was recently interviewed.
If you’ve read the first part of the interview, “Why do dogs react? Barking, biting and the bits in-between,” you’ll know WHY dogs react. You may even have started thinking about how to reduce the fear, frustration and anxiety that leads to excessive, unwanted responses to stimuli.
If you didn’t read part one, click above and take a look. You’ll find a link to bring you straight back here – excellent dog training always starts with excellent understanding.
So, let’s get going. How can dog training stop your dog from reacting? Take a walk with me…
What’s the first thing you would say to owners with a reactive dog?
Take heart.
I know it’s hard, but with the right dog training it will get better.
Your dog might be reacting to other people or dogs with excessive barking, growling or lunging. You may even be worried about them biting, although this is very uncommon.
You know fear, frustration or anxiety is the reason behind it. Now, let’s empower you to start making a change and do something about it.
Force-free reward-based training holds the answers you need – I’ve seen it work time and again.
Can you really train a dog that reacts?
Absolutely. It’s one of the most rewarding parts of my job because it equally helps the dog and their family. Neither of you is happy with the situation when a dog is reactive. Your walks are stressful, and normal life gets harder. You can feel like, “All this just wasn’t part of the plan.”
Remember, excellent dog training always starts with excellent understanding. Fear, anxiety and frustration sit behind your dog’s unwanted reactions. If these negative emotions grow, your dog is more likely to react in certain situations.
And they’ll react because they’re going to want to have a level of control over how they’re feeling. Barking, growling, lunging, or very occasionally biting, is their way of telling you they’re struggling to regulate what they’re experiencing.
The root cause of this might be a combination of personality, life experience or trauma. They’ve not learned, or had the chance to learn, the healthiest way to respond to stimuli around them. Or, in the case of trauma, they’ve learned to react in a way that makes them feel temporarily safe or in control.
Either way, your dog will need careful and thoughtful care and training to help them respond in ways that healthily bring a sense of calm, safety and satisfaction.
Why is force-free training best?
“Don’t fight fear with fear.”
You know the phrase, “Don’t try and fight fire with fire.” There’s definitely truth in it with us humans. No one wins, and situations only get worse when we don’t get to the root of a problem.
It’s the same with dog training, but I think of it more like,
“Don’t fight fear with fear.”
Some trainers still use aversive methods and a disciplinarian approach, which are unfortunately more common than we’d like. These methods have the opposite effect – they make things worse in the long run.
If fear, frustration or anxiety causes a dog to react, we need to change the story. Your dog needs to relearn their responses to what’s going on around them, and force-free reward-based training is the answer.
Tell us some more about force-free versus aversive dog training methods
Force-free reward-based training works to understand the cause of the behaviours, before training and relearning new ones that make your dog feel happy and safe. Calm, consistent training removes the fear that has caused reactions in the past.
Aversive methods seek to change behaviour with control, using punishment to stop behaviours. Your dog may conform, but they won’t feel safe. The causes of their behaviours will still be there… and their reactions may even get worse. You can’t sort out fear with fear!
Force-free dog training is based on expert best practice research, supported by the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT) and the Animal Behaviour and Training Council (ABTC). I’m a registered practitioner for both organisations, and Poppets Dog Training is fully (and proudly) force-free and reward-based. You can read more in our blog, “What you need to know about best dog training methods.”
Are there similarities between humans and dogs?
Definitely... beyond the whole two-leg, four-leg differences!
Reacting works for the dog as it makes them feel temporarily better. And remember, your dog’s motivation decides their behaviour, so think about these:
“I bark and the scary dog goes away”
“I bark and my owner takes me over to say hello”
“I lunge and the scary attention I’m getting disappears”
These reactions work for your dog when they don’t have other ways of coping. It’s us humans who find the responses socially unacceptable, so we need to help and train them with care and patience.
Think about it. If your child was struggling, you’d want them to be cared for and supported, not punished. So, once you understand your dog is reacting through fear, anxiety or frustration, you’re all set to use calm and consistent training methods to sort the problem… and see a happy, content dog.
Could you walk us through helping a reactive dog ignore other dogs?
What a great example!
This work develops over days and weeks, but you will get there.
1. Mindset: "Stepping in" is the right thing
Even though they appear excited, dogs don’t need to interact with every dog. Often, they don’t want to.
As an owner who understands this, stepping in to support your dog’s choice about whether to greet or not is a big step.
2. Aim: Be clear on what’s best
The aim is to teach the dog that they can ignore other dogs when out and about.
We want to reassure them the whole time that they are safe, they won’t get bothered by them, and they don't have to play with them. We'll reward and reinforce the behaviour we want to see
3. Start small: Work at a distance first
Take note of the other dog from a distance first.
Do this together by directing their attention to the dog before providing the rewards of fuss, close proximity to you, and food to reinforce their calmness.
4. Small safe steps: “Nothing to see here”
Once the dog is happy at a distance, we can slowly move closer.
Where another dog would previously have brought fear or anxiety, you are normalising it with a sense of calm and safety. Decide when enough is enough, calmly restoring the distance and rewarding again once your dog has reached today’s limit.
5. Take control: You’re in charge of the greeting
You are the gateway to your dog.
I often have owners approach me to ask if their dog can greet me and my dogs. Many don’t bother asking, so this is great.
Even if you’re reassured, “He just wants to say hello,” you must remember that for a reactive dog, ignoring other dogs is the best thing… that's your aim. You control when you’re happy to introduce a greeting, generally with a dog you know, with you very close by, and with rewards on hand to reinforce the behaviour you want to see.
Would you train all dogs in the same way?
Force-free reward-based training principles do work and are best for all dogs. They replace fear, anxiety and frustration with calm, consistency and safety. They deal with the root cause of the problem and create lasting behaviour change.
But all dogs are different. Their reactions change based on the breed and their previous experiences, so training must also match the individual dog.
For example, collies are movement focused. They’re more likely to react to moving cars or objects, as they are bred to herd and chase. If their herding instinct and need to please aren’t being met, unexpected movements will trigger them. Training and rewards around these responses are key for them.
Small breeds get the rough end of the deal. They’re often steamrolled by larger dogs and then react. It’s not just “little man syndrome!” Training and rewards based on ignoring dogs and calm interactions will help them manage their sense of safety.
This is where my expertise and experience come in – I adapt training to the specific needs of the dog and their family.
Any other top tips about body language and diet?
Dogs read body language from us and other dogs well. If we’re hyped up or anxious in a situation, they will be too. If we shout, it will raise their stress levels. The best dog training focuses on the dog and their family, so working with a good dog trainer who uses reward-based methods will give you a clear plan. With a clear plan, you’ll lead your dog with the calmness and confidence they need to help them stop reacting.
And to finish on food… diet and good nutrition are always important. I’m happiest when I’m well-fed, so are my kids, and so are our dogs!
From Rachel, Owner of Poppets Dog Training
Have you read our case study about a family who worked with Poppets Dog Training to support them and their reactive dog?
Reading their story will give you even more of a picture of what the right dog training can do for your dog and your family.
Your dog’s reactions may even have reached a point where you’re worried about taking them for a walk or visitors coming to your house. You’re not alone. The behaviour change you want is closer than you think… force-free reward-based dog training works.
Next steps?
Do you have questions about Poppets Dog Training and what we're doing across Nuneaton and Warwickshire... or just need a bit of help?
Get in touch - I’d love to meet you and your four-legged friend.
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